2014 African Americans!

Student Lounge African-American Students
1261

<p>I just thought I’d add this (a little late) to supplement justadream92’s experience.</p>

<p>Unlike justadream92, I did not enjoy my stay at Princeton. Not. At. All. </p>

<p>The food was excellent, to tell the truth. My dorm, Bloomberg (in Butler College) was beautiful, with hardwood flooring, nice use of natural lighting, and an easygoing atmosphere. Though I did not have much to discuss with my host, as she declared her interest in shopping and the opposite sex upon our meeting–two things that I am not particularly enthusiastic about–she was extremely friendly and quite nice for the time I was there. As I was in a triple, there was another prospective student being hosted there. She was a truly fascinating individual and a pleasure to be with for the three days I was there. The bathroom facilities, in contrast to Columbia’s, where I also stayed, were practically pristine. The student body was extremely friendly and welcoming. And the campus was quite beautiful. </p>

<p>But now on to the social aspects.</p>

<p>The first thing I noticed at Princeton was a lack of diversity–not diversity of race (which wasn’t exactly great either), but diversity of experience. My hosts were all Asian, as was the other student I was being hosted with. However, that was quite all right, as the other student I was being hosted with had had an educational experience that was quite the opposite of mine, so it was really interesting talking with her. My hosts, on the other hand, had had practically identical experiences–none of which I could relate to–and so conversations quickly stagnated once we realized there was not much of a common ground from which to operate. We did manage to have several interesting conversations on the Woodrow Wilson School, though, so it wasn’t all that bad. I met current Princeton students from a variety of interesting backgrounds, including an individual from Bulgaria who spent 20 minutes talking his head off about why I should attend Princeton to an exchange student from France by way of the Czech Repubulic who was organizing a Croatian film festival. I enjoyed myself immensely, but the following days would prove not to be as good.</p>

<p>The next day, I met with a lot more of the admitted students. I hung out with a group of them for a while, going to some of the events on campus and just taking in the scene on Nassau St. However, all I managed to get from their students was an impression that they thought rather highly of themselves, that their greatest accomplishment was learning how to speak French, and that they couldn’t wait to begin studying abroad because they’d finally be able to splurge in myriad boutiques. The so-called elitist atmosphere at Princeton reared its ugly head, and I saw it more and more throughout the day. My hosts were fairly affluent–and said so outright–but didn’t make that the focus of their discussions. The prospective students I encountered, however, did–and it got on my last f@#$ing nerve. </p>

<p>Later in the day, I met up with a group of African-American and African students. A few questions from me proved that they were not interested in discussing diversity, and one individual said, “Just come to Princeton! You can worry about being black later.”</p>

<p>I made a -_- face, because being black is not an idle preoccupation on my part: it is a reality I deal with every day, something that the gentleman evidently forgot. </p>

<p>As I was stewing in my anger, I decided to go meet the young Democrats and the international club (that does MUN and the like), where I met with a group of people I immediately liked immensely. Here, talking about ideas was quite normal, and there were no snide inquiries as to where I had studied abroad–and no raised eyebrows and snickers when I said that I hadn’t been able to. </p>

<p>That was my Princeton experience. As justadream92’s post shows, different people had different experiences there. However, it isn’t the right school for me, and there’s not a snowball’s chance in hell I’ll be going there. To all 2015ers and 2014ers, best of luck in making your decision. Throw a pm my way if you have any more private questions.</p>

1262

<p>I’m going to Northwestern to visit my friend. I’m just gonna stay for the weekend. I figure why not get a more impartial point of reference right?</p>

<p>P.S. I will be 4 or 5ing my AP psych test, 3 4 or 5 on stats, and 3 or 4 on english (lit)</p>

1263

<p>I think I can reasonably expect a 5 on Literature, Government, and Art History. Spanish is a toss-up, as is Calculus; I could score anywhere from a 2 to 5 on either exam. Biology is a definite failure, but I shall wear my impending “1” exam score with pride.</p>

