<p>Alright so here's the situation:</p>
<p>I know which colleges I like best: MIT, Harvard, Stanford, Princeton (in no order)</p>
<p>I don't know which of those I like BEST (each has it's own merits), and I don't know where to EA to. The foundation of this problem may be that I don't know what I want to major in (besides that it will definitely be a math/science or maybe engineering). Should I EA to Harvard simply because it's the hardest to get into? Ahhh I don't know what to do!</p>
<p>(add to my first post)</p>
<p>How do most people decide where to apply Early if they don't know? I haven't done a ton of research anywhere, but I did spend my summer in Cambridge...</p>
<p>Have you considered weather? Stanford might be more in line with Arizona than the harsh winters of Boston.</p>
<p>Zogoto, you were a top 10 presentation. Don't EA MIT; you are very likely in. Is Princeton ED (I know one person who ED'd there)? I'd argue your choice is Harvard and Stanford for EA.</p>
<p>Hey, how's it going zogoto? A lot of rickoids seem to be struggling over the same decision - I can't decide whether to apply to Harvard or Stanford EA (especially since I have a high probability of getting owned on either app). A lot of people seem to be going Harvard, though - it's definitely the toughest to get into, so that probably plays a role.</p>
<p>My thinking basically echoes sran's - that there's not so much of a reason to apply to MIT, since with RSI it's a much better shot than any other top school (except maybe Caltech). Princeton is ED, so it's definitely not someplace to apply if you're not sure. That leaves Harvard and Stanford - I'm definitely struggling with this decision too. I'm leaning Harvard, simply because it's so difficult to get in, but your view is just as good as mine.</p>
<p>Yeah, matt, same thing here, I guess. It's really only between Harvard and Stanford. I've thought Harvard for so long, but now that I really think about it, there is no reason why Stanford is better. I asked Mrs. D and she said more EA to harvard than Stanford.</p>
<p>Where are you sending your three letters? I'm thinking MIT (its like required since they know RSI and assume you did something bad if you don't send it), Harvard, Stanford.</p>
<p>Can someone give me the names of the top 10 presenters?!</p>
<p>umm haha I could but why do you need them?</p>
<p>I know someone who was there and I would like to know if he was one of them!</p>
<p>How about you say his name and I tell you? I don't want to put 10 people's names on the internet without their permission. If you don't want to release his name either, where is he from?</p>
<p>Middle East</p>
<p>haha that's not that specific. There were a lot of middle eastern kids, but I don't think there were any middle eastern males that got top 10. Maybe you could PM me his name, because then I would know for sure.</p>
<p>I'm also confused on the letters of rec's. I'm definitely sending them to Harvard and Stanford, but am unsure about the last one. I wonder if we can get 1 generic letter sent to both Caltech and MIT? The schools are similar enough that the writer might just have to change the name of the school, print out another copy, and send it.</p>
<p>Sran,</p>
<p>According to Matt McGann, I think (Pizer told me this, I think haha), MIT expects one, since they know the program well and know you get a letter. If you don't send them one, they might think that you did something horribly wrong while at RSI.</p>
<p>So any more input as to wehre to EA: Harvard or Stanford??</p>
<p>Is distance an issue? I'd go with Harvard in an instant only because it's a little over an hour from my house. Stanford is closer to you if that makes a difference....umm..what else...Harvard is notorious for accepting half its entering class EA which is a good reason to go with that. I'm not sure; research the two, see which one better suits you.</p>
<p>Considering you're a rickoid, do you think it's worth putting under the academic awards/honors section that I was selected as an alternate for RSI? It's obviously not as huge of a deal as actually going, but I'm thinking it can't hurt - especially for MIT. Or would putting it on the app be much ado about nothing?</p>
<p>I'm pretty sure I would put it if I were in your position. RSI is an advantage in admissions for two reasons: 1) You do ridiculously awesome research, and 2) colleges (i think) figure that if RSI accepted you, you must be good enough to get into their college.</p>
<p>Being an alternate doesn't serve you for 1) but it does for 2), so I would put it down.</p>
<p>And no, distance isn't really an issue. I've heard Stanford has the happiest students, and many people at Harvard aren't that happy. I don't even know what field I wanna go into (except that it will be math or science).</p>
<p>It seems that many people have this dilemma.</p>
<p>I didn't know about RSI until a few weeks ago, so I couldn't apply but I did go to some engineering program at Stanford. It was as easy as a 5 grade natural science class. I really regret that I didn't know about RSI.</p>
<p>Anyway, what I am trying to say is Stanford has an awesome campus, but I had to walk about 5 miles a day. Dining hall was a 0.5 mile away and classrooms were 1 mile away. It is a fairly large campus.</p>
<p>The size of campus actually did not attract me. The teacher asked me if I want to apply to Stanford (she sort of implied that the Stanford Program gives me an edge over other applicants), but I actually said NO to her face.
Now I think of it, I may apply to Stanford.</p>
<p>The bottom line is this: Consider the campus and see which one you like. I heard Harvard is more compact than Stanford, so you may like it or dislike it.</p>
<p>For me, I have considered Harvard as EA but it doesn't have Biomedical Engineering as a major, so I don't think I will apply EA (but definitely Regular)</p>
<p>I hope I shed some light, although I feel like I just babbled :D</p>
<p>I think just one middle eastern guy was top 10 - he was from egypt (which is about as specific as I can be right here).</p>
<p>Harvard's campus is more compact, and definitely is the nicest looking one I've seen (although I've heard Yale's is better), but what about bike's for Stanford?</p>