<p>I know people have been posting this on random threads in the 2010 board, but I thought maybe the RDers could help the rest of us out by posting what, in general, you thought about Princeton. </p>
<p>What surprised you?
What did you like?
What did you not like?
How did the classes strike you?
How does this compare to other pre-frosh weekends?
Anything else?</p>
<p>Thanks a lot!</p>
<p>Yeah, I liked it. Princeton seemed very well organized. I only went to one class in Chem because a History class I went to wasn't there so maybe cancelled or moved? I heard someone say that Princeton paid students to sit outside and study over the visit weekend?????? I felt like all the food and water were like trying to get people to go there and I wondered why a school like princeton needs to sell itself. i think if they stopped talking about how hard the classes are there, more people would want to go there. like i am sure it is hard at harvard and yale, but they never mention it. campus is beautiful. no crime. seemed like drinking is a huge problem on campus and roommates of my host offered me a drink. please, i am not even legal yet. sorry but i don't drink. then i got home and saw in the newspaper about the sexual assaults at one of those stupid eating clubs and how they've had to ban alcohol and how they have taken one kid to the hospital every week out of like 13 or 15 weeks - seems ridiculous. kids could just skip college and stay home and drink for a lot less money. ingesting other people's vomit is disgusting. i think schools really need to start cracking down on the drinking. i am sitting on the fence about princeton right now.</p>
<p>they definately did not pay students to sit outside and study. As soon as it gets nice outside, everyone goes outside (including precepts!)</p>
<p>as for the drinking, while lots of people drink, theres no pressure to if you don't want. Your experience seems like what youd find, youll be offered a drink, but it doesnt matter whether or not you take it, no one cares. I've visited a lot of other schools, and I don't think that princeton has more alcohol than most, but I do think that it has a more accepting culture if you dont actually want to drink, but want to go out to the street anyway.</p>
<p>the eating clubs aren't stupid, I wish that people would get over the stereotypes and actually talk to students at princeton. They're one of the more accepting forms of partying that I've seen on campus. You don't need to hang out with a certain group of kids to know where the party is each weekend, instead you just need to walk down a specific street where there will be music and dancing and possibly a themed party. Neither of the sexual assaults at TI were really it's fault-- the first one wasn't by a member, or even someone who had been drinking at TI for most of the night, and the second one the girl agreed, just passed out in the middle. According to several good sources, TI did not ask people to ingest their own vomit. I'm not sure which club did, or if any club did. THe medical ppl at mccosh don't actually know--although it is true that a large percentage of the people at TI came down with the flu after initiations/</p>
<p>It was nice, and my host was friendly, but it wasn't particularly exciting.. Maybe because I'd already gone to the MIT CPW, which is a huge deal on their campus, has so much to do, and was more interesting overall... I heard the same thing about Yale's preview weekend while I was at Princeton. For example, I wish Princeton had held more extracurricular and academic fairs so people could learn more about the school.</p>
<p>I'm not a big fan of the eating club system (and yes, I've talked to Princeton students and alumni about them) - but I guess I could get used to it. I saw a number of seriously drunk people around - I don't drink and though I like to dance and have fun, I don't like huge crazy parties, so I'm hoping again, that drinking isn't actually a big issue on campus. Princeton was actually more preppy than I expected, just as a general impression (I'm not talking about the croquet game that I know was a joke). The campus is beautiful and safe, though it's in the same suburban atmosphere where I've grown up (I wanted a city school, but there are trains to Philly and NYC). The performing arts showings and a capella were lots of fun to watch/listen to. I went to a Sociology class and a Psychology class (I tried to find a Biology or other science class, but didn't find time) - both were interesting even though I don't have much of a background in either subject.</p>
<p>
[quote]
i think if they stopped talking about how hard the classes are there, more people would want to go there.
[/quote]
My host actually kept stressing that classes and workload weren't too bad. I actually wish I had met some people who would have told me more about studying and the academic atmosphere. I know hosting weekends always try to make the place seem fun, but I want to be assured the college is an intellectually exciting place to be. i.e. At MIT's CPW, the quirky and nerdy sense of humor was really obvious and appealed to me.</p>
<p>I didn't feel a huge connection with the school, but I am attending there in the fall after a really hard decision between Princeton and MIT. Students there seem happy, and I want a liberal arts undergraduate education.. plus Princeton's focus in on undergrads..</p>
<p>mel: The food and water is there (at events) all the time at Princeton not just when Pre-frosh come over. -_- Many ugrads have told me this when I attended April Hosting. Doesn't all schools try to "sell" (as you put it) themselves during their Admit Weekends? 0.o</p>
<p>leeny, one of my good friends also had to make a decision between MIT and Princeton. He also made the same choice as you did. :)</p>