<p>Where do you think an upper middle class kid would fit best, (feel most comfortable) Yale or Princeton? </p>
<p>English/Music Major/Moderate/Female/Possibly looking at Law School</p>
<p>Raised in a Middle Class Community</p>
<p>I've only ever been a Yale student, but I can tell you that upper middle class kids do fine at Yale. Kids who are first generation college do fine. Kids who are first generation high school graduates do fine. If you're concerned about the stereotype of Ivy League schools being filled with rich snobs, I don't think you'll find that to be the case. Yes, college is easier if you don't have to think twice about having money for pizza with friends and some people might feel intimidated to be around people who are exceptionally well-traveled, but Yale is a place where social class matters little relative to other places.</p>
<p>That's my perception as well. Our DD was in the same situation last year and ultimately chose Yale and couldn't be happier. Her suitemates come from a variety of socio-economic levels and who has what doesn't seem to be an issue. I just don't think it is part of the Yale culture to brag or to be conspicuous about wealth.</p>
<p>Thanks for your posts! I can think of nothing worse for my D than to get to a school and feel like she doesn't fit. D would always have money for pizza, but probably not a spring break trip to Paris!</p>
<p>My D will be a freshman at Y next year, and won't be going to Paris either. My nephew went to Stanford a few years ago and really had a hard time watching the extreme spending of classmates: multiple thousand dollar outings to the mall, for example. Not ALL Stanford undergrads had those resources, but I do remember his Freshman year, hearing him say that he had a new understanding of wealth....</p>
<p>Haha wow. I have a bunch of friends here at Y who are fabulously wealthy, and almost none are conspicuous about it. There are no thousand-dollar shopping sprees or group spring break trips to Paris. A few people do indeed go to their vacation house in Provence, but the vast majority of Yalies don't live like that! Yale is verrry down-to-Earth, and most of the time you can't tell someone's socio-economic background unless someone else fills you in! Most of my friends took "normal" spring break trips...ie 5 kids in a car driving down to Florida. Yeah. Nothing particularly Super-Sweet-Sixteen :-)</p>
<p>One of the many things that DD likes about New Haven is that there are a lot of ethnic restaurants that are inexpensive and so she and her friends can afford to go out to eat occasionally.</p>
<p>Mochamaven - that is exactly what my daughter has told me. Many of the international students are extremely wealthy - but most of the time nobody talks about it. As for spring break, most of the girls in her entryway didn't do anything too exciting so she didn't feel deprived. One of her friends came to our house over break - so that wasn't luxurious!</p>
<p>I'll chime in here too. After the fact, I discovered that some of my acquaintances were practically gajillionaires -- but I never knew it. They lived just like me -- slogging their dirty clothes to the washing machines, having to do their "turn" at cleaning the bathroom, etc. They didn't do any work study but that was fine. Some of them are still fast friends today.</p>
<p>Like someone else said, conspicuous consumption or over the top shows of opulence isn't there -- dunno if it's a sub conscious thing or maybe just the type of student Y admits. Long gone are the days when the "bursars students" were 2nd class citizens, serving food in the dining halls to the other rich kids.</p>