Another undecided one! :( --> Columbia vs. Harvard, Brown and Stanford

Colleges and Universities A-Z Columbia University
1

<p>Can I get some advice from you guys?</p>

<p>Things I'm taking into account</p>

<p>1) Their undergrad Theatre/Art History/Classics Dept.
2) Social life - not a smoker, quite a drinker, love to go out and dance, very gay
3) how recognized a uni is INTERNATIONALLY (you'd be surprised how little European people care for Stanford, obviously)</p>

<p>Any advice? </p>

<p>My thoughts now:</p>

<p>Brown - seems nice, but is the weakest academics-wise. I've heard it's "very liberal". What does that mean?
Columbia - not sure of its academic rep compared to Stanford and Harvard, NYC seems too huge to handle
Stanford - noone told me anything unique about stanford why I should go there and not anywhere else. everyone simply says "it's an great school".
Harvard - obviously best academics-wise, and the only one <em>everyone</em> knows of, but I'm scared that it's socially dull and that it's a lot harder to handly (studying and all) than the remaining three.</p>

<p>I hope this doesn't seem like showing off, I sincerely need help deciding. Gimme your best, folks!</p>

<p>Thanks :)</p>

2

<p>why do you think brown is weaker academically?</p>

<p>harvard is the strongest in terms of prestige</p>

<p>stanford may be the strongest in terms of wealth of undergrad resources, though it depends on what you want to study</p>

<p>brown may be the best in terms of pursuing a unique course of study and living a multidimensional life</p>

<p>columbia may be the best in terms of getting a good core knowledge of the classics</p>

<p>visit all and go with your gut</p>

3

<p>If I were you I’d go to Harvard, and I have no personal bias b/c I didn’t apply there…</p>

<p>Anyways, I know only 2 girls who go to H and they love it–and, no, they aren’t “geeks” with no social lives; they are two of the prettiest girls I know and both have plenty of fun going out into Cambridge and Boston-they say that, yes, there are lots of stereotypical geeks at H, but you’ll get that at all of the schools you are considering. Harvard has the best location IMO b/c it’s not going to lure everyone of campus like NYC for Columbia where there is less of a campus community, yet still there to explore with friends. Also, the people like you who want to party and have fun at H all find each other eventually…I think you’ll be fine there socially and choose not to hang out in the library 24/7. </p>

<p>Academically, the school is amazing, but not too hard that you will have a heart attack by your sophmore year-the school is actually known for its grade inflation, where many students get easy A’s in classes-but in others you will have to put in the effort (It is Harvard after all).</p>

<p>Honestly, Harvard seems to have the best location, is very liberal and open-minded to gay students such as yourself, and prestigious beyond belief. You can make Harvard as academic or as fun as you want-you can choose to go out dancing and partying if you want, and will surely find others to join you. </p>

<p>I also think Brown would be a good fit. Great academics with so much freedom to choose which courses you want to take and what you want to concentrate in…also plenty of parties (Have you heard of SexPowerGod? So many fellow gay students who love to dance and party at Brown–socially this is most likely the best school for you in the country. And, no, the school is not as well known as Harvard, but seriously, it an ivy and people know of Brown, especially those who matter and will be hiring you for a job. (And surely people in Europe know of Brown–Emma Watson applied to both there and Harvard, after all! lol) Providence RI is a pretty cool place as well, but not as exciting as NYC or Boston…</p>

<p>Good luck with your college choice! I hope you choose Harvard or Brown because I believe you will be happiest at either of the two; anyone would be lucky to be in your position!</p>

4

<p>I would not think so much about prestige and name recognition and instead think about what institution will fit you best for four years. Four years, man, that’s a long time. You wanna choose a school you’ll love, not just a school that can impress people. Cause if you’re not digging your school, you won’t even give a sh1t about prestige two years in when you’re trying to transfer out.</p>

<p>In terms of art history/classics, Columbia puts all undergrads through a set of required classes called the Core which does focus a lot on classic European writing and art pieces. You might be interested in that.</p>

