<p>I'm changing my mind...I like Yale...
I got a bad vibe from my Princeton visit and I've heard great things about the Yale undergrad experience. Harvard, not so much; same with Stanford. But seriously, Wharton beats 'em all.</p>
<p>instinct*</p>
<p>Ginny isn't trying to argue that Yale is an objectively better school. Obviously, none of the schools here are objectively "best," as you can see just by the varied opinions on the board. Her (his?) point is that you have absolutely no basis for this "heavy amount of legacies" at Yale comment. The fact that Yale is more open about it doesn't inflate the legacy percentage at all--if anything, it's a positive thing, letting the public know how big a part legacies are of the total class.</p>
<p>Whoa! What is up with the New Haven haters? I grew up in a posh CT suburb, and moved to New Haven when I took some time off from school. The city and the university have invested a lot of money in making it a really nice college town. </p>
<ol>
<li><p>The rents and cost of living are reasonable. I live in a lovely Victorian in a very safe area about 10 minutes from the Yale campus, and pay about $400 a month in rent, with only one other roommate. (I used to live even closer and pay only $150 a month.) When I lived in Cambridge, I shelled out $650 a month plus utilities to live in a tiny apt with 3 others about 20 minutes by bus from Harvard. A night on the town never costs me more than $10. In Cambridge and Boston, it cost me at least $20-$30. And everything was sooooo boring there. Totally bland and lacking in character. And the food is much better in New Haven. We get some great bands here, too, and they don't cost $25 to see, either.</p></li>
<li><p>New Haven gets a bad rap for safety. This used to be the case, but there have been some great improvements made here. Yale's invested alot of money and resources; and the city has also adopted a really effective community policing scheme. Seriously, the last crime spree we had was a purse snatcher about 4 or 5 months ago. He just snatched purses. And he was busted within a week. Other cities should be so lucky. </p></li>
<li><p>People are incredibly friendly in New Haven, something I never experienced when living in Cambridge.</p></li>
<li><p>Everyone has a story here. And everyone is incredibly bright and interesting. It's a very relaxed atmosphere, too.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Look, I have much New Haven spirit. And the guidebooks don't tell you everything. There are boutiques, there are chains, there is public transportation, there are great restaurants, and there are beautiful parks. New Haven's a vibrant small city on the upswing. PM me if you need more info.</p>
<p>When did I ever say that there are MORE legacies at Yale than any other school, I just said I find them to be more open about it, and when did I imply that a heavy legacy school weighs down on whether one school is better than the other. I just was saying for me personally, I wouldn't enjoy the environment as much, that's all, so please stop twisting my words.</p>
<p>
[quote]
When did I ever say that there are MORE legacies at Yale than any other school, I just said I find them to be more open about it, and when did I imply that a heavy legacy school weighs down on whether one school is better than the other.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>About 10 posts ago. You said "causing I hate the eating clubs at Princeton as well as the heavy amount of legacies at Yale", which seems to mean you hate the heavy amount of legacies at Yale, and when you use this as a reason to turn down Yale for Harvard, logically it would imply you think Yale has more legacies than Harvard and maybe Princeton.</p>
<p>Are we misinterpreting you?</p>
<p>And out of curiosity, if you don't think that Yale has more legacies than, say, Harvard, then how can merely the administration's openness about their legacy numbers affect the environment to the point where you won't consider the school? I'm not trying to change your opinion, you're entitled to think what you wil, I'm just curious about your reasoning.</p>
<p>My reasoning behind all of this is the social interaction I encountered at each one, I just found Yale to be considerably more open. Now, Harvard may or may not have more legacies than Yale, but I just found the social interaction to be more of an environment I would enjoy. I mean maybe I just hung out with the wrong people, but from my experience (which basically is the only thing any prospetive student can really base their decisions on) I just found Harvard healthier, that's all. I'm not playing down Yale at all as being an exceptional school; it's just not the school for me. And, to your first question, yes.</p>
<p>I don't think we're misinterpreting you as much as your being unclear with what you originally intended to say.</p>
<p>Alright. That's a perfectly fair assessment and I respect that opinion, definitely. In your first post you only listed legacies at Yale as your reason for not wanting to go there, hence our confusion ;)</p>
<p>How can you determine what my statement was saying, can you read my mind?</p>
<p>Thanks for understanding. :)</p>
<p>Wrathofgod wasn't interpreting what you were actually saying, he was judging the clarity of what you were saying. I personally think it was unclear, too (otherwise this confusion wouldn't have happened! :)), but it's cleared up now.</p>
<p>Id go to YALE!</p>
<p>Yale
Stanford
Princeton
Harvard</p>
<p>Hellllllls yes ;)</p>
<p>Good choice, guys. ;)</p>
<p>I've never been to any of the campuses except Stanford's when I was younger, but I do know basic advantages and aspects of each school. I would go with Harvard because of the prestige that's attached with its name. Other than that, the northeast seems really appealing to me even though I've never visited.</p>
<p>haha, how funny, you guys mentioned me in here! I went to sunny hills, class of 2005, got into yale early, turned it down for ucsd med scholars...in short, if it wasn't ucsd med, it'd been yale. cmon, theres a reason why yale consistently gets the award for having the happiest students...they love it there. harvard and princeton to me seemed a bit elitest, and stanford was a good choice also...but gotta be yale fsho!</p>
<p>FatalAce--Hopefully you won't use that line of reasoning when applying to colleges! Prestige only gets you so far. It may make a difference (albeit a tiny one) before you go to college, to be able to say "I'm going to Harvard" over YPS, but during college you won't care and after college, all four schools are the same to the people who count--prospective employers--anyway. Making a decision based solely on prestige could be one of the worst choices you can make, because you're going to be there for four years and you can rest assured prestige has no effect on happiness, and that's what really counts.</p>