1264

<p>@ksarmand Have you visited Harvard yet?
I am curious to know what you think of the elitism there.</p>

1265

<p>^Since I haven’t yet visited, I have yet to form a definite opinion. I’m actually leaning towards Columbia because I was admitted into the Scholars Program and just because I love NYC, despite the filthiness of the dorm bathrooms. Harvard (despite what my location may lead you to believe) is not definite just yet; the school will have to make an exceptionally strong case at prefrosh for me to attend in the fall. But the fact that there is a Haitian restaurant nearby substantially impacts my decision; Columbia doesn’t have one.</p>

<p>And the elitism I encountered wasn’t really among the student body, though it certainly was evident. It was among the admitted students where I found it to be at its worst.</p>

<p>Edit: There. I’ve changed my location. :)</p>

1266

<p>^If I’m reading correctly, it sounds like you’re going to prefrosh weekend. If so, could you please write a post about your experience there? I have to miss out, given that I was In Cambridge and briefly visited last weekend, that I have prior commitments which would cause me to be there for only one day, and that all flights at the earliest time which I could leave were exorbitantly priced. I feel like my parents are going to make me go to Harvard, so I’m trying to find a way to not be sad about that, and more info is better.</p>

1267

<p>^I’d be delighted to do so. I’m actually going to be doing a post on Columbia’s Perspectives on Diversity/Days on Campus as well; it’s just that I’m swamped with homework at the moment (please overlook the obvious contradiction of this statement due to the fact that I’m still online). :wink: </p>

<p>…oh, the horrors of going to Hahvahd! I can’t imagine how horrible that must be for you. :rolleyes: Would you really rather MIT that much? You can still cross-register if you’re so in love it.</p>

1268

<p>^I know, I know. I sound so horribly ungrateful and spoiled when I complain about it. It’s just that I really do greatly prefer MIT (my mother says I have been brainwashed), but not on account of any problem with Harvard, which is, as I’m well aware, a fantastic school. As evidence of that, despite my tries to find something wrong with it to convince my parents that I should not go there, I’ve found nothing. </p>

<p>Cross registering isn’t the same! I’ve already picked out my top three dorms :(.</p>

<p>It’s just that I never really wanted to go all that much. I applied because a friend said it was cool there. To be honest, I wasn’t even all that excited when I got in, and I spent most of the rest of the day focusing on/crying about my Yale waitlist. I’m sure, if I end up there, that I’ll like it, maybe even love it after a while, but I feel like there will be this little idea in the back of my mind, like “you could have been over there!”</p>

1269

<p>now that I’ve had some time to process the preview, I’m going to piggy back off of what ksarmand said … I don’t think ill be happy there . She’s right . It was definitely segregated and I don’t feel comfortable with the snobbery … My host was affluent and didn’t really show it . But he happened to be black and when I asked him about the black experience on campus, he was pretty clueless, as he disassociated himself from the black student union and the other black groups on campus . I’m not judging him, but it was just a reality check for me. A lot of the prefrosh were in fact snobbish and flashy . I felt like the general atmosphere wasn’t really supportive to first generation college students and minorities in general . I hope stanford is way better … I’m leaving for cali on thursday so I’m pretty excited with it being my first time and all .</p>

<p>AP exams … Grr uhhh, I think I have a chance at 5s on Gov and Lit ; micro … Sad story smh and so is physics . The thing with me though is that I was eligible for reduced payments and the total price was negligible so I don’t feel like I’m really losing anything . My teachers are kicking my butt because they know that I don’t have any incentive to study for them .</p>

1270

<p>I’m going to Cornell!! :)</p>

1271

<p>Does anyone else ever get annoyed with people asking “have you decided on a college”? That and having to say I haven’t decided? It makes me feel stupid sometimes. Because I’m just like I don’t know yet. But it still is important.</p>