5

<p>All three schools meet your criteria pretty well, the programs in art history/classics will be comparable at an undergrad level. the differences come from the quality of the student body and the overall undergrad experience. For humanity majors and classes, the quality of the student body and difficulty of classes doesn’t vary much between these schools. The undergrad experience does. If you want name recognition it’s H hands down. Your social life wants will be fulfilled everywhere. People tend to drink more than smoke, and going out dancing is pretty standard in nyc, providence, cambridge or palo alto. All schools are gay enough. they’re all socially liberal, brown is the most liberal, stanford is in california, Col is in NYC, and H is still pretty liberal. liberal = accepting, progressive, left leaning, socialist etc.</p>

<p>NYC is not “too huge to handle” we have a separate standalone campus, you don’t have to handle nyc. One thing you do have to be at Columbia is independent, entrepreneurial, initiative taking. NYC and Columbia is a massive resource and if you don’t harness these resources to your advantage, you will begin to fall behind the competition.<br>
Columbia’s academic are comparable to any top university’s. You won’t find much of a difference is overall academic quality between these schools at the undergrad level. H is not much harder nor socially dull, nor does it have better academics for the humanities at the undergrad level. </p>

<p>Choose the university which fits you well and ask more questions on here / tell us more about what sort of person you are and what you want.</p>

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<p>with concoll completely. there is not much difference between all the schools with the exception that Columbia is in NYC.</p>

<p>I’d say it is a huge advantage re: getting involved, being politically and socially active. if you are gay there is not a better city to meet people, to get comfortable. i know gay friends from Harvard and Stanford who are very closeted and cloistered, at Columbia it is so normal in the city that it is really easy to be yourself without worrying about how it might effect you in your college community. </p>

<p>RE: international branding, that is tough to discuss because all these schools have a lot of presence in the world. Harvard has a lot, but I’d say Columbia is one of the few other schools that has in roads into a lot of places, and it has a larger international population than Harvard usually - if that means anything to you.</p>

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<p>I’d say Brown is probably the most socially liberal in terms of openness of homosexuality, if that was one of your concerns. I’d say the only reason to pick Columbia over H and S, which have more raw academic prestige and undergrad resources, would be the attraction of NYC. </p>

<p>And you really need to be very sure about whether your looking for structure and having your course decisions made for you, or whether you want the freedom to make all of your decisions. </p>

<p>I’d say go with feel, and if you really cant decide at the end of the day, just go with Harvard.</p>

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<p>in terms of openness and receptivity to homosexuality? NYC is the east coast cultural home for all things queer. the Stonewall revolution started here for chrissakes, and you can’t throw a rock in Chelsea without hitting a pair of guys who are holding hands. On Columbia’s campus I went 4 years without seeing a single sign of homophobia, even from athletes, and there’s all sorts of pride events (not to mention the pride parade) and groups, if he’s really looking to meet a supportive group of people like himself.</p>

<p>Brown and Columbia are two totally different campus cultures. Columbia has more in common with Harvard than with the others on your list. There is grade inflation at all the schools - if you work hard you’ll get A’s in all locations. I’m not sure what other factoids we can throw at you, aside from the fact that Columbia has a long history of having noted scholars in Classics and Art History, and have a wide number of theatrical productions on campus every semester. If you want to MAJOR in theater, don’t come to Columbia (we don’t have such a major although you can take classes across the street at Barnard), but there’s no lack of opportunities. And, of course, Broadway is right outside our door. Students probably see an average of 2 shows a semester.</p>

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<p>“If you want to MAJOR in theater, don’t come to Columbia (we don’t have such a major …”
[Drama</a> & Theatre Arts | Columbia College](<a href=“http://www.college.columbia.edu/bulletin/depts/drama.php]Drama”>http://www.college.columbia.edu/bulletin/depts/drama.php)</p>

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<p>Oh my, thanks guys for all of this.</p>

