<p>I loved Pton when I visited recently but I am concerned that I didnt get a full impression of what the people there are like (considering I visited at the end of winter vacation). Can currently enrolled students elaborate if the students there fit the "stereotype"?</p>
<p>Additionally, I was concerned that I wouldn't be getting a realistic interaction with the outside world living in a small, wealthy town. Can someone currently enrolled please elaborate on this. Thanks!!</p>
<p>Jeef, I’m a graduate rather than a current student, but I thought I might be helpful here. More than nearly any other school of which I know, Princeton is characterized in the public mind by outdated stereotypes. This legacy has something to do with the traditions of the place, its mystique and the many stories about it from the days of F. Scott Fitzgerald. Those days are long gone. In truth, you won’t find a great deal of difference in the demographic makeup of students at most of the competitive schools you might be considering. Each will have a mix of high-achieving students from a variety of backgrounds with varied extracurricular interests.</p>
<p>Here are some facts about today’s Princeton that might surprise you if you’ve come to believe in the stereotypes.</p>
<p>Class of 2009 % of Students on Financial Aid (U.S. News & World Report)</p>
<p>55% Princeton
52% Harvard
45% Yale
43% Stanford</p>
<p>Class of 2010 % of Students From Public Schools</p>
<p>61% Princeton
54.4% Yale</p>
<p>(<a href="http://www.princeton.edu/main/news/archive/S14/41/92C18/index.xml?section=newsreleases%5B/url%5D">http://www.princeton.edu/main/news/archive/S14/41/92C18/index.xml?section=newsreleases</a>)
(<a href="http://www.yaledailynews.com/articles/view/17694%5B/url%5D">http://www.yaledailynews.com/articles/view/17694</a>)</p>
<p>Princeton was one of the first schools in the Ivy League to have a woman as president (Penn was the first) and the second (after Dartmouth) to have a Jewish president. </p>
<p>Recently, national organizations have ranked Princeton as the 2nd best school in the nation for Latino students (<a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=160439%5B/url%5D">http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=160439</a>) and the best in the Ivy League for attracting African-American students (<a href="http://www.dailyprincetonian.com/archives/2006/02/08/news/14379.shtml)%5B/url%5D">http://www.dailyprincetonian.com/archives/2006/02/08/news/14379.shtml)</a>. </p>
<p>With its new financial aid initiative, it is the only school in the Ivy League (and I believe, nationally) that guarantees that students will graduate with no loan debts for school. All of Princeton’s aid is now in the form of grants (which don’t need to be paid back) rather than loans.</p>
<p>I’ve recently commented about the issue of the real world outside Princeton’s gates. Most suburban college campuses are a bit removed from both the harshness and the opportunities of urban life. This is certainly true at Princeton. At the same time, Princeton students have plenty of “real world” experiences available to them. Trenton is about fifteen minutes away and is as gritty and ‘real’ as an urban area gets. It is also host to many Princeton undergraduates performing service-related work. In fact, the “Urban Action” program for incoming students at Princeton bases most of its service programs in Trenton. New York and Philadelphia are each about an hour by train.</p>
<p>What you will get in the town of Princeton itself, is a crime rate close to zero and a beautiful, friendly environment. One group has identified it as the second best “college town” in America. <a href="http://www.epodunk.com/top10/colleges/princeton.html%5B/url%5D">http://www.epodunk.com/top10/colleges/princeton.html</a> (Note that this survey groups urban areas by size, so there is also a best college big city, best college medium size city and best college small city.)</p>
<p><a href="http://www.csmonitor.com/1993/0512/12111.html%5B/url%5D">http://www.csmonitor.com/1993/0512/12111.html</a> = article about the town of Princeton</p>
<p><a href="http://www.brianrose.com/princeton.htm%5B/url%5D">http://www.brianrose.com/princeton.htm</a> = images</p>
<p>I hope that some of this is responsive to your concerns!</p>
<p>Best way to know the school. Read Nassau weekly online - read verbatim and Daily Princetonian. Pick things in the search for Daily Princetonian like
" sex" "swimming" "racism" "soccer" "theater" whatever you want to know and just read what the students think and feel. That will tell you more than those people 'trying to develop a good fit for you' The only good fit is when you feel right after you have lots of information! And Princeton is a small wealthy town which is great for some people dont knock it!</p>
<p>What exactly is this "stereotype" you speak of? ;)</p>
<p>The country-club, preppy, pretty boy, athletic, "im good at everything and you are merely mortal" types of people...</p>
<p>Haha... I only ask because it's kinda fun having people think I'm that sort of person. :p I actually haven't met one of those this year yet. Is that really the impression you got when you visited?</p>
<p>But people are athletic in general. Almost everyone I know plays a sport of some kind, or dances, or works out religiously, or finds a running buddy, or otherwise manages to keep in shape.</p>
<p>Do people frequently blast their cloits at Princeton? I gotta get in the zone, if so.</p>
<p>...what does that even mean?</p>
<p>Yeah, what?</p>
<p>Anyway, I'd have to say, don't buy into the stereotypes.</p>