<p>I know this probably isn’t true, but I constantly get the image that brown, being “the hippie, laid back” ivy, just isn’t that dificult. I know this stereotype is probably very exagerated because people like to embellish to mke things seem simpler, but is there any truth to the idea that brown is so laid back that not much effort is required to succeed?</p>
<p>i think it depends on what you want to succeed at</p>
<p>the hardest part of being at brown is there is little to no hand holding, you are reponsible for every choice you make, and nothing is decided for you. some people kill themselves triple majoring in hard subjects because they can. others float through the easiest classes because they can. brown has a mix of all types. but generally, the people that care a lot about being successful after brown decide to work very hard while they are there.</p>
<p>I hear its quite hard. Just laid back hard <em>gets all dreamy eyed</em></p>
<p>I hear its quite hard. Just laid back hard <em>gets all dreamy eyed</em></p>
<p>Hard is relative - it's no public school engineering dept. that who will flunk out and replace without batting an eye (or a Cornell for that matter that has the same mentality), but it's no cakewalk, either...from what I hear anyway.</p>
<p>I think Brown's strongest point is that it doesn't force you into things you don't enjoy and just can't do well in (EG most upper-level schools now make you take math through Calc II and become fluent and a second language as grad reqs).</p>
<p>I think brown encourages you to take what you want and thus most students dont flunk out</p>
<p>That's what I'm saying.</p>
<p>You should see the people here trying to struggle through that 4th term language proficiency exam here. It's the bane of many people's existance. You aren't fluent-you don't graduate.</p>
<p>Brown doesn't force you into things that you know to be weaknesses.</p>
<p>It's as hard as you make it. It's all about how much you want to challenge yourself.</p>