Princeton or Stanford??

Colleges and Universities A-Z Princeton University
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<p>I'm new to these boards and would appreciate some advice. I got into Princeton and Stanford, two AMAZING schools. I applied as an undecided major and I really have no idea what I want to study in college because there are so many topics I'm interested in. Outside of academics, I"m really into theatre. I love that both schools are near really cool cities, Stanford-SF, Princeton- NYC, Philly.</p>

<p>I"m from Southern California and the thought of going across the country to Princeton is kinda scary, but I'm still definitely considering it. THanks for the advice!!</p>

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<p>See the thread in the '09 subforum. There's some helpful advice there :)</p>

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<p>Well, if you love theater...there is nothing like New York! You can travel there for 22 dollars or going on Princeton group outings. Also, you will get to experiance living somewhere else.</p>

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<p>Oh yea, this was the thread... I just put this up in another discussion:</p>

<p><a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=48843%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=48843&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

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<p>oh u love theater, then princeton is definitely the perfect school for you. stanford's theater is a little lacking, while princeton is known for its superb theater. </p>

<p>mccarter theater - basically on campus, tony-award winning theater, many plays produced there have gone to broadway</p>

<p>residential colleges - see many many musicals/plays/operas each year, many of the ones up for next year are avenue q, brooklyn, wicked, rent, dirty rotten scoundrels, little women, spamalot, julius caeser, 700 sundays and others/ operas included la boheme and madama butterfly, and others =P</p>

<p>theater as an extra-curricular - princeton's opporunities in theater are endless. it has the best theater productions in the ivy league, and the plays i saw at princeton were incomparable to those i saw at stanford. princeton's were close to professional and they really showed me that i would be going to school with people who are amazing at what they do/are passionate about</p>

<p>princeton is pretty much excellent in every department =P so u wouldnt have to worry about an undecided major</p>

<p>im from arizona and a big factor for me was wanting to experience a completely different region of the US. i think its one of those aspects of college that makes it so much better, being in a different environment. its much more exciting and makes college more interesting. </p>

<p>but definitely, if u are a theater nerd, which i definitely am (i dont do theater i love watching theater but i have a few friends in love with theater) princeton would be perfect. its location by NYC, its outstanding student productions, and its reputation are perfect for u =P</p>

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<p>candy, if you come to Princeton, you'll have a theater bud (moi). Princeton theater (Richardson, McCarter, et al) will be my home for the next four years, haha.</p>

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<p>Thanks for your help. I didn't know that someone had the same question in the Princeton subforum, but that was helpful too.</p>

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<p>i'm from so. cali too. and as scary as it is to go so far, i think it'll be a nice change for college. if u need a buddy who'll be as frozen as u next winter, lemme know. lol</p>

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<p>winter's going to be soooo crazy. I hope the grayness doesn't lead to increased hermitude and depression, haha.</p>

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<p>Wow. Its nice to know I'm not the only one agonizing over this decision. The schools are so different, yet I cannot seem to find a way to decide between them. On the one hand, Princeton probably has the best educational opportunities available to undergraduates in the nation. On the other hand, Stanford has... essentially equal opportunities and is one of the happiest and best adjusted schools in the nation. Then there's the issue of East Coast versus West Coast. Stanford's laid back nature and Princeton's elitism. Stanford's grade inflation and Princeton's curve. Snow and palm trees. I just don't know how to decide.</p>

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<p>Princeton. Is. Not. Elitist.</p>

<p>Really. It's really important to visit the school and talk to students before jumping to that conclusion. True, I used to buy into that too, but then I talked to several students and visited the campus, and it definitely didn't seem that way. True, there are some egotists, but there are those kinds of people everywhere. I agree that it's going to come largely down to East v. West. Best of luck with your decision :)</p>

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<p>I know, I know, I shouldn't be on the Princeton board because I'm "one of them," both Candy and Zara, regardless of what decision you make don't make it on:</p>

<ol>
<li>Perceived caliber (U.S. News)</li>
<li>Perceived level of undergraduate contact</li>
<li>Perceived personality of students</li>
</ol>

<p>What you should make it on is how you felt when you visited each. Do you think you'd be happier at Princeton (which, for the record, I think it's a good time to add in an anti-New Jersey remark) or Stanford? It's all about how you feel you fit. There's no wrong decision, and don't let people try to convince you there is! Good luck!</p>

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<p>Hey all -</p>

<p>Coming from the perspective of someone whose high school is ACROSS THE STREET from Stanford, I have some other points to make. Having lived in Palo Alto my whole life, I have been quite involved with several things at Stanford. I know several students there (from Freshmen to Seniors) and the general concensus is that it's a laid-back school. Some of the draw backs are, well, Stanford is a bubble. The students don't really ever leave. If you're dreaming of seeing SF, well, that'll be tough unless you have a car (which freshman cannot have on campus). Also, due to its superb grad school, undergrads don't get all the wonderful attention they would get at Princeton. This is why I picked Princeton over Stanford. One AWESOME thing about Stanford tho, (besides the weather) is the athletics department. Almost every sports team is awesome, and my best friend plays for the baseball team there - they're really good. </p>

<p>Onto the social scene - I've been to many-a-party at Stanford, from frats to dorm parties, and they're really not that great. Some are chill, but they end so early, are super-strict on who gets in (i'm lucky cuz i'm a girl), and people seem to mingle only with their established friends. My friend who is a freshman right now really had a rough first half of the year b/c he said he "could not find anyone to hold a deep philosophical conversation with." I told him he just wasn't looking in the right places. As of now, he's doing better but, he still admits a lot of the students can be kinda dull at times.</p>

<p>Stanford is a great place, but Princeton stole my heart!</p>

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<p>Haven't seen these boards in quite sometime. Now that all the hoopla of the regulars is over.</p>

<p>My cousin went to Stanford and he's the epitome of Californian laid back - he lived in Riverside. He told me that Stanford is probably as conservative as you can get in the west.</p>

<p>However, you are right, east and west coast are different - the northeast is a very liberal place, but its liberal-conservative, whereas the west is a hang loose attitude.</p>

<p>Princeton will definitely have its mix of conservatists, elitists, liberals, and west coasters - as I'm sure Stanford does to. Their both top private universities, so. Phil is right, visit and see for yourself. You gotta get the feel.</p>

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<p>Candy and Zara,</p>

<p>We are rather biased here. We will all tell you things like Princeton is the only elite university with total undergraduate focus and that socially, students like each other so much that they marry each other at incredibly high rates and, that even after leaving, graduates still don't let go - they give at the highest rate in the nation.</p>

<p>But in fairness, you should look at how some neutral outsiders rate Princeton.
A suggestion:</p>

<p>US NEWS</p>

<ol>
<li>Princeton</li>
<li>Harvard</li>
<li>Yale</li>
<li>UPenn</li>
</ol>

<p>ATLANTIC MONTHLY</p>

<ol>
<li>MIT</li>
<li>Princeton</li>
<li>CatTech</li>
<li>Yale</li>
<li>Harvard</li>
</ol>

<p>Princeton Review</p>

<ol>
<li>MIT</li>
<li>Princeton</li>
<li>CalTech</li>
<li>Yale</li>
<li>Harvard</li>
</ol>