Brown v. Stanford?

<p>any thoughts?
(yay Brown…)</p>

<p>Stanford.</p>

<p>That's gotta say something, considering I got accepted to Brown ED.
(seriously, if I had the money to fly out there all the way from PA, I'd have tried for Stanford over Brown).</p>

<p>Would you prefer a city or beautiful open spaces?</p>

<p>Brown. But then, CA kind of intimidates me as a completely foreign place. I just like the NE feel.</p>

<p>um i dont really care about the locale- im more concerned about the academics (hahahahah).</p>

<p>so, any more thoughts? anyone else in this predicament?</p>

<p>visit both. one great thing about stanford is that it is the most well-rounded school i know of--in other words they are strong in everything you can think of. if you're not sure what you want to study, you can be sure that you will get the best education possible in whatever you decide.</p>

<p>departments and programs at brown are more variable (none of them are bad or even mediocre, but it's all relative, right?). the huge advantage of brown of course is the freedom in course selection--stanford has stringment requirements. also, while stanford is certainly more laid back than many schools, it is a weird culture where people pretend to be laid back because it is unpopular not to be, but actually everyone works extremely hard and are secretly competitive. at brown, i think we're more accepting of all types--the type A crazy people (like me), and the laid back folk. it just so happens that most are laid back--i was pre-med here, and it didn't ever feel like it.</p>

<p>I chose Brown over Stanford, and I've never regretted it! I think it was definitely the right choice for me.</p>

<p>depends on what you want to pursue. Ehh if it helps, I'd choose Brown over Stanford for undergrad.</p>

<p>what were the factors in making your decision?</p>

<p>The environment at Brown seemed like a much better one for learning, and I liked the people a lot more. Everyone at Stanford is just like at my high school, which wasn't the best place for me. Stanford is the least intellectual place you could imagine. I also loved the open curriculum as opposed to huge distribution requirements. Another big factor was that I grew up on Stanford campus (my dad's a professor) and I wanted to get away from home. Personally, I love Brown, and haven't had any second thoughts about not going to Stanford.</p>

<p>what does that mean- "stanford is the least intellectual place you could imagine"? like, in what respects? in that there is no intellectual discussion? the education isn't good?</p>

<p>
[quote]
um i dont really care about the locale- im more concerned about the academics (hahahahah).</p>

<p>so, any more thoughts? anyone else in this predicament?

[/quote]
</p>

<p>I assume you've never lived on your own, so I'll just say this: Don't say that so quickly. What seems infinitely unimportant now will seem infinitely important later. </p>

<p>And don't choose a school based on the "Ivy" title.</p>

<p>i actually have lived on my on.. in spain for a year- that's why i say that location isn't really important to me- east coast, west coast, spain- it doesn't really matter to me.</p>

<p>I dunno, have you been to Providence? Cold takes on a whole new meaning.</p>

<p>But if Brown is what you want in a school, go for it. Both are great options.</p>

<p>By saying that Stanford is unintellectual, I mean exactly that. If you are looking to have a stimulating conversation with your peers, chances are it will be harder to find at Stanford. My mom always said that it was the stranges thing when my parents moved there, because she could walk around campus and ask herself, "Are these kids smart?" A Stanford senior summed it up for me last year at Admit Weekend by saying, "At Stanford, we are all so comfortable with our smartnest that we see no need in acting smart." I don't know what it is, but Stanford students just aren't the intellectual type (on the whole).</p>

<p>"depends on what you want to pursue. Ehh if it helps, I'd choose Brown over Stanford for undergrad."</p>

<p>Do you mind elaborating on that? What is stronger at Brown and vice versa?</p>

<p>What are you interested in pursuing at Brown?</p>

<p>I have the same situation (also Duke and Penn).</p>

<p>I think Brown is more intellectual because the students are more competitive and focused on their studies. Not that Stanfordians are not, but there's a certain competitive feel at an Ivy.</p>

<p>I'm thinking of doing modern language (French definitely, Mandarin maybe), linguistics, literature. That sort of thing.</p>

<p>Mandarin, in my opinion, belongs to Stanford. I went to some Asian languages thing up there, and the Mandarin program is no joke!</p>