<p>I am having last minute decision-making trouble. I liked the campus and atmosphere of Dartmouth more (I like the outdoors) and found Dartmouth students to be more laid back. Yet Princeton seems to have a slight edge in prestige and academics. I liked both schools but have a slight preference for Dartmouth. Any advice?</p>
<p>I'd go to D-mouth in a second. If you got into both, than your intellegence and hard work will get you far in live..with or without a degree from Princeton.</p>
<p>If you think Princeton has the edge in "prestige" and academics, please go to Princeton. You'll get to spend four years with a bunch of kids who also think Princeton is "prestigious". I'm sure Dartmouth can take someone off the wait list who'll appreciate it.</p>
<p>BigGreen I think that's too harsh. This is a legitimate dilemma. Honestly part of the reason I transferred to Dartmouth was because of a visit I had to Princeton while I was at Columbia. Fortunately Princeton didn't accept transfers, as I probably would have gone there because of the balance between HYPS prestige and a nice atmosphere.</p>
<p>In the end I am SO glad Princeton didnt accept transfers and I ended up at Dartmouth. Both will get you to the exact same place, but you are totally right, Dartmouth is MUCH more laid back. </p>
<p>Tough choice, but Dartmouth was absolutely the right choice for me. The community is awesome and I am continually astounded at the success of graduates.</p>
<p>and don't worry about making an "obviously wrong choice" (for turning down the top school) if your gut tells you you'd be happier at dartmouth. i know several people who are turning down HYP and aren't crying the river over prestige. good luck, tho, whatever you decide!!</p>
<p>maybe I was a little harsh but I grew up 30 minutes from Princeton, went to prep school for a few years and knew at least 20 people who went to Princeton. Sorry to say but the majority were losers. Dartmouth has a larger percentage of CEO's of major corporations even though it's a smaller school - and many of the Princeton CEO's inherited their wealth. Perhaps if you go to Shanghai or Nairobi more people have heard of Princeton - go anywhere where it counts in the US and Dartmouth more than holds its own. Also, the town of Princeton itself has nothing to speak of and is now part of the New York-Philly megalopols. Really, I'm sure there are many on the wait list who understand Dartmouth own "prestige" but more importantly the friendships that will be forged there based on mutual respect not on shared "prestige". Bottom-line - I never met anyone at Dartmouth who came because they didn't get into Princeton Harvard or Yale. Everyone at Dartmouth wants to be there.</p>
<p>Dart does have the advantage BigGreen listed- everyone wants to be there. Dart is the least-known ivy (at least around here) and very sparsely applied to. No one chooses Dart because it's more prestigous. You sound like you a true Dartie at heart- it's just this prestige matter standing in your way</p>
<p>That's quite a difficult choice, G-unti87. But it's definitely preferable to the alternative - having no choices at all - and look at it this way: since you like both schools so much there's no way you can make a "bad" choice!</p>
<p>Dartmouth is definitely not the least prestigious ivy. I think that title is reserved for Penn.</p>
<p>g-unti, you wouldn't happen to be a korean canadian would you? because i know someone that's in the same situation and i'm wondering if the person i met is you</p>
<p>BigGreen, shut up. There are tons of HYP rejects at Dartmouth and every other non-HYP ivy... You say tons of stuff without much support for it at all, like this "Dartmouth has a larger percentage of CEO's of major corporations even though it's a smaller school - and many of the Princeton CEO's inherited their wealth." Dartmouth is filled with just as much wealth as Princeton is, if not more. Unlike Dartmouth, Princeton is need-blind for international so if anything, Dartmouth should have more uber-wealthy international students than Princeton. Secondly, while I doubt the validity of your CEO statistic, even if is true, you ignore the fact that Dartmouth also has a fantastic business school so make sure youre comparing CEO stats for undergrads...</p>
<p>Finally, you have a great choice to make and theres really no way to make a wrong one. I do warn against making decisions on your perceptions of the student body as all of these colleges have large diverse student bodies and your impression could more than likely be based on chance encounters.</p>
<p>Straight from the Pimp's Mouth....</p>
<p>g-unit87, if, by chance you are persuaded of the wisdom of any of PimpDaddy1's advice, please, don't quote him.</p>
<p>No one will be able to take you seriously if you say you based your college selection--in full or in part--on something a guy named PimpDaddy1 once told you [even if it is good advice not to trust your own experiences; having said that--let me add--this is not very good advice].</p>
<p>Choose one that makes you happier, that's what makes me happen into Dartmouth.</p>
<p>I'm getting more of a "gut feeling" for Dartmouth and as long as I can be sure that the two schools are about equal in academics, I will probably choose Dartmouth.</p>
<p>Figure that if you go anywhere in the top 25 (or so) you'll get a phenomenal education. The difference is so miniscule that it probably depends solely on the student and what environment he would prosper in.</p>
<p>I couldn't agree more with RoboKarabekian.</p>
<p>I agree with PimpDaddy1. I also think that his screename does not make him devoid of an intellectual opinion or render him incapable of participating in a healthy debate. With that said, I must voice that you guys are WAY too militant about Dartmouth. The very fact that this child is considering turning down Princeton (arguably the best school in the entire world) for Dartmouth speaks volumes about his commitment already. Moreover, it is entirely unfair for him NOT to consider prestige when deciding on a school. If one went to Princeton and did well, his/her life would basically be set forever. They have some of the best professors (Nobel Prize lauretes), a great environment, and easy acces to New York internships. I wish I was in your position, g-unit. Dartmouth is a great school, but I would think twice about forgoing the opportunity that awaits you at the magnanimous Princeton.</p>
<p>g-unti87:</p>
<p>You must be kidding about worrying about academic differences between Princeton and Dartmouth. My average class size when I was at Dartmouth (class of 76) was about 10. The President of Dartmouth at that time was John Kemeny - he invented the BASIC computer language. John Rassias - who's still there - invented the Rassias method of learning languages - renowned throughout the world. The environmental sciences department and native american studies are world-class, etc. etc. etc.</p>
<p>It seems like everyone I know has chosen another school (no less prestigious, of course... MIT, Harvard, Caltech) over Princeton. However, if you're really concerned about prestige, go to Princeton. Otherwise, I think that everywhere BUT Princeton has more diversity and "laid back"-ness to offer.</p>
<p>DMC, i don't think you're being fair by generalizing all of us as being "WAY too militant about Dartmouth." most of us have been really supportive to g-unti87, telling him/her that (s)he should pick the place that'll make him/her happier. this can be based on several factors--those include student body, academics, even prestige. if you actually read the posts on this thread, only a few people were being harsh, and even then people like BigGreen actually apologized then qualified his claims. i think your bitterness has more to do with the way you've been treated in other threads (which i don't think you deserve), but plz don't take it out on the rest of us. </p>
<p>so back to the original topic, i personally believe in my "gut feeling", but perhaps it's b/c i know i have good intuition. i happen to agree with those who say that the distinction in academic rigor btwn princeton and dartmouth is so negligible, but i can totally understand why it's hard for people to let go of the fact that "IT'S PRINCETON, for goodness' sake!!" (not undeservedly for p'ton). i think the fact that g-unti87 is posting this in both the Dartmouth and Princeton forums shows that (s)he's really thinking hard about this, so telling him/her to "think twice" is pretty redundant. anyway, to take some pressure off of you, g-unti87, i can only repeat what gracilisae said, "...look at it this way: since you like both schools so much there's no way you can make a "bad" choice!"</p>