<p>Hi everyone,</p>
<p>So putting aside my stats and "chances of getting in," I was wondering if I could get some advice on which school I should apply early to for admittance into the class of 2017. The three that I've found myself most taken with are Stanford, Columbia, and Brown.</p>
<p>A little bit about myself to give some perspective...</p>
<p>-I love traveling and being around people of different cultures/backgrounds. It's definitely important for me to go to a school with a significant international population.
-I'm pretty into sports and hope to play club soccer and tennis.
-My prospective majors are international relations, political science, biology, and/or neuroscience (i know all three of these schools offer one or more of these in some form or another so that's not TOO much of an issue).
-I hope to be able to double major with a social science and biological science or at least do a social science major with a pre-med track
-I do enjoy being in a city-like environment, but I feel like I can put that wish aside until grad school if I have to.
-I want to be part of an intellectual environment (which I'm sure I would get at any of these schools) but also want to have a good social life and be able to go out without feeling too stressed about it. </p>
<p>So, if you guys could give me your opinions on which school you think I should go for and why, I would really appreciate it! Thanks so much.</p>
<p>Go Stanford EA if you can’t choose.
If you apply to Stanford EA, then you can still decide which school you want once its said and done.</p>
<p>*“Restrictive Early Action is a non-binding admission option for students who have completed a thorough college search and are confident Stanford is their first choice.”<a href="%5Burl=http://admission.stanford.edu/application/decision_process/restrictive.html%5DRestrictive%20Early%20Action%20:%20Stanford%20University%5B/url%5D">/i</a></p>
<p>So if you’re confident Stanford is your first choice, then apply to Stanford EA. If you’re not, then apply RD. Ditto for Columbia or any other school. Use Restrictive EA or ED if you’re confident it is your first choice (and if the early option won’t preclude comparison of need-based aid offers). Nothing in the information you provide screams out that one is better for you than the others. These are 3 rather different schools, but you haven’t indicated any specific preferences or concerns about the distinctive features of any of them.</p>
<p>The only downside to applying Stanford EA is that it keeps you from applying to other schools EA…
Non-restrictive EA is not that beneficial at most top-level schools that do it, like U of Chicago, but single-choice EA at Stanford could give you an extra push…</p>
<p>Oh Lord, if you’re seriously considering both Brown and Columbia, don’t apply to either ED. While they are both urban Ivies, yes, they are very different. Even in being “urban,” Providence is a much different sort of city–much cuter, quieter, cleaner–than Manhattan. And then if you’d enjoy the Core, you might not be the best pleased with Brown’s lack of common intellectual grounding. Vice versa also applies. I’m sure that some people at Brown and Columbia seriously considered the other one, but at this point in the application cycle, it is a big red flag not to apply for binding acceptance.</p>
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<p>Other private schools… Stanford REA does not disallow you from applying EA to public schools, rolling admissions schools, schools where early application is needed for scholarship consideration, or foreign schools.</p>
<p>[Restrictive</a> Early Action : Stanford University](<a href=“http://www.stanford.edu/dept/uga/application/decision_process/restrictive.html]Restrictive”>http://www.stanford.edu/dept/uga/application/decision_process/restrictive.html)</p>
<p>To answer the OP’s question, ED is appropriate only if a school is your clear first choice. If it is not, then do not apply ED.</p>
<p>@exultationsy- I’m fully aware of how different the two schools are academically because I’ve visited and researched both, but I keep convincing myself that I could really go either way. My academic interests are varied enough that I really would enjoy the core at Columbia, but on the other hand if I decide I like Brown better, I’ll have a greater opportunity to double major in two completely different fields. </p>
<p>The fact that Columbia is also located in NYC really gives it a boost in my eyes, but at the same time I found myself really liking the feel of Providence when I was visiting Brown. I’m totally stuck!!</p>
<p>Ok…not to sound negative, but you are assuming that you are a strong candidate for all three schools. Stanford REA is really difficult for folks in the middle…they get deferred a lot, since the pool is ultra competitive.</p>
<p>Don’t know if Brown or Columbia ED may have a better boost applying ED. Of course, you need to be sure to commit there if admitted. If you are not sure of either, just apply to Stanford REA (as it is non binding). But in doing that, you may be letting go of any extra boost to your application for Brown or Columbia (that is if their ED gives a slight more edge, which I think it does, unlike Stanford).</p>