Harvard, Stanford, or Yale???

Colleges and Universities A-Z Harvard University
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I never imagined that I would be put in this situation of deciding between these three amazing schools, so now I am having a very difficult time with choosing where to enroll. I would appreciate any advice or help you can provide! Here is a little about me:

I plan to double major in political science and international relations. I have a large interest in studying abroad, but not much of a budget to do this on my own. I am interested in studying sustainable food politics, as well. The campus culture is very important to me, I prefer the students to be collaborative rather than (overly) competitive and am not interested in Greek life at this time. Student happiness is also important to me, which is why I am majorly concerned about the idea of attending Harvard (The Cult of Yale article is rather telling, in my opinion.) I would like the program I am in to be strong and encourage independent thought (nothing that stream-lines students like pre-professional programs tend to). Finally, I want there to be a focus on undergrad programs on campus! :slight_smile:

Side-note~ Vegan-friendliness would be a perk!

Does this sound like any particular school? Are there any of these campuses that definitely do/don’t embody these characteristics?

Thanks so much for your help!

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Harvard would be perfect.

You want international? I’ve worked overseas, and no US school is better-known than Harvard; it will open doors for you around the world. (The name and alumni network got jobs for me overseas, plus the name alone got a lot of respect when I was working abroad; people were impressed, even in tiny countries halfway across the globe.)

You want to study abroad and are concerned about the costs? Harvard has tons and tons of grants for that.

Vegan? Plenty of them at Harvard.

Politics? Harvard- and Cambridge- are filled with anything and everything political.

Greek life? It plays no role at Harvard.

Collaborative, happy students? I certainly found people to fit both criteria during my time at Harvard. There’s no reason to be competitive there, since everyone will be successful post-graduation.

So everything that you’re looking for is at Harvard.

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The one regret both my kids share in common is not going to college someplace warmer!

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Since you are not asking about CS/engineering where there is a clear leader…when it comes to studying political science/international relations…all three schools are equally strong and you can’t go wrong with any one of them. This is where “fit” will come in…and only you can answer that…

…visit…and go where you will be happiest!

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Go to Harvard

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Go Yale! Harvard may have a better graduate program but Yale has a better undergrad. At the end of the day choose the best fit (aka not based on the name alone)

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@AppAnxiety‌ If your looking for collabaration, Yale or Stanford would probably be your best bets. Harvard does have a more pre-professional and competitive feel. Look at all three and decide, but based upon your interests, it sounds like your fears about Harvard are valid.

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First, congrats to you. It goes without saying that you have amazing choices. And while you will read many different accounts of individual experiences at each school, please bear in mind that the subjectives are personal, and may or may not apply to your individual experiences in the future. For instance, while Harvard has the reputation as being cut throat and competitive, there are also the collaborative students that exist there as well. It’s not black or white.And this goes for any of these schools. In other words, you will come across both types of people. Regarding happiness, as cliche as this will sound, it wiill be up to you wherever you go.So, I ask you to ask yourself what will lend to your general sense of happiness in a school…it’s not the same for everyone. That’s not to say that you may not be more content at one of these schools more than the others. I can attest that at Harvard and Stanford, you will have all the opportunities that you hope for in your post, but it will be up to you to seek them out and make the most of them. Neither school will coddle you, and the independent, self-driven student will thrive. Both schools are strong and definitely encourage independent thought as does Yale, I’m sure.

I can speak to Harvard and Stanford. Mother Harvard does not coddle her students, but she wiill give you amazing opportunities to figure things out for yourself. There are plenty of advisers and professors that are willing to help you if you seek them out, You will thrive if you are an independent person ready to make the most of what is offered. As far as residential life and community, I can’t compare Yale, although I hear it is the backbone of their culture. At Harvard, it does seem more disjointed, yet once again, friendships formed and cultivated are your choice. You won’t only become friends with those in your house, but those in your concentration, shared extracurriculars, etc.Students do work hard, but they also hang out together. You make it what you want.

At Stanford, opportunities as well abound, and as for H, you need to find and make the most of them. Maybe it’s the beautiful weather or the enclosed campus that Stanford is, but there is a more palpable feeling of being part of a community. Collaboration is openly encouraged, as long as it adheres to the Honor Code, which is taken very seriously.

After this diatribe, you can’t go wrong at any of these schools for the objectives you seek…opportunities, study abroad, the best of the best. The subjectives are different for each of us. Only you can speak to where you will feel most content. If I may be blunt, make your decision based on opportunities you want to have, profs you hope to learn from,… not so much on the subjectives…because you will find no place is the perfect place for any one person.