<p>Yeah, a lot of people told that I’d be somewhere between Harvard and Brown. </p>

<p>I know Columbia has a separate campus, but do students generally stick around campus? if you get what I’m trying to say.</p>

<p>about brown, how important is to be liberal, politics-wise? I mean, I’m socially liberal, politically not so much (socialism and stuff). Generally I’m not that into politics, so how much presence do politics have on campus? </p>

<p>What about the core requirements at these colleges? Do they differ or is it all pretty much the same? </p>

<p>(I know these are the things I’m supposed to find out on my own, but I don’t have the time to spend 2 days browsing the web and reading about it during finals, which are now. Ugh, everything is so rushed! :D)</p>

<p>about me as a person - I love to know. As much as I can. So I study 5 nights a week and then I party the remaining 2. I’m very outgoing if the situation is secure - i.e. if I’m with my friends in a normal environment. I’m not into sports, much more of an arts person - drama, dance, literature. The problem is I get intimidated by huge unkown places so I need a place where I’ll feel welcome.</p>

<p>Wow, so original, isn’t it? :D</p>

11

<p>Oh my, thanks guys for all of this.</p>

<p>Yeah, a lot of people told that I’d be somewhere between Harvard and Brown. </p>

<p>I know Columbia has a separate campus, but do students generally stick around campus? if you get what I’m trying to say.</p>

<p>about brown, how important is to be liberal, politics-wise? I mean, I’m socially liberal, politically not so much (socialism and stuff). Generally I’m not that into politics, so how much presence do politics have on campus? </p>

<p>What about the core requirements at these colleges? Do they differ or is it all pretty much the same? </p>

<p>(I know these are the things I’m supposed to find out on my own, but I don’t have the time to spend 2 days browsing the web and reading about it during finals, which are now. Ugh, everything is so rushed! :D)</p>

<p>about me as a person - I love to know. As much as I can. So I study 5 nights a week and then I party the remaining 2. I’m very outgoing if the situation is secure - i.e. if I’m with my friends in a normal environment. I’m not into sports, much more of an arts person - drama, dance, literature. The problem is I get intimidated by huge unkown places so I need a place where I’ll feel welcome.</p>

<p>Wow, so original, isn’t it? :D</p>

12

<p>If you get intimidated by huge unknown places, I would avoid Columbia-my cousin just graduated from there and said the campus really empties out on the weekends because students explore NYC, and cliques form pretty quickly. At Columbia, nobody is going to hold you hand, and the students are stereotypically more like “cold” New Yorkers who aren’t as inclined to start up a random conversation with you as they would at somewhere else like Brown or Harvard-but once you break the ice you can make friends easily enough. NYC might be intimidating and not what you’re looking for (it’s initially intimidating for everyone). Your best bet is to go to Brown or Harvard, which undoubtedly have more of the stereotypical welcoming campus community with students throwing frisbees on the quad and whatnot. They have more of the atmosphere you are looking for.</p>

13

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<p>yes they do, but not for the whole weekend, you usually go off campus a little bit. </p>

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</p>

<p>I don’t know what you mean by undergrad resources, they have a greater endowment which leads to better facilities, financial aid etc. But Columbia is extremely undergrad focused, more so than H. I don’t know what you mean by academic prestige, but all three are regarded at nearly an equal plane when it comes to academia. Academic rigor is similar. Columbia has more nobel prize affiliations than any institutions on earth, yes - more than Cambridge, Harvard, Chicago and MIT. But H & S have more prestige and name recognition. Columbia attracts top professors in every field and is often rated the best (or one of the best) research institutions in the country. NYC is a massive resource. </p>

<p>

this is an exaggeration, the campus cannot empty out, there is a lot of life on campus on the weekends. your cousin must have not liked Columbia, and must not have gone out of his way to make friends, I’m not super popular, but I get invited to parties and outings like clockwork every weekend. It really isn’t difficult if you make some friends.</p>

