<p>This question has caused huge debate in my family. My mother wants yale for it name, and its academics. My dad wants Columbia for its social life and its opportunity in the city. Signing up for the class of 2011, what does each college have to offer. Professor accessible? Food? Dorms? Internships? Social life? Undergrad focus? Curriculum? Safety? Which is best for a poli sci majoring, ivy law school ambitous, pretty social, from a medium sized city guy like me?</p>
<p>Oy...I suggest you take a look at other threads in this forum first. Visiting is useful, as is simply starting off by looking at books such as Fiske's Guide, PR 350, Yale Daily News Insider's Guide, since it seems like you're fairly new to both schools. </p>
<p>Also, why not simply apply to both? There's no pressure to choose between them yet if you like both of them (and sorry to be a downer, but you may not even have that choice to make if one or both of them choose not to accept you). </p>
<p>Once you read up a bit more and have specific Columbia questions that can't be found in a viewbook, I'll be glad to help. I suggest you start by reading about the Core Curriculum at Columbia.</p>
<p>You DEFINITELY need to apply to both. IF you can get in to one, odds are you will only get in to one and you won't have to make a decision. </p>
<p>PS...are you from Washington (state)?</p>
<p>as someone who has spent significant time at both, they have a verrrry different feel from one another and i dont think you could pick one over the other without visiting. (also gotta add, your mom wants yale for the name... because columbia is crap???? and i strongly urge you to make your own opinions instead of picking a school to please your parents)</p>
<p>Well I asked this question just in case if i do get accepted into both schools. I hate to sound cocky but I dont want to feel bad when I make a what seems like hasty decision.</p>
<p>you have pleentty of time. theyre obviously quite different.</p>
<p>no offense but the chances are high you will only get into one of the 2 schools . . . i got into columbia and my schools valadictorian got into yale but not columbia . . so its relaly up in the air as to how they pick so apply to both bets are the choice will be made for you</p>
<p>I honestly think Yale will be a much better fit. Thinking Columbia provides more opportunities than Yale is silly - kids from all the IVies get the same summer internships and I doubt you'll be working during school. The Columbia experience is an intense one and I think for someone social not from NYC Yale would be a better fit. There is a 50% chance you'll be in New York at some point anyway.</p>
<p>"I honestly think Yale will be a much better fit." </p>
<p>slipper - That's simply not something you can say off the bat. How is Yale a better fit? Because it's more highly-ranked on US News?</p>
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<p>of course he can! and he has studied at Columbia!
Yeah, if Columbia is better than Yale, why is Yale more popular?</p>
<p>woah woah, hang on -- I am not trying to say Columbia's better than Yale. All I meant was that it's up to lakeside to decide which college is a better fit for him/her. For example, I personally disliked Yale from the moment I set foot on campus (and my feeling didn't improve after the tours/info sessions/student chats), but it's obviously a great school. I didn't like Brown or Penn, but I took to Harvard and Columbia. Everyone has different preferences, and finding out more about the colleges is important (rather than simply going by prestige/ranking).</p>
<p>I'm not basing it on prestige, I'm basing it off of my admittedly VERY limited knowlede of what this guy wants.</p>
<p>"Which is best for a poli sci majoring, ivy law school ambitous, pretty social, from a medium sized city guy like me?": Part of the reason Columbia stands out for many people is that in certain areas like fashion, film, media, etc, being in NYC is a real advantage. But if you aren't jumping into those industries, its a flaw to think Columbia has an advantage over any Ivy. All the Ivies have top firms recruiting for internships. </p>
<p>As for social "medium city guy" this fit myself exactly and I found the Columbia social scene frustrating. Partying at "lotus" or 'suede" has much less importance to me that partying with 50 of my friends in an off campus house, and I have a feeling this guy is the same way. Columbia has a social life for an urban school, but Yale's is much more vibrant. I'm not demeaning Columbia in any way, its just that for some people the lesser social scene is worth being around cool clubs and museums, for others its not. I think Columbia can be overwhelming and just isn't "a typical college experience." Many like it this way, but others like myself, prefer more community.</p>