1272

<p>Congratulations on making your decision, gigi2010!</p>

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<p>Annoyance is too taxing for me, as my mental energies are diverted towards more fulfilling pursuits. Stonewalling works quite nicely; perhaps you could try it as well. :)</p>

<p>Or, to take a more polite route, you could simply respond that you’re choosing from a few schools and will know for sure by May. That usually gets most of them to shut up and leave.</p>

1273

<p>Congrats gigi2010 :)</p>

1274

<p>If any of you have questions about being African-American at Harvard, PM me. I’m just browsing and I see some interesting thoughts and ideas about school-life here (academic, social, etc.).
And I know it’s right around the corner, but if you can, COME TO PREFROSH WEEKEND! It made my decision (or at least helped me narrow it…) and I highly encourage it to you all!</p>

1275

<p>Glad someone started this thread, and glad I found it. I’m headed to Pepperdine this fall, trusting everything works out beyond that.</p>

1276

<p>Deciding between UPenn and Brown. Please PM me if you have had any visits to either school, thank you!</p>

1277

<p>@decanela, I visited Brown a few days ago, and I’ve visited Penn 3 times. You can PM me if you want my input :)</p>

1278

<p>So, I haven’t been on here in ages! Has everyone made their final decisions??? I haven’t :S But I am almost positive that Princeton’s the way to go!</p>

<p>@beautifulnerd: Have you decided to go to Princeton? I wasn’t sure if your location was updated or not!
@justadream: Have you ruled out Princeton completely? And how was your DOC for Columbia?</p>

1279

<p>Picking a college is so much suspense. It’s like the freaking NFL draft.</p>

1280

<p>Stanford Admit Weekend </p>

<p>the very first 15 minutes that i was on campus, i was completely sold. it was honestly like magic. first of all, since it was my first time in california, i couldnt help but drool over the scenery of the sillicon valley. it was almost too perfect and surreal to be true. the palm trees, the hills, the rivers … i was just awestruck! i was greeted by a tall black man and when he said “welcome to stanford, young man,” i got chills lol and no, im not overexaggerating. everything from that moment onwards just felt right. i dont know if anyone else got that “epiphany moment” when they visited a college. after months of virtual tours and picture gazing, i was actually there … a dream came true that day. </p>

<p>at check in, all of the volunteers were so excited to see us and they were charismatic and loud! i could tell that they were all sincerely happy and that it wasn’t a stage show. all of the prefrosh were staring at them like they were crazy but we all warmed up to their demeanor and engaged in a lot of conversational interaction in the court yard that they had us in for a continental breakfast. during that time, i met some great people and surprisingly enough, there were a lot of New York/East Coast kids. it was good because we all had a lot in common about our views on being far away from home. in the end though, just about all of us have decided that being away can actually be a good thing and as far as i know, all of us will be committing. anyway, the people i met were by far the most impressing to me. they all have accomplished so much that it’s kinda scary to be around them. but what’s even better is that none of them wear their lives on their sleeves. you would never guess who did what because no one was boastful and everyone seemed to be greatly humbled, which was totally different (and refreshing) from what i got at the east coast schools i visited. all of the stanford officials i met were scarily enthusiastic with welcoming first-generation students and they seem very committed to providing us with the resources and support we need to thrive.</p>

<p>i stayed in ujamaa, which is the black theme house. i was glad to find out that only about 40% of the dorm residents were actually black while the rest were white, asian, latino … you name it ! as a matter of fact, one of the RAs there is white and my RoHo (room host) was spanish. ujamaa seems to be different from the other ethnic theme houses because it’s so vibrant with diversity and activity. i also checked out some of the other 4-class dorms and the all-freshman dorms and most of the living quarters for underclassmen tended not to vary greatly in terms of quality … all of the rooms seem spacious, comfortable, adequately furnished and overall, pretty nice! the food was great too and the bathrooms also. </p>

