<p>Hi, my son got accepted to both. He is undecided about his major.
Visiting is a problem since we are in another continent :). We read a lot about the two schools. I am asking for you experiences/thoughts.
Does anyone you know, or you, gave up Princeton for Brown?
Thank you for any info!</p>
<p>If Financial Aid is not a problem, Princeton.</p>
<p>Thanks Posterguy. No problem with financial aid. Can you please share the reason your answer was so quick and decisive? :)</p>
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<p>He failed to get accepted to Brown? ;)</p>
<p>Both schools will give you a stellar education. If you want the more prestigious name, go to Princeton. If you want the greater flexibility that comes with the open curriculum and the quirky humor of a school that enjoys mocking itself as well as other sacred cows, then Brown would be a good fit.</p>
<p>The experience can greatly vary based on his future path of study/personality. It might be beating a dead horse to mention it, but Princeton’s grading system IS a factor of the academic experience that he should take into account. It’s easy to assume that scoring in the top 30% of a course is easy as a typically-A student, but the caliber that the majority of the student body brings is high. Not to say it isn’t high at Brown, but the grade distribution/options does alleviate a lot of stress.</p>
<p>Thanks!! LoremIpsum and Iapras: we want both, of course 
my kid is very competitive (also bright with different interests in science, social science and also in music). Very self demanding. He likes the freedom of exploration but also needs structure. Obviously it’s hard to give an advice to someone you dont know. Can I ask you re your own experience in Brown: is there a down side to the open curriculum? social life in Brown? anything you would change/ to improve in your school?</p>
<p>I am also a Brown graduate. I found no down side to the open curriculum. It permits you the freedom to try new subjects, gives more flexibility to try dual majors too. More important than the open curriculum is that Brown has many courses, majors and seminars that are cross-disciplinary–allowing you to look at a problem, subject or question from various perspectives. The various academic departments work together (rather than in silos) to provide this type of learning. As an example, you may take a public health class that looks at issues from the standpoint of biology, public policy, economics and sociology… Princeton has much less of this cross-department collaboration than Brown. In addition, over the past several years, Brown has beefed up its advising resources, so that students can thougtfully plan out their academic choices.
Both Princeton and Brown are excellent schools with a focus on undergraduate teaching. I think it is a matter of choosing a place that values fewer rules and creativity over one that is frankly more conventional. Also, the location of the schools is very different. Brown is in a rich urban setting, with a very historical and artistic surroundings. Princeton is in a very suburban town.</p>
<p>While there is certainly a wide variety of cultures on both campuses, and you can find “students like you” and also not like you to expand your horizons, there is still a predominant “flavor”. Princeton’s flavor is more country club prep, and Brown’s is more hipster, mellow, tolerant. (My student is anti-hipster and loves Brown.) I also have the general impression that Brown still has more mixing of cultures than Princeton. This is just my impression from knowing both schools; Brown better than Princeton I will admit.</p>
<p>Oh, and if it matters to him, Princeton’s Male to Female ratio is 52/48 and Brown’s is 48/52, and with arguably a high number of gay males, the “odds” are better for him (Gay or Straight) at Brown.</p>
<p>Thanks a lot. Very good input.</p>
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<p>Yes, it could give a student who’s not sure of what he wants to do a chance to flounder aimlessly. On the other hand, it can give maximum flexibility for experimentation and allows the possibility of dual concentrations in wholly unrelated fields. One side effect of the open curriculum is that every student who is in the class actually wants to be there and teachers need to keep the classes interesting to retain students.</p>