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I think you’ll find vegan-friendliness is universal at the better schools. Check out [today’s lunch menu](HUDS: This Week's Menu) at Harvard. Notice the special icon for vegan dishes.

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Hi everyone. This is my first time on College Confidential. I have recently retired, so I have a lot more free time on my hands. I graduated from Harvard '82 and later got a JD/MBA from Stanford.

Here are my two cents. I think people do not realize the importance of undergraduate education. An undergraduate degree is more important because, quite simply, everyone needs a BA in todays world. I went into Finance and Business in my career, (rendering my JD worthless), and quite frankly, I did not learn much in business school. If one goes to a good undergraduate school, you DO NOT need to go to grad school. Grad school is for those who are trying to bolster their resume because their undergraduate institution lacked a good reputation.

I worked in San Francisco, New York, London and Shanghai (where I currently live.) If you want to work or live abroad, without a doubt, a Harvard degree is the most prestigious degree money can buy. Why? Because all the well-connected and affluent sons and daughters of foreigners aspire to go to Harvard. Everything else is second rate. The Harvard connection is invaluable. I have become a member of the Harvard club of various locations, and the connections (friends and business partners) I have made are invaluable. Everyone is so happy and proud to have attended, they are more willing to bond with you. However, this only applies to your UNDERGRAD degree. I have two degrees from Stanford but I am not considered a Stanford man, I simply “studied there before.” Your undergrad degree is your identity.

Objectively, I do think Yale has a slightly better undergrad “education.” But, Yale’s reputation lags Harvard’s by a significant margin. Also, Yale’s location is not conducive to a fun experience. Living in Boston, surrounded by so many other college students, means you will have so much for living and learning in a college town with other kids your age. If you were an engineer, I would urge you to maybe consider Stanford if you financial aid is vastly better. However, Harvard has the largest endowment in the world. Once they focus on engineering, like they are now, there vast resources will overtake any peer school.

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I would definitely recommend attending the admit weekends of each before making a decision – ultimately, no matter how well-intentioned our advice is, visiting the campuses yourself is the best way to get a feel for each school.

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@AppAnxiety - My daughter found that being vegan in the Harvard dining halls is difficult but not impossible. There are always vegan options but the meatless main course often has cheese in it. She’s gone back to being ovo-lacto vegetarian and it’s made her life easier. I know there are vegan-friendly co-ops at both Harvard (http://www.hcs.harvard.edu/~dudcoop/about.html) and Stanford (https://studentaffairs.stanford.edu/resed/profiles/co-ops/ebf) but these are not options for freshman, and may not be the type of housing situation you are looking for.

At Harvard, 98% of upperclassmen live in one of the 12 residential houses, each with its own dining room - note that rising sophomores are assigned to house by a random lottery, and you cannot choose your house. They all serve the same menu. Stanford has a much less homogeneous living environment.

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@rubberfall what do you mean harvard doesn’t coddle its students? Harvard has the most insane grade inflation of any school out there. The college dean even admitted it…and yale is almost right up there too. I don’t know how stanford is in terms if grade inflation tho…

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Looking towards a political future, a Harvard pedigree will probably have the most elan, followed by Yale.

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@gibby - “The one regret both my kids share in common is not going to college someplace warmer!”

Not my younger son. His great disappointment was that they canceled classes with “only” nine feet of snow.

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@marc123,

“Harvard has the most insane grade inflation of any school out there.”

One might argue that at a school where the average incoming freshman has a 2235 SAT, and more than half have perfect GPAs as high school students, what would you expect?

By “coddling,” I think the poster means, the school will not hold your hand as you go. What you get into, you get into. It’s yours. Own it. There are few guardrails. No one will go out of his or her way to make sure you feel welcome, or that you are successful, or that you get your “fair share” of opportunities, or anything else. Everything is available, it’s all out on the table. But it’s all first-come first-serve, don’t be shy, or you may not get any (whatever it is).

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Ha, ha! This is pretty silly.

If you can, visit all three schools–they do have different atmospheres. People who attended each of them tend to think that school is the best. And maybe they are all correct–for them.

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@hunt why don’t you read this and see if you still think it is pretty silly http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/world-university-rankings/2014/reputation-ranking

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@florida26 K now explain the difference in scores and how they are measured. You can’t lol you posted some random ranking based on arbitrary measures of “teaching” reputation, “research” reputation, and “overall” reputation.

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@20transfer17 The times is a reputable publication I guess you dont like their findings so you use conclusionary judgments to attack their findings