<p>Hey all. 10 minutes new to this place. Not quite sure if I'm even posting in the correct place but...</p>
<p>I have a question.</p>
<p>Laying it all out, I'm a good HS student: 4.0, APs, 600s~700s SAT, extra curricular, community service, club president/officer, yada yada yada.</p>
<p>And I'm in the homecoming stretch to finishing my applications to Berkeley, UW, UChicago, Tufts, Dartmouth and UPenn.
You can probably tell I'm interested in foreign languages and international relations from the selection.
And at the onset of the application process, I was doing the typical 4.0-go-for-***PWN-Best-Most-Prestigest-college shbang, but now I really just want... Peace. And Happiness. I've heard and read a lot of material that gave evidence to overbearing meanness, uncaring, pretense and closeminded-ness from some of these schools.</p>
<p>It doesn't even have to be from the selection I'm applying to, but any college students out there who can sincerely say that they are learning as a global citizento make an impact in the worldand is truly at peace with themselves and their academic career at you college? Or anybody know of colleges where the atmosphere truly promotes the absolute growth of their students, sans some sort of desire to leech reputation from the student?</p>
<p>I suppose the closest ranking you could tag to Happiness is "Smallest Suicidal Rate," but I'd rather hear of experiences. Some adjectives.</p>
<p>All (non-condescending and pretentious) comments are warmly welcomed.</p>
<p>UChicago has a reputation for having a tough curve, and people zone in on schooling. But I have a friend who goes there and loves it, even though it’s hard. One of the ideas behind UChicago is to grow their students, and it seems a lot of this growth would come from being pushed so hard that you’re required to reach your potential in order to do well.</p>
<p>Brown has a reputation as the happiest school, though it didn’t feel that way during finals week. Contrary to some opinions, my first semester there kicked my butt: but it makes life easier knowing I don’t have to grub for a B+, and so I can focus my attention on the classes I truly need to comprehend more. And knowing I can drop a class whenever I want without penalty is pretty reassuring too: I know many people who took on four really difficult classes their first semester, but after dropping the one they cared about the least ended up doing well in the other three.</p>
<p>One way to see the depths of a college’s atmosphere might be to check out their ■■■ pages (albeit, not all schools have one. Currently, I know Brown, Harvard and Yale do, and Chicago doesn’t). True, you’re only going to be shown one side of student life, and the moderator makes a big difference on which posts are actually shown, but I think, like reading accepted students’ essays, it could give you a glimpse into the general student mindset.</p>
<p>EDIT: If you’re going to look at the ■■■ pages, don’t just look at the ■■■ postings. Also look at how students RESPOND to them, because the discussion and interplay between people, and how others try to help their classmates through adversity is more important than seeing the actual adversity itself, especially as that adversity will change throughout the year (depending on whether people are on break, in finals, etc.) but the mindset likely won’t.</p>
<p>Stanford and Brown typically do well on the college happiness ratings if any such thing can exist. However as a student who attends the former, a word of caution is necessary, happiness is generally from within and not so much from the environment. My guess is part of the reason why certain colleges have happier students than others is the type of student they attract, not the actual school itself. Also factors such as weather (tons of snow generally doesn’t make for happy students) will affect how happy students are.</p>
<p>I agree with BodePlot. If facilities led to happiness, Yale would be a school known for its happiness. But I know most the people at Brown say they’d have been happy at other schools. If you’re a person who loves to be happy, and you really like Berkeley, go to Berkeley. Overall fit (social fit, academic fit, climate fit, etc.) will probably be a better indicator of whether you will be happy than whether other people are happy at the same school. I feel like for Brown, people are happy because they’re the kind of people who fit in at a school where other people look at the bright side of things.</p>
<p>There is also something to the culture of the school. I attended MIT for graduate school, and while I firmly believe that the education and culture there is bar none the absolute best in the world for learning - it sucks a big one on the happiness index. In my experience, the same can be said for Brandeis and UCSD. By contrast, students at Pepperdine, UC-Santa Barbara, and Arizona State always seemed to be having a great time. USC, Stanford, Berkeley, and UCLA are schools where it really depended on the student. </p>
<p>That’s obviously a very biased sampling, but they are all schools I am very familiar with (having either attended or spent significant amounts of time on campus). The point is, while happiness is ultimately from within, the culture and attitudes around you can have an effect. This should not be biased. </p>
<p>And oh, from the OP’s list, I’d choose Dartmouth. I’ve never met someone who went there that didn’t impress me and they seem to lack the irritating arrogance of Harvard alums.</p>
<p>Another word of caution: a good college education should be provocative.
