persuade me, please

Colleges and Universities A-Z Princeton University
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<p>so i was really excited (and veeerrry surprised) that i got into princeton. my parents are too, and as it is the most prestigious school i got into, they want me to go. the academic rigor and variety and quality of teaching all seem fantastic, and I would really like to be 100% excited to go there and love it, but i'm worried about two things:</p>

<p>1) the area. i've spent these past 12 years waiting and waiting to get out of the suburbs. i live in a suburb near boston, and go to boston/cambridge every weekend for one of my ECs and also to hang out and LOVE it. this city was my main reason for wanting to go to harvard but got rejected. princeton is in a quiet, small town and seems very withdrawn and not urban, which i don't like
2) kind of on a related note, i guess i'm kind of an artsy person, what some judgemental people (i'm disgusting myself as i write this) would call a kind of "hipster", or otherwise more likely to attend an urban school like yale/columbia/harvard (none of which i got into...ha) i like going to see shows and concerts of alternative rock bands and contemporary art galleries. i love high fashion. more of a club/bar type rather than house party/frat type. i realy love visual art/film/music, and especially being in the now, the cutting edge (i know i'll find classical everything at princeton) but i'll have to go all the way too nyc probably to find a theater showing indie films or a club featuring my fav bands</p>

<p>sorry if i sound trivial or foolish or closedminded (or rambling, sorry im really tired) but i would really love to love princeton, and these things are kind of bugging me. so if someone could give me some insight on these aspects, i would be incredibly grateful</p>

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<p>Obviously Princeton is not NYC or Boston, but students are able to go into the city pretty easily (the train station is on campus). As to movies, the Princeton Garden Theater which is right across from the campus shows independent art films on one of its two screens. Here's a link to a story about the theater</p>

<p>Nassau</a> Street Garden Theater set to re-open by June 2001 class reunions - The Daily Princetonian</p>

<p>In terms of music, the Princeton radio station, WPRB, used to be known for its alternative rock programming. Here's a link to its current djs and playlists.</p>

<p>WPRB</a> Schedule</p>

<p>The radio station is located in Bloomberg Hall on campus and is operated by Princeton students.</p>

<p>Princeton has recently had a renewed focus on the arts and is in the process of creating an "Arts Neighborhood" on campus. The dance program is extremely strong, with an emphasis on modern dance. Here's a link to info about the Spring Dance Festival featuring modern dances by Mark Morris and Ze'eva Cohen.</p>

<p>Princeton</a> University’s Spring Dance Festival at the Berlind Theatre Features Dances by Faculty and Renowned Choreographers - Lewis Center for the Arts</p>

<p>Princeton also has one of the most respected regional theaters, McCarter Theater, right on campus, as well as a student theater, Theater Intime. Here's a link to the shows going on this year at Theater Intime.</p>

<p>Theatre</a> Intime</p>

<p>Princeton also has tons of musical groups, dance groups, artists etc. in addition, the creative writing program is exceptional (Toni Morison, John McPhee, Joyce Carol Oates have all taught on campus) and last semester, Edward Albee gave a seminar on theater. I don't want to mislead you and say that the campus is filled with cutting edge fashion, art etc., but there are definitely lots of interesting cool things going on constantly.</p>

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<p>Also, don't forget that Terrace Club is all a stereotypical "hipster" could ask for on campus. It's probably the most liberal, alternative club "on" (it's not really on Prospect) the Street, and it routinely attracts excellent alternative bands. Just this year, for example, we've gotten Beirut, Vampire Weekend, Thurston Moore (of Sonic Youth fame), Dan Deacon, Headlights, White Rabbits, etc. YACHT is also performing in less than two weeks, and Terrace has an amazing history of past performers (Elliott Smith, They Might Be Giants, Aesop Rock, The Magnetic Fields, Modest Mouse, etc.).</p>

