<p>Ridiculously split on where to apply. I thought I was sure on Penn, but durin my visit I got a very pretentious vibe (felt like people weren't open and their wasn't a community feel.) The most important factors I'm considering are:</p>
<p>1 Academics (in the future, I want to pursue business but also want a broad liberal arts education)
2 Social Scene (I want to actually have fun during college)
3 Extra Curriculars, Study Abroad opportunities, etc.
4 Campus</p>
<p>How do the colleges compare?</p>
<ol>
<li>Academics-- Best in the nation at any of these schools. It’s hard to compare among four schools that are so incredibly excellent in this area. (Normally Penn would be a solid step down from HYS, but Wharton is at that level.)</li>
<li>Social Scene-- Stanford has a very different feel from H,Y or Penn. Within those last three there are differences too among the general sentiment on campus. You will have fun at any of these four schools. No one can advise on how they all stack up in this regard; it’s all up to your own feel from being on campus. </li>
<li>Great ECs, study abroad experiences, etc at all these schools. Enough stuff that you will only be able to scratch the surface wherever you go.</li>
<li>Stanford probably has the best campus, although it doesn’t have access to a vibrant city right nearby as H and Penn do. If you are a city person, definitely go for H or Penn. Personally I would say S>Y>H>Penn, but that’s very subjective.</li>
</ol>
<p>Sorry that this post wasn’t that helpful, but frankly these are all great schools and your decision will have to be based on personal subjective feelings and more importantly where you actually get in. I don’t really understand the question-- why don’t you just apply to all four of these schools? Frankly, without knowing your stats, I can say it’s unlikely that you’ll get into more than 0 or 1 of them, because that’s how the numbers work. If you’re asking where to apply early, I’d say Penn ED because that’s where your chances will increase the most from going early. Otherwise, just apply to all of them and come back when you have acceptance letters in hand.</p>
<p>If you got such a pretentious vibe from Penn, don’t apply there.</p>
<p>As for the other schools, see which schools you yourself are interested in. Don’t apply based on rankings or prestige or whatever. Which schools, if you got into, would you have no problem attending?</p>