Princeton Vs. Brown

Colleges and Universities A-Z Princeton University
1

<p>eep.</p>

<p>I have a problem. A good problem, but a dilemma nonetheless.</p>

<p>I got into Princeton, Brown, and Stanford. Although i haven't visited stanford yet, i have visited Princeton and Brown...problem is, i really like them both.</p>

<p>Princeton seems rather more quiet/less "fun"/less...diverse, perhaps? More work. But, it's BEAUTIFUL (that may be shallow, but it's important to me), and does have amazing studies and opportunities for when you graduate ... and the name.</p>

<p>At Brown, people seem more out there (in a good way), and they have the open curriculum...which is really, really good. But, i rather dislike the campus, and it's FREEZING. Not cool. </p>

<p>Brown seems to have the personality edge, while Princeton has the logistical edge...However, i only spent one night at princeton and couldn't stay over at Brown, so I am not perfectly informed. There's probably a lot i'm missing, including amazingly interesting students at Princeton and every kind of weirdness at Brown.</p>

<p>Any ideas? Other reasons? I wish i could combine both schools!</p>

2

<p>For undergraduate education Princeton boasts the highest endowment per student of any university period.
Combine that with a beautiful campus that has been home to many a movie set and the 65 minute train ride to NYC what more can you ask.</p>

<p>Be prepared to work hard, stay up very late in the many libraries but have a smorgasbord of groups available to spend time when your work is done. There has never been a more diverse student body and the school spirit has no peers. (Check out "This Side of Princeton" Thursday night of pre-frosh).</p>

<p>The other schools mentioned are not as undergraduate focused but still fine choices without Princeton thrown in the mix.
stanford has the best weather and Brown the coolest students (they're next to RISD). Princeton is a great, safe small town to eat or go for ice cream. Take a walk on Nassau Street and you will know what I mean.</p>

3

<p>If you want more edgy than mainstream - go to Brown. If you just want the most intelligent kids possible and you are less concerned with their "out there ness" go to Princeton. If you really hate cities go to Princeton. Neither place will be a mistake from a future career etc perspective, although the Princeton alumni network is almost certainly more powerful.</p>

<p>Princeton kids are enthusiastic. That's the main trait for Princeton culture amongst the Ivies.</p>

4

<p>Can't speak for Stanford. But as a Brown alum (in touch with campus life) and Princeton parent, I'd like to offer some thoughts. Both are schools where the undergraduate is front and center. As Alumother says, Princeton puts a ton of money at your fingertips for incredibly well-known professors, amazing visiting faculty, internships, summer travel, study abroad, and research. Just thumbing through the course catalogue I find one academic superstar after another whose books or articles I have read, a glittering list. Simply put, Brown just doesn't have those resources. </p>

<p>I enjoyed Providence, which is a nice, small city and sort of funky. Princeton, however, is near NYC and Philly, which comes in very handy when it comes to getting internships, recruiting amazing visiting profs, and bringing in lecturers (who seem to be passing through from NYC to DC).</p>

<p>Despite the stereotypes, many Brown students become i-bankers and man Princeton students work for nonprofits after graduation. I'd say whatever Princeton students do, they tend to do it in a very well-planned fashion and preferably by starting or participating in an organization and getting funding from wealthy alums. ;) </p>

<p>Brown's open curriculum is a huge plus, and there is more emphasis on interdisciplinary study, although you can put this together for yourself at Princeton. The grade deflation at Princeton is not a plus; the lack of plus or minus grades at Brown, though, is annoying if you are thinking in terms of professional school. However, if you look at the top professional programs the admission numbers are definitely high for HYP students. You may not be thinking of that at this point, though. </p>

<p>Princeton has more of a "scene" than does Brown. Students are, I think it's safe to say, more gregarious. The residential college system and the eating clubs both contribute to this. </p>

<p>It is true that Brown students are known as "quirky." I find they are bright and interesting. There is definitely less political correctness on the Princeton campus than at Brown; my d, who is politically liberal, likes being in a place where she has many kindred spirits but also regularly meets students with whom she can have a healthy debate. </p>

<p>I don't think you're shallow for appreciating Princeton's beauty. Alumother and I both posted a beautiful speech by the WWS dean, who is a Princeton alum, that includes some breathtaking references to the beauty of the place and how that stays with you. I've tried to find the link but no luck. Alumother?</p>