<p>Okay, so that detail was probably unnecessary. What I'm trying to say is that the fact that Princeton is a small town doesn't necessarily mean that you won't have the same opportunities as at larger places. While you won’t be going off-campus to see shows and other arts events, Princeton compensates by bringing many of them here. In my mind, it’s a little tradeoff—a little bit of variety for a lot of convenience—and the latter wins almost every time. Plus, the shows are really intimate here!</p>

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<p>OH, I'm not alone! This is great. Thanks for assuaging my fears, a bit. I've sort of come to terms with it by thinking that...if I were in a more urban environment with, you know, Things to Do, I might not actually...study.</p>

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<p>I think the Terrace Club thing is really important, actually. Arty urban kids are not the mainstream at Princeton, at least not visibly so. As opposed, for example, to Columbia or Yale. But they do exist (I was one:)). If you find an academic haven, and get really involved in Theatre Intime or the creative writing program at 185 Nassau, and if it doesn't make you feel some how out of it when you choose not to join the mostly cleancut kids streaming down to the rest of the Street - in that case, Princeton has fabulous academics of all types AND New York City only an hour away on the train. And yes, kids do go to New York fairly often.</p>

<p>But prestige is a silly reason to come to Princeton. Where else did you get in?</p>

<p>BTW - if your screen name is a clue, there are great inclusive dance groups at Princeton, see expressions, disiac, body hype etc and an excellent for credit dance program.</p>

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<p>Reading your earlier chances thread, I think what you say interests you is what made you so attractive to Princeton. Princeton wants to elevate the arts on campus and attract more people like you. Or, as the President once famously let slip, "more people with green hair".
My daughter is a serious ballet dancer, attending 6 days a week at her home school and at SAB summers. She is a first year at Princeton. I don't want to mislead you on the ballet. It is not a special emphasis at Princeton. However, there are free ballet classes 6 days a week. The most impressive moment at our Princeton visit for me was stumbling on a student orchestra rehearsal. The quality and the setting were amazing. I don't think many of the musicians were music majors.
On the hipster lifestyle part, my daughter tends to hang out at Terrace for the bands and the company. She has traveled to NYC with student friends who wanted to get tattoos, and traveled to Philadelphia and New York several times for rock concerts.
Having grown up in the middle of a major city, she preferred Princeton to Harvard or Columbia because she didn't want more of the urban same-old same-old. Your issue in reverse.
Most graduates of the schools you applied to will spend their early adulthoods in urban settings. I'm sure at 18 or so, that seems like a long way off.
Please go to the admitted students weekend and see what you think. I understand that the setting is not what you prefer and most students are nowhere near alternative. It would be a shame to turn down Princeton academics because you can't see yourself finding your niche at the University.</p>

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<p><a href="http://www.lvutv.com%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.lvutv.com&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>if you're still weighing your college options, you can visit ^this^ website and see many many interviews of princeton students (and probably other colleges you're considering). it's actually pretty decent, i was surprised. :)</p>

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<p>thanks for your responses everyone. i was already definitely going to preview - i can't wait
oh and alumother, i was saying that prestige was why my parents (not me exactly) wanted me to go. i have other reasons of course, but am also considering WUstl, northwestern, and brown
thanks again for your detailed and meaningful testimony!</p>

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<p>My d is very into the arts. Acts and is a jazz vocalist . She goes with her artsy friends to Terrace(when she goes to an eating club).She spends alot of time performing.Having been raised in the suburbs she was worried about Princeton's suburban location.She justs heads into Greenwich Village when she wants a break from the "Princeton bubble". Princeton is putting the arts front and center now with a huge initiative. Bottom line my d is quite happy there and chose Princeton over a conservatory so she could pursue her many interests there.</p>

<p>D has friends at Brown who are quite happy , as well.Their open curriculum, being right in Providence and @ an hour from Boston was a draw for them. However they did not have Princeton as one of their choices.Brown has lots of artsy students.</p>

<p>As for WU Friends of d say it is heavily pre-med and the students who aren't love their partying.Clayton is right near downtown St. Louis but of course NW has downtown Chicago at its doorstep and one of the best arts scenes in the country. Good luck with your decision .</p>