<p>That's what I am planning to do. Originally, I was dead set on MIT, but now, I see a bit of MIT in Stanford... So i'll try to be as objective as possible.</p>
<p>I'm not sure precisely what you mean by "too small" -- though something along those lines is why I went with a larger school myself.</p>
<p>Well, although it's not a big part of my college choice, Caltech's size is so small to the point of claustrophobia... a bit like high school. I'd like to have a bit more of a cosmopolitan college life. And boston trumps pasadena. No question here.</p>
<p>Hey faraday,</p>
<p>I'm a freshman at Stanford right now and I think you ask an important question. Stanford is definitely no MIT. (I have a friend who now goes to MIT and I think felt much the same as you do in high school. She's insanely happy there). At Stanford we like to call ourselves "unpretentious," which is really a somewhat pretentious way of saying that if you met the average Stanford student on the street, you might not realize that they went to an elite university. That said, there are plenty of ways to get yourself involved in the intellectual life at Stanford, and there's no reason you should think that the only peers you'll have in your intellectual interests are grad students and professors. Here's a few ways that you can find the "intellectualism" you're looking for freshman year, and these might be few things you could look into while making your decision.</p>
<p>First of all, there are two residential options for students like yourself. One is the residential program SLE, or Structured Liberal Education. Basically, SLE is a program where students attend classes on literature and the classics in their dorm. That probably doesn't sound like what you're looking for, and is definitely very humanities-focused, but it also tends to in general attract people with strong intellectual interests and places them in the same dorm. I've heard that you can find a lot of physics majors in SLE, and it's definitely a place where you're likely to discuss intellectual topics at the dinner table.</p>
<p>The second option is Freshman-Sophomore College, which is a two-year dorm that holds special academic programming, but not classes like SLE. FroSoCo tends to attract a "nerdier" crowd, AKA, plenty of people who will enjoy discussing relativity in the lunch line, and is less humanities-focused than SLE. Either way, you'll find lots of cool and interesting people in both programs.</p>
<p>Academically, I would suggest that you check out the Math 50H series and the Physics 60 series, which are designed for freshmen with a strong interest in (and exceptional talent in) either math or physics. These classes, though notorious for their heavy workloads, will introduce you to lots of students with interests like yours. And if you're really passionate about "techie" subjects, I think you would find the heavy workloads worth it.</p>
<p>Anyway, these are a few of the options you should look into while considering whether or not Stanford will provide the atmosphere you want. Congrats on your acceptances and good luck choosing your university!</p>
<p>That's legitimate. I actually sort of chose based on the academic differences between a large and small school =]</p>
<p>Though I can't deny, having a large school atmosphere is very nice. It's wonderful to just roam around in aimlessly at nights, when too mentally fried to work.</p>
<p>faraday, sorry that I did not know you got in MIT already. I thought we have to wait till April 1. If you go and visit MIT, you probably will hate it because the campus is more or less like warehouses ( sorry that was my feeling 15 years ago when I was there for a visit, maybe something has changed). Anyway, one of the kids I know who is Intel finalist recently visited MIT and had the same feeling. If you like MIT, just don't compare Stanford campus with MIT's. I will supply the cross-admit info of HYPSM from last year to you when I have time. A lot of info is implied in those data.</p>
<p>My D is admitted to Stanford and is considering SLE but is worried it will separate her from the greater student body. She would love to have some feedback from current SLE students and non SLE students to help her make a decision. It will be an academic and a social decision as the students live together.</p>
<p>I'd say if she wants to do SLE-go for it! I'm a non SLE student who heard that they were socially isolated but they really aren't. It's just a perception. Not that I would ever consider SLE personally, I hate the artsy/liberal arts/classics stuff, but definitely get along with people who love it. It's just a stereotype. Also, all the people in SLE live in FloMo which has a lot of frosh (though I think it'll have less due to the new housing scheme). Now Frosoco on the other hand...</p>
<p>What exactly is the stereotype of the students in SLE? I believe they are all freshman. Are they more intellectually curious? Does the program or do the students seem pretentious? Is the work load extreme?</p>
<p>They are all freshman. The stereotype that I have encountered is that they are the aloof intellectual who cares a little too much about things that really don't matter. I think it would be fair to say that they are more intellectualy curious about the humanities/liberal arts, but I've also found that you will find some hard core math and physics majors in SLE as well. Actually, to be honest, most people feel SLE is overcreddited, that is it is less work than the credit you are getting for it. Also, you get done with IHUM and PWR as well, which amounts to 5 classes for people as opposed to 3 classes of SLE. But that being said, it's a living community as well as an academic one so perhaps it deserves its 9 units. Just for comparison, most classes are either 4-5 units. The pretension-I have to be honest I've never heard someone call SLE pretentious, but I do not think I would be surprised if some people called it that. If you have any other questions, feel free to ask!</p>
<p>Back to intellectualism, Stanford does have students that have discussions. However, they might not be as apparent, sometimes (like other colleges).</p>