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<p>Columbia does have a campus and a campus feel, it is welcoming and Columbians are proud that they go to Columbia. It isn’t a warm fuzzy place, there is confrontation, political activism, cynicism and realism. You are whipped out of your comfort zone.</p>

<p>I will say this again: Columbia is not for someone who isn’t entrepreneurial, other colleges are cozier and you can be happy just getting by and doing your bit. At Columbia if you don’t strive to make something great of yourself you will begin to fall behind and dislike it, I’ve seen this over and over again. the people who are unhappy have only themselves to blame. however, if you do go out and grab opportunity by the neck, you’ll love it and just thrive here, there’s literally no ceiling.</p>

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<p>When you think of Columbia’s campus you have to change your interpretation of a campus. </p>

<p>Columbia does have an insular campus that allows you to feel shielded from the outside world, but not as much happens on this strictly defined university owned campus. Columbia’s real campus is Manhattan. Everything is so accessible and there is simply so much to do that boredom is nonexistent. I have always thought when people talk about a lot to do on campus and a strong campus community that those things only exist because the city around the school doesn’t offer enough.</p>

15

<p>Um, the majority of Columbia students are not from New York and therefore they are not stereotypically like “cold” New Yorkers. First, the stereotype of the cold New Yorker is a myth – I’m an actual New Yorker (grew up in Queens) and people comment on how much I smile at others; the people at Columbia are very friendly. We’re just not all on top of each other. We invite warm debate and acticism.</p>

<p>New York is not intimidating for everyone. Some people love the size of the city. Why would you WANT to stick around campus when you have all of New York City to explore? The best thing to do is find some friends in your class and crack open this city. It’s amazing! That’s why the university is called “Columbia University in the City of New York”; open any page about Columbia and you’ll see our location emphasized. Columbia wants her students to learn from NYC; we don’t want them hanging around campus boozing all weekend and getting over hangovers on Sunday. A great way to learn is to use the city as a resource. We encourage our students do to that.</p>

<p>And have you ever even been to Columbia in the spring and early fall? There are always people tossing frisbees on the quad! When I walked onto Columbia’s campus for the first time last April I thought about how stereotypical Ivy League it seemed – there are always crowds of people sitting on the stairs of Low Library, on the lawns, etc. As soon as it gets a little warm around here people are outside.</p>

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<p>I wouldn’t exactly call the “cold” New Yorkers thing a myth, more of a result from the circumstances. When you live in New York, you are living in an immense environment and it’s physically impossible to get to know everybody which is why natural “cliques” if you will form and people become very tight within their own little communities. As a result of this, an outsider might not feel like New Yorkers are especially courteous and that’s due to the fact that most of them are complete strangers to each other, just another face in the crowd and to extend a warm greeting everybody is impossible.</p>

<p>That being said, New Yorkers do have a condescending…view about them, not necessarily saying that they’re prejudiced or discriminatory (except against the Red Sox), but many will regard New York as the greatest city to live in.</p>

17

<p>^nyc is not cold, the right word is impersonal. If you make conversation with someone they’ll gladly talk back. I’ve had many such conversation with people (they usually initiate it). People are just busy and don’t have the time to stop to ask you how you’re doing. It’s the busiest city in the US. So if you’re coming from a village where everyone knows everyone, then this is different. Cab drivers for example converse with passengers pretty often.</p>

<p>

perhaps because it is. But they don’t look down on anyone, they’re just proud to be here. </p>

<p>The diversity in new york means you fit in from day one. It’s the fastest place in which you become a ‘local’. There is a lot of learning to do about how to get around efficiently, but once you cross that hurdle, your skin color, sexual orientation, accent etc. cannot be out of place.</p>

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<p>i would honestly choose Stanford… great weather, beautiful campus, amazing resources, laidback yet lively school atmosphere. man, i envy you for getting in!</p>

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<p>I have a question: should I bring my Sox hat to Columbia?</p>

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<p>^you’ll be beaten alive if you do. no-one cares.</p>