<p>I've always wondered about this and I've yet to get a straight answer lol</p>
<p>Is it like, cutthroat competitive-ish when you go to a school where nearly everyone is from the top 10% of their respective high schools and where everyone worked their butt off to get there? Is there a lot of jealousy of smarts, unpleasantness etc.?</p>
<p>OR is it the opposite, like more of a synergistic environment where people help each other and grow upon each others' intellect? Is the widespread intelligence a HUGE benefit for each individual?</p>
<p>I'm sorry in advance if this is an obnoxious, over-assuming question heh</p>
<p>From what I know it's the same as any other college for the most part... perhaps a bit more intellectual stimulation and what not, but really it's the same. The people are usually interesting and relatively normal, with the obvious outliers... and obviously quite a few people who are overly competetive. But seriously, it's no different than a lot of other solid universities... the stereotype of ivy leagues and top tier schools being nerdy and ridiculously competetive just kind of gets me mad.</p>
<p>Being from the top 10% of your high school does not make you a genius ... a majority of people at Ivy League schools are simply smart, successful, and determined young adults who have a decent grasp on life as of age 18.</p>
<p>it's difficult to say. At Wesleyan, so much interaction takes place at the blog and/or anonymous confession board (acb) level that it's hard to tell who one is really dealing with; it could be hundreds of really brilliant peeps or ONE TRULY FRIGHTENING GUY named, "Anonymous". :p</p>
<p>At parties, pple are generally chill. Grades are a tad deflationary, but, that has less to do with the students than with the professors. The close friends that I made as an undergraduate generally had a positive effect on me, particularly ambition-wise.</p>
<p>Here's an addition to my question that i put on the penn board:</p>
<p>"Well, I didn't mean "nerdy" exactly -- I mean just students who are smarter than the average bird who don't necessarily have IQ's through the stratosphere. And even though it's a common misconception that everyone's a nerdy, weird, competitive genius, the kids who go to top tier schools are very smart, though not necessarily all of them.</p>
<p>What I want to know is if this brings about competition among the students OR more of a feeling of camaraderie to work hard together and learn even more? (I'm guessing that it's a little bit of both, but in your opinion, which one more so?)"</p>
<p>Almost every class I've been in has had a significant amount of collaborative work, if not by design, than by our own making. No one does a problem set alone, and no one hesitates to glean whatever knowledge or insight they can off of their other classmates.</p>
<p>Of course, this extends beyond the classroom. I'll be over a friends for Shabbat dinner or something and meet someone for the first time and get into a heated debate about competing models of education reform for several hours, find out I'm in an ED class with those people, and then choose to go and observe classrooms alongside these people who I vehemently disagree with.</p>
<p>
[quote]
Is it like, cutthroat competitive-ish when you go to a school where nearly everyone is from the top 10% of their respective high schools and where everyone worked their butt off to get there? Is there a lot of jealousy of smarts, unpleasantness etc.?
[/quote]
No. In HS, you're competing with the top 10% anyway.</p>
<p>I think it's true at every school, whether it be any ivy or a non-flagship state school, there will always be really smart people and there will always be really dumb people.</p>
<p>At William & Mary, it was not cutthroat at all, but you didnt want to have the lowest grades on he hall. There was a type of intellectual pecking order that brought out the best and most creative side of you. Truly a great experience.</p>
<p>Anyway, a long, long time ago in a distant galaxy... it varies. Stanford, Brown, Dartmouth, a few more have always been known as more collaborative. Wharton, Princeton, Berkeley pre-med weeder courses, and few others have been known as more competitive.</p>
<p>First hand, relatively recent perspective (MIT class of '07):</p>
<p>
[quote]
OR is it the opposite, like more of a synergistic environment where people help each other and grow upon each others' intellect? Is the widespread intelligence a HUGE benefit for each individual?
[/quote]
</p>
<p>It was definitely, definitely, this.</p>
<p>Also, in general, it was great! I wasn't on a pedestal with tons of people watching me and waiting for me to slip up anymore. I was among a community of people that I related to. I found that when I was no longer wallowing in alienation all the time, my adolescent resentment toward humanity in general melted away and was replaced by a greater appreciation, and that even though I was in a bubble in my day to day life, when I left that bubble, I was able to interact better with (and have much more enjoyment from interacting with) all sorts of people.</p>
<p>The downside is that my self-esteem (and most other people's) took a hit. It is very easy, in a bubble of extreme intelligence, to forget where you stand when you're not in that bubble. A lot of people are convinced that they are idiots by the time they get out. The upside within this downside, the silver lining, is that people are less arrogant and have more empathy when they come out (and more work ethic).</p>
<p>Totally agree with jessiehl. I felt accepted for who I was for the first time in my life (outside of my family). I didn't have to hide anything about myself, and no eyebrows were raised. It was such a fantastic experience to be in the middle of the mainstream.</p>
<p>I agree that it knocks you down a few pegs, and I think that's a very healthy process. You can't base your sense of self on being the best at everything. That forces you to grow up. It was great for me.</p>
<p>My kid was very surprised to find classmates (at an Ivy) with very poor writing skills. He doesn't know how they got into the school. There were many kids who had SATs much higher than his, but he was better prepared for college and had much better writing and study skills. He found the place to be extremely social and a mix of intellectualism and too many people who only cared about jobs and internships. Each year has gotten better and I think you settle into a group of friends who share your propensity for partying and discussing politics, literature etc.</p>
<p>jessiehl -- your school choice turned out to be perfect for you! nice job.</p>
<p>momowc -- students are rarely challenged in writing or critical thought in high school these days (can't say if ever, but certainly not currently). What high school teacher can handle a time consuming writing critique for 33 students in each of several periods? Entering students at Tippy Top schools, or any other, are woefully lacking in the ability to produce a coherent, sensible piece of writing. It is a treasure and usually serendipitous for a high school to have even one teacher devoted enough to his/her students to dissect the structure and train of thought of a high school student's writing ... that is time consuming. Students can often get trained in critical thought by joining a debate team, but where is the Writing Team? It doesn't exist! Writing skills are not necessary for 9/10 classes, none of the SAT or SAT IIs, and ECs. The ONLY place that is reviewed is in the applicant's essay, which is irrelevant as that essay is usually a group project (input on concept, review by parent and/or teacher, mentor or paid consultant). It's a shame really. It is rare for a class exam to be other than multiple choice in all subjects except English.</p>
<p>I came from a "top" high school and was in "top" classes, but I find my college culture intimidating at times. It's not like my college peers hit me over the head with how smart they are... if they did, it would almost be easier, because it would be easy to write them off as jerks.</p>
<p>Instead, I have found a lot of people who seem perfectly normal, bubbly, social, etc. who are taking REALLY intense classes and LOVING it. Or you find kids who seem pretty decently average, until you learn that they're in three theater productions, auditing two classes, etc. etc. etc. Usually I find the culture uplifting and energizing, but sometimes I need to remind myself that being the dumbest person in a class is still an accomplishment in itself.</p>