From the University of Chicago Faculty Handbook of 1999:
</p>
<p>Back in the day, Chicago professors favored a Socratic, not-too-talkative approach to leading seminar discussions. However, they were not at all above singling out a student for hard questions or sarcastic comments. When you are 18 or 20 and still developing your self-image, this can be painfully embarrassing. One famous old professor did occasionally reduce a student to tears.</p>
<p>I suspect this approach must have softened over the years. But it did have a positive effect. It tended to knock the self-importance out of some kids and foster a we’re-all-in-this-together spirit of self- and mutual-questioning. This is different from provoking people just to be mean or to inflate one’s own ego. </p>
<p>A Chicago classroom typically is focused on question and answer, not on making an impact in the world. The place is self-consciously an Ivory Tower. Yet its graduates do join the Peace Corps at the 3rd highest rate among all national universities (according to Washington Monthly figures).</p>
<p>Nevertheless, my kids were not interested in the place and I did not push it. It’s not for everybody. One focused on outdoorsy LACs where a fellow can spend the afternoon hiking or skiing after a fine morning class (places like Dartmouth, Middlebury, Colorado College, Whitman … or UC Boulder for someplace larger and less selective, or any number of sunny California schools). This is a clearer path to “happiness” as I think most college students understand it.</p>
<p>The 20 Happiest this year, according to Princeton Review student surveys. Take 'em with a grain of salt:</p>
<p>1 Brown
2 Clemson
3 Claremont McKenna
4 Stanford
5 Bowdoin
6 Yale
7 Stonehill College
8 Rice
9 St. Mary’s of Maryland
10 Colorado College
11 UAB
12 Prescott College
13 U. of Dayton
14 William & Mary
15 Whitman
16 Olin
17 Colgate
18 James Madison
19 Duke
20 Worcester Polytechnic</p>
<p>out of that list it seems that Brown, Stanford, Yale, Rice, Duke, and William & Mary (Claremont McKenna, and Bowdoin for LAC schools) are the best.</p>
<p>@ arbiter213: Interesting Soka University is mentioned… my aunt is that type of Buddhist–I totally believe that their mission statement is about happiness =)</p>
<p>However, aside from joking, it’s a very spiritual school oriented around a specific buddhist teaching.</p>
<p>@FroshJosh: Happiness, like beauty is in the eye of the beholder =)</p>
<p>But I would agree that Dartmouth as well as the other LACs probably have higher happiness index #s.</p>
<p>The part that really struck me in your OP is this: “It doesn’t even have to be from the selection I’m applying to, but any college students out there who can sincerely say that they are learning as a global citizen, to make an impact in the world”</p>
<p>Is this what you mean by happiness (or at least a part of it)? Because it’s a much more physical and reasonable thing to look for than the very vague qualification of happiness.
Then you should definitely look into Macalester, which is known for its internationalism.</p>
<p>First of all, thank you SO much for all of your input. But I suppose I was a bit vague in phrasing what I was looking for (nonetheless you’ve all contributed to the answer).
I really do understand that peace and happiness emanate from within. In the end, I’m always going to strive for that regardless of where I am or what I’m doing. </p>
<p>I was just asking which colleges combined with their students created an atmosphere that supported not only positive academic growth, but a positive personal growth as well. That atmosphere that tends to draw the best from you, rather than shrink you away.</p>
<p>But you all are absolutely helping me build on my perspective. Thanks!</p>
<p>froshjosh wrote: "In the end, I’m always going to strive for [happiness] regardless of where I am or what I’m doing. </p>
<p>Funny how posts here can sometimes lead into interesting discussion. I challenge your statement. What if happiness is purely a byproduct of something else… like brain chemistry, or a meaningful pursuit, or pain, or the <em>absence</em> of striving? Can you really strive for happiness? What if happiness is like finding a mate… the more effort put into it, the poorer the result?</p>
<p>Oh, and to answer your direct question in the initial post, I don’t think your question can be answered in the abstract. I would say the happiness quotient of a school is related primarily to the particulary and unique fit between you and the school… specific enough that unless a person knows you intimately, they could not possibly give you any specific direction. Brown might drive you crazy, while the most cut-throat and competive science major at Berkeley might thrill you to pieces.</p>
<p>Hah, I wasn’t expecting the post to get so personal (don’t get me wrong, I appreciate it). I was looking for a fairly material answer… Sticking to stats and whatnot. Colleges with passionate students who aren’t cutthroat, administration/faculty that invigorate passions for the sake of higher education, which is unfortunately not the current mainstream. </p>
<p>But I accept your challenge! Happiness is beyond feeling, beyond thought, fulfillment. Time passes, feelings change, thoughts change. Happiness is a harmony beyond any production of the mind, but a connection of peace to the truth. Accepting life, and that it is always unfolding, always growing.</p>
<p>Which leads me back to my initial statement. In essence, I’m looking for colleges where students seem to have that integrity. Students who aren’t in a fixed state of “■■■,” but are sincere intellectuals; growing, and accepting that growth.</p>
<p>Now I feel like I’ve completely wishy-washed up the thread, with personal spirituality and whatnot. Bear with me all! I loves ya!!!</p>