<p>what i really appreciated was how active, organized and tight the black community was at stanford. i didnt have to go searching for them like i did at other schools. they integrate perfectly with the community at large, yet the community prides itself on really staying committed to the idea of a true family … at the Black Recruitement Orientation Committee (BROC) welcome, they really emphasized how they don’t categorize anyone or castrate anyone because they may have different tastes in music, style in clothing, income level … the whole shabang. they kept saying that black is BLACK, regardless of anything else, and that they really look out for each other. i saw some black fraternities and sororities, the NAACP, the BSU and other groups there really welcoming the class of 2014. it was great.</p>

<p>i went to a few academic expos and my questions on the IR Department were answered. they have a great program and they also encourage a lot of research with faculty. i met some professors and spoke with them and they all seem pretty chill and open to having their students do things with them. i was talking to an IR student and she said that just a few weeks ago, her professor invited her to have dinner with him and Kofi Annan lol that’s just sick ! they’re required to study abroad and not all of the programs have language requirements. the only thing i’m really not looking forward to are the GRs in engineering and the humanities but ive been given some advice on how to take the easy way out of them and get to working on my major. i also talked with some kids about the Stanford in DC program and they all absolutely reccommended it. ive been told that the workload (as expected) was “treacherous but manageable (with a smirk)” but everyone was really nice and they seemed like they were all willing to help you get through it so you can have time to play frisbee or volleyball with them lol. </p>

<p>on the note of sports, on the first day, i was eating lunch and a quarterback just sat down next to me . i wouldve never knew it if he didnt mention anything about the nfl draft that was going on thursday. he was so down to earth! the athletic facilities are amazing . i saw the track and the gyms and was blown away by it all. everyone was riled up for the stanford vs cal baseball game (they hate cal) and it was nice seeing school spirit and listening to their infamous marching band (the one that got in a lot of trouble at a notre dame game and the one that got banned from south-west airlines lmao … they’re so badass) </p>

<p>the nightlife/general social life seems pretty good too … they scheduled a few prefrosh parties throughout the weekend and just like the rest of them, they tended to be like 8th grade dances. the prefrosh were doing weird dance moves that made things pretty awkward the next day after passing them on the street lmao i refrained from dancing after watching them try to grind on each other to taylor swift songs smh. that was to be expected though, so most of the prefrosh ended up doing their own thing … acapella concerts at the amphitheatre, dance expos, lounging at tressidor, smash bros/brawl tournaments, fountain hopping (lol) … a whole bunch of stuff. i wish i stayed a little longer because i wanted to head out into San Francisco to see what was going on.</p>

<p>when i got some down time in the mornings, i left my friends every now and then and went off exploring. i walked so much and the sunny skies and 75 degree temperatures didnt help; a bike is definitely imperative. i deff didnt know that stanford was the second largest university in area in the world (moscow state in russia is 1st). thats the only thing that i really dont like. im sure with a bike it’ll be all good but GOSH ! i didnt really mind walking though because the architecture and plants were just so captivating … especially the main quad. it was like walking through madrid . honestly, stanford is like a resort for the type of student who loves to be intellectually challenged without the unneeded stress of intercompetition and snobbery. there were so many fountains and half naked people walking around that i forgot that it was a school sometimes. everything is just huge and all you can do is tilt your head back and marvel at everything like some kind of lost tourist. it was just beautiful and i cant fathom why anyone would want to be anywhere else in the world lol (oh no, no bias intended). </p>

<p>so, that weekend concluded my whole college process. yes, the sweat, tears and long, sleepless nights were totally worth it for me to find my dream school, apply, miraculously get accepted, visit and now, attend. once again, i owe all of this to God and i consider myself truly blessed to be a Cardinal with the FANTASTIC CLASS OF 2014!</p>

<p>@glitterz<em>iz</em>gold: haha yes, i have completely ruled out pton and i didn’t apply to columbia =P</p>