<p>As for the individual things outlined:</p>
<p>Professor accessible?: Yale is slightly ahead
Food?: Equal
Dorms?: Yale is more social (Columbia dorms are very social first year and maybe a second (McBain and Wein), but many Columbia dorms are absolutely quiet and not that nice.</p>
<p>Internships?: Equal.</p>
<p>Social life?: Yale wins for someone who is looking for more of a 'college experience' where living in NYC isn't that critical.</p>
<p>Undergrad focus?: Yale wins. Stronger alumni network, UG a bigger part of the university as a whole.</p>
<p>Curriculum?: Equal.</p>
<p>Safety?: Columbia wins. New Haven isn't the safest place, but its not horrible anymore either.</p>
<p>The original question posed - where to apply - is simple on face: apply to both. But if you are asking where to apply EARLY, then the question is much more difficult. If accepted to Columbia early, then you must attend. If accepted to Yale early, then you have the freedom to apply to other schools during Regular decision.</p>
<p>1) Financial Aid - If this is important to you, applying to Columbia ED might not be a great idea because an acceptance can be issued with no financial aid package. I think only in very, very extreme cases where your family can't survive without aid, the binding commitment is waived if you are accepted. But in most cases, you have to attend no matter how much money they do or don't give you.</p>
<p>Social Life - Yale has a more traditional college experience than does Columbia. A good friend of mine who was accepted told me that after the Bulldog Days for accepted students, he totally fell in love with the school. It's not a place that you would think to call a party school, but in reality, it has some damn good parties from what I hear. If you really love the city, going to Columbia might help you in that you're already in NYC and you don't have to travel there from New Haven. </p>
<p>If you did go to Yale though, I don't know how many times you'd go to NYC. Nothing is stopping you, but you're obviously going to be busy and its much cheaper and easier to simply stay on campus and party at Yale than getting on the train to go to NYC. </p>
<p>As an aspiring lawyer with a deep interest in political science, I think I can discuss, to some length, the experiences and benefits at both Yale and Columbia. First of all, both have SUPERIOR law schools (#1 and #4 respectively). However, going to Columbia does not give you a special advantage when applying to Columbia Law. This policy could be different at Yale. </p>
<p>Also, both have excellent Pre-Law prep. Columbia has the allure of NYC to draw important speakers, politicians, and foreign dignitaries. Yale has similarly great opportunities to attend such lectures. For what it's worth, LSE ranked Columbia's dept of political science as #1 in the world. The cultural scene of NYC and the limitless opportunities you have in terms of art and history museums add to the experience at Columbia. The art and history courses that involve the museums are part of the Core curriculum and so they DO affect your overall experience. Columbia also has a very politically active campus, and though Yale does have the YPU, it's not a place where you hear about huge political protests occuring. If you're the kind that wants to "get out and do something," Columbia and the upbeat city will match your pulse.</p>
<p>To tell the truth, both schools will have famous professors who have published their share of articles and books in political science. As slippers said, the curriculum is dead equal. I've already talked about the reasons why one would pick Columbia, but here's some of the reasons why one would pick Yale</p>
<p>1) Best-ranked law school in the country.
2) Specific humanities program like Directed Studies (for first years) is the best way to guide you through your study of history and philosophy. A family friend of mine loved DS and thinks its incredible for Pre-Law.
3) Residential College system is a cool environment - intercollege sports for IM, going to parties at separate colleges, closer relationship to faculty and masters in your residential college.
4) And though there's several solid reasons to pick Yale over other schools, the name is often the first thing that has an effect on people.</p>
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This question has caused huge debate in my family.
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<p>This is the kind of thing that is often futile. The odds are that, even if you are a strong applicant, you will get rejected from both. If you're very lucky, you'll get into one. Are you not going to apply to both based on what people on this board have to say?</p>