<p>The real answer is that Yale is better in all aspects. Visit each for a few class days and a weekend, and you'll see. The social and academic life is several notches higher at Yale in pretty much every single arena.</p>
<p>i dont think its really better in all aspects. For engineering, at least, Stanford has a more respected and estabilished program.</p>
<p>Personally, I would go to Yale for the other reasons people have already mentioned: the undergrad focus, residential colleges, and amazing community that among all the similar schools I visited, seemed unmatched. Between these two schools, it is mostly a personal choice because at this level, splitting numbers doesn't make much sense. Anyone who tells you otherwise, is IMHO, misleading you.</p>
<p>haha, posterx, you crack me up</p>
<p>How's the song go
"East coast girls are hip... ....
I wish they all could be California Girls.." </p>
<p>:) </p>
<p>Hey, college anywhere is what you make of it. It's not a matter of which school is better, it's a matter of which school will make you better.</p>
<p>so yale > harvard in cross admits now?</p>
<p>I don't think even "posterX" is making <em>that</em> claim!</p>
<p>I'm going to Yale in the fall, and i had my choice between Yale and Stanford (also Princeton, Penn, and Brown). I also had narrowed it down to Yale and Stanford, and for me, I'm a huge musician. I knew that Yale had a better artisic/musical scene than Stanford, so I chose Yale.</p>
<p>"The real answer is that Yale is better in all aspects. Visit each for a few class days and a weekend, and you'll see. The social and academic life is several notches higher at Yale in pretty much every single arena."</p>
<p>Patently false, posterX. Stanford #1 for happiest students? Methinks so.</p>
<p>good timing, zephyr.</p>
<p>OK, try this.</p>
<ol>
<li>Are you really wondering or is this just a chance to vent? If just venting, just go to the place you've already decided on.</li>
</ol>
<p>2 Still undecided, then consider the following:</p>
<p>a. If you are strongly science or strongly West Coast, go to Stanford. If you are strongly humanities or strongly East Coast go to Yale.</p>
<p>b. If you want a (slightly) higher quality of life go to Stanford, if you want a (slightly) more intense undergrad education, go to Yale.</p>
<p>c. Compare financial aid offers and, if different, see if other school will match. If they don't match, pick the school with better financial aid.</p>
<p>d. If you are into professional athletics, go to Stanford (better teams, athletic scholarships). If you are into intramural athletics, go to Yale.</p>
<p>e. If you are into hiking, the outdoors etc. go to Stanford (N. Cal can't be matched). If you are into city pleasures, theatre, etc. go to Yale (NY can't be matched).</p>
<ol>
<li>Still undecided. Go to Harvard :)</li>
</ol>
<p>Ivyalumni, the best way to look at those things would be to spend a few days at each school - ideally a few class days plus a weekend evening. It's much more complicated than just checking off a few things on a piece of paper. </p>
<p>For example, "Professional athletics" might sound good until you visit the campus and see the effect that basically "paying students to play" has on campus life - or if you don't realize how strong and important for student bonding that intramural athletics between students' dormitories, and smaller collegiate Ivy League teams can be. Also, you might associate outdoors with Stanford, but there are hundreds of miles of hiking trails (and ocean beaches) within a short walk or bike ride from Yale, because of the amazing park systems there and the fact that it's in a medium-sized city, not a large city. I would say that kind of stuff is actually more accessible from either Yale or Harvard than from Stanford. Also, Stanford may be as well known as any other place for their quantity of scientific research, but at the undergraduate level I would argue that Caltech, Yale and MIT are the best because they have the most central campus research per undergraduate.</p>
<p>Let's tackle this one from our favorite Yale troll:</p>
<p>""Professional athletics" might sound good until you visit the campus and see the effect that basically "paying students to play" has on campus life"
No. The problem with D1 athletics is that SUBSTANDARD STUDENTS ARE BEING ADMITTED. Whether they are on scholarship makes little difference; it still contributes a certain way to campus culture. Wrong wrong wrong. </p>
<p>"...but at the undergraduate level I would argue that Caltech, Yale and MIT are the best because they have the most central campus research per undergraduate."
Not true at all. The research opportunities for undergrads at Stanford are infinite across the sciences, social sciences, and humanities. Stanford has the extremely well-funded and staffed Undergraduate Research Programs, Summer Research College, Honors research, Chappell-Lougee grants, Stanford Undergraduate Research Journal, and so on.</p>
<p>"I would say that kind of stuff is actually more accessible from either Yale or Harvard than from Stanford."
No. It's not. Yale is in New Haven. Please. No one wants to go to a beach in Connecticut anyway.</p>
<p>Oh yeah, and about intramural athletics. If you want to sell Yale as having excellent residential life due to the college system, yes, that is great. But IM sports really mean nothing and don't add any substantive to the university experience. Residential colleges yes, basketball games on Sunday afternoon, no.</p>
<p>I rarely disagree with the Z man, but I truly think there are many Yalies who love the intramural opportunities. They would say it is a big part of what they value most about the Yale experience (more than the Ivy competitions).</p>
<p>And Mr. X's comments make me doubt whether he has ever walked around Stanford. From the Student Union, there's a nice walk into the hills--you can go for hours and never even leave the campus. For a bit more challenge, after an hour drive you will reach a vast primal Redwood forest with mountains, canyons, rivers and secluded waterfalls where you can easily spend days. </p>
<p>However, for those of you who like to climb gothic buildings, or explore the underworld of steam caves, the Yale campus is unrivaled!</p>