Princeton Questions?

Hello,

I’m a junior doing research on colleges, and I had a few questions about Princeton that I’m hoping some current/recent students can answer (but answers from anyone are great too).

  1. I'm interested in going to graduate school (like Law School) and I've heard a lot about Princeton grade deflation. I know it's not an official policy anymore but is it still practiced by any teachers? How well do pre-law or pre-med students fair when applying to graduate school at Princeton?
  2. When I toured, my tour guide boasted how close the campus was to NYC and Philly. But then I realized that it was about an hour away from both. So how often are students actually leaving campus? Is it common? What is there to do that's nearby and enjoyable?
  3. Competitive or Collaborate? Somewhere in the middle? I know answers will vary a lot based on individual experiences. But in general, what's the academic vibe?
  4. Are the eating clubs as bad/elitist as people say? I think at the moment I'm straying away from greek life. If I don't like greek life, will I hate eating clubs?

Observations of a parent of a 2013 graduate:

1 - Everyone at Princeton is smart; good grades require hard work. Princeton graduates fare well in grad school admissions.

2 - My son rarely visited those cities, as he was too busy studying and participating in ECs.

3 - My son found the academic vibe to be collaborative and cooperative.

4 - The various clubs each have their own distinct personalities. My laid back son joined an eating club that was perfect for him.

My son goes to PU. He comes up to NYC some weekend days with friends. Pretty easy to take the light rail to NJ transit and hit NYC. It’s not really a long trip at all and I think they have a lot of fun going. BTW - There are plenty of good schools but PU is a gem for sure.

Answers from a parent of a 2022 student:

  1. Grade deflation: Yes, Princeton did a way with it, but overall gpa of students is still lower than at some other, comparable schools. For the most part, graduate schools know this and Princeton applicants are given some slack that students from other schools might not receive. Also, gpa is very dependent on major. Natural sciences tend to have the lowest overall gpa, but social sciences and humanities tend to be much higher.
  2. NY/Phil - How much a student visits either of these cities is based on the individual, I think. It's quite easy to get on a train to NYC, as the train comes right onto campus. Princeton also has many heavily subsidized events (Broadway shows) that can take you into Princeton.
  3. Very collaborative environment - but very academically challenging. You have to earn your As.
  4. Some eating clubs can feel elitist, but many do not. A significant percentage of students don't join one at all, and still have very full social lives.

Medical schools will not give GPA slack to Princeton applicants. Some law schools, masters and/or PhD programs may give said slack.

My son is currently a sophomore on a pre-med track at Princeton.

  1. The grade deflation was officially done away with in 2014, but it’s still there in practice, although the overall GPA has been inching upward ever so slightly since then. Still, Princeton’s average GPA is lower in comparison to its peers. As others have already pointed out, you’d have to work hard to earn good grades at Princeton. My son works very hard to keep up a competitive GPA for med schools. As long as you’re a hard worker and maintain a well balanced academic, social and EC activities, you’d do well.

  2. My son visits NYC quite often, some due to required course works but mostly for fun. For his music course on Richard Wagner, he attended The Ring Cycle at the Metropolitan Opera House with the class. For his biology course, he visited the Metropolitan Museum of Art with the class. When he visits NYC for fun, it’s mostly for food.

In and around Princeton, there are enough things to do, but it’s dependent on your personal interests. My son’s a musician, so his enjoyment is associated with his ensemble memberships, such as acapella singing group, Opus 21 and Princeton University Orchestra. They each go on domestic and international trips. Just in one year, my son’s been to Spain, Canada and Sweden with these groups. Princeton is probably the most generous with subsidized international trips. Many courses take place internationally. A course on Japanese art takes place in Kyoto or Tokyo; a course on Greek archaeology takes place in Athens, etc. etc. During their breaks, many students are found around the globe. So, the opportunities for enriching experiences are not just within the confines of the campus

  1. For mutual survival, students tend to work collaboratively. My son’s pre-med classmates seem to work together all the time. He’s never felt that the academic environment, while rigorous and challenging, was ever cut-throat and competitive.

  2. The Eating Clubs have undergone lots of changes over the years. Not all memberships are by “bickering” process. Students can join by the bickering process, “sign-in” (no bickering involved) or don’t join at all. It’s your choice.

Mwfan1921
Re:
“Medical schools will not give GPA slack to Princeton applicants.”

My child’s experience is that medical schools give some slack to Princeton applicants, just not as much as they might feel is warranted. Princeton Health Advising has said that as a rule of thumb you can generally add about .15 to your gpa, to see if you are competitive for a particular medical school.