<p>Princeton (along with Cornell) seems to be cited as the most stressful Ivy League school.</p>
<p>The factors that seem to contribute to this are:</p>
<p>1.) Difficult academics
2.) Grade deflation
3.) Isolated location</p>
<p>Obviously, the overall experience at Princeton would be a rewarding one - but is it an entirely happy one? </p>
<p>Thanks</p>
<p>I disagree. All of the Princeton students I’ve talked to seem to agree that yes, it’s a lot of work, but every student there has the caliber to manage and excel under that workload. It seems like everyone there not only studies but joins a half dozen clubs or sports and is also involved in the community. As an upcoming freshman, I have no idea how much of an adjustment that will be for me, or if there’s some Princeton Red Bull that everyone chugs like mad. The Academics are difficult, but stimulating. The grade deflation is a mixed issue among students, but you have to consider that most kids there have never gotten a B. For engineering kids, I understand that the grade deflation is along the lines of what you would get anyway. As far as location, Princeton isn’t as isolated as Cornell or Dartmouth. You have the town of Princeton right next to campus and NYC is a 45 minute train ride away. Same with Philly. You’re going to have periods of stress at college, especially such a high caliber one, but in my mind that makes the success all the more rewarding.</p>
<p>Any kid landing at an Ivy or similar institution such as a top SLAC or engineering school is going to go through the stress of suddenly not being automatically the top of the heap academically and having to work harder to keep up in classes, gain the respect of classmates and professors, and in many of these institutions to get good grades (and/or adjust to not having straight As any longer). Yes, the grading policy at Princeton is likely tougher, at least in non-STEM classes, than some other Ivys, but some others are moving to having a similar policy, and at Princeton doing well and getting an A does make you feel really good and like it meant something! And in my experience, once you get your feet on the ground and figure out how to study/budget your time/choose classes/find the right major, the grading issues sort of melt away. The classes in general are fantastic, mostly small enough so professors know you, not taught by grad students or TAs much compared to some of the other Ivys. There is alot of support/academic advising, maybe I just got lucky but my in college advisor freshman year was great, and there are TAs and other people in your college galore to ask for help/advice
The location is really not very isolated, Philly less than an hour, NYC easy on bus or train. And the fact that the campus is super safe, and self-contained means that there is lots to do socially/activitywise on campus, no one much leaves to find stuff to do elsewhere, so planning your non-academic time/life is easy and not very stressful. Plus no financial stress compared to schools like Columbia and Penn where so much of social life is off campus and involves spending money going to clubs/restaurants in the city, at Princeton the choices for spending money off campus are VERY limited, so social life is centered on campus, mostly free or very cheap (ie beer in the eating clubs) and I found that took a lot of social stress away. Also nice to not worry about being mugged walking home late from a party or the library!</p>
<p>It seems every few months or so someone wants to complain about the “stress” at Princeton especially due to “grade deflation”…</p>
<p>1) courses at Princeton are rigorous and no different than at any other peer schools…let’s not kid ourselves…courses at Harvard, Stanford, Chicago, MIT are just as tough…</p>
<p>2) grade deflation is over-exaggerated…one gets the grade that one “deserves” not higher or lower…if you want to complain about grade deflation look to MIT, Chicago, Caltech…there was a great article in the Princetonian while back about this…</p>
<p>3) Give me a break…Princeton is located in what most people around the country would consider a “suburb” of New York or Philadelphia…campus reminds me most of Stanford (very idyllic)…very conducive for forming very strong bonds to the alma mater…</p>
<p>Agree with other posters here. And to add:</p>
<p>1) Yes the academics are difficult. If you got in, admissions is convinced you can do it. But you will be challenged. If you aren’t interested in being pushed academically, it probably isn’t the right place for you. </p>
<p>2) If you and I and all the rest of the people who frequent the Princeton forum on cc know that grade deflation is part of academics at Princeton, you can be certain that grad schools and most prospective employers are aware of the same. I don’t believe it is as much of an issue as some would say. </p>
<p>3) The “orange bubble” offers opportunities for social activities both on and off campus. “Isolated” would be one of the last adjectives I would use to describe it! For example, trips to New York city to see shows/sports activities etc. are offered very frequently at extremely low cost (like $25 including ticket to the event and bus fare) through the residential colleges. Philadelphia is also accessible by train. Activities on campus are plentiful. I would say the issue with Princeton is more likely to swing in the direction of “there is too much to do and experience” rather than not enough.</p>
<p>And by the way…those future applicants who think or wish Princeton will do away with their rigorous “grading system” any time soon is greatly mistaken…after all, the new incoming president is a product of Princeton and Chicago…and according to most interviews…he has no plans to change the present system.</p>
<p>Two factors really mitigate stress at Princeton.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Location. So pretty & quiet. No cars on campus. Trees and lawns everywhere. Lake Carnegie and the woods at the Institute for Advanced Study within walking distance. </p></li>
<li><p>Social life. The eating clubs and the residential colleges really provide cohesive communities. </p></li>
</ol>
<p>Studies show that nature on the horizon, and a sense of belonging, are key in human peace of mind:).</p>
<p>College kids have a lot of potential sources of stress. Princeton is so comfortable that the only thing you’ll have to worry about is your academics.</p>
<p>Probably the most stressful thing about Princeton is that there’s no way to get out of doing a senior thesis. That is going to create stress, no question. It’s also academically valuable, and a great feature of the Princeton program.</p>
<p>I have been known to sneer about Princeton’s boring suburban location, but “isolated”? That’s a laugh. Dartmouth is isolated. Williams, Middlebury, Bennington, St. Lawrence are isolated. Deep Springs is really isolated. Princeton is a one-hour, $15 ride from the center of the world, and the trains leave every 30 minutes. (Cornell is a pain in the butt to get to and from, but it’s in a great, lovely college town with over 30,000 horny students who also have trouble leaving. “Isolated” isn’t quite the right word for that, either.)</p>