<p>Brown has come a long, long way in recent years in terms of getting alumni to connect, but Princeton's alumni network is hard to match.</p>

5

<p>Alumother and aparent5:
Thank you so much for posting fair opinions of both places. It's nice not having a Byerly-style recruitment speech ;) thrown at us prospectives.
As for the student body: I'm the kind of person who, for fun, drives to random cities to explore, does a lot of stuff impulsively (friends and I recently bought a ten pound bar of chocolate. We're almost done with it now), and, in general, likes being outside. I also don't drink or smoke.
Do you know if the non-smoking/drinking social lives are prominent outside of either? Princeton's social life, I've heard, revolves a lot around partying. Brown I haven't heard so much of.</p>

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<p>Princeton's social life revolves around the interests of the kids. If you like to party, you go to the clubs and join a sorority/fraternity etc. BTW, partying does not mean drinking too much. It is absolutely possible to be a sober or moderate drinking partyer. </p>

<p>If you don't like to party, your social life will revolve around: a) your BF or GF. For some reason, Princeton has a high romance quotient b) your particular extra-curricular interests, newspaper, debate, community action, dance, theater, etc. Princeton is also a good place for spontaneous recreational actions if your workload happens to be light one night - NYC is close and easy to get to via train, the fountain outside of Woodrow Wilson is now ready for semi-clothed dunking, when it snows you tray down the golf course hills, midnight trips to diners on Route 1, etc. </p>

<p>It's also a nice place to be outside. Walk to the woods outside the Institute for Advanced Studies, or along Carnegie Lake, or just hang out on one of the "beaches" (AKA lawns) come spring. It's not Dartmouth or Cornell, however, so if you want wilderness that is not what you will find.</p>

<p>I think the key thing for happiness at Princeton is finding your place, same as anywhere. There are multiple routes to your place. Academics will probably have you halfway there - really, truly, intoxicated with what you can learn. For the social side, you can meet arty kids, conservative kids, geeky kids, athletic kids, political kids, really you name it. The question is whether you will be OK with the organized social structure, which does have eating clubs in place. If you hate the idea that they even exist, I don't recommend you go to Princeton. However, now there are the residential colleges, and increasingly, Princeton is a place for people who never have anything to do with clubs.</p>

<p>I think that the single most important thing about Princeton is that it is not in a city - so if you must have that at all times, wrong place for you - and it is not in the country - so if you must be away from it all, wrong place for you. If you love to think and you love to have friends and you like the peace and quiet of a well-resourced suburban campus where the edginess will happen in the classroom and in your brain, less than on the streets, it is the right place for you.</p>

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<p>Weetstreet, you should at least give Stanford a chance. It offers a kind of student life entirely different from what you will find at Princeton and Brown.</p>

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<p>Quirkily, I often hear about students' going on scavenger hunts in NYC and Philly, or just going to either city to wander around. Students often get summer internships in NYC and DC and like to wander around there together. I read in today's paper that indoor smoking is banned, as of tomorrow, in NJ so you won't be alone in that, and seriously if you don't drink or smoke you will have plenty of company. It is easy to be outside at Princeton because the campus, unlike Brown's, is a pedestrian one. </p>

<p>Keep in mind, though, that the ways in which you amuse yourself in hs may change. My d had been positive she wanted to attend an urban school until she visited Williams and Princeton and realized that with several thousand other young people around you, you can never be bored even in a rural or exurban environment. </p>

<p>As Alumother says, social life revolves around whatever you want it to. The stereotype at Brown is that it revolves around pot-smoking; the stereotype at Princeton is that it revolves around partying. Both stereotypes are just that, stereotypes.</p>

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<p>Ditto Alumother on romance quotient and alumni loyalty. Alumni loyalty at Princeton is scary. I don't know of any other alumni who have as much attachment and devotion to their alma mater as Princeton alums. Alumni loyalty at other Ivies, save Dartmouth, ranges from so-so to laughable. Alabama and Auburn (Auburn's slogan: Alabama by birth, Auburn by the grace of God) may be the closest thing. Princeton alums take care of their own. Be prepared to be worked to death at Princeton. There will be many joyless days, but you'll be proud of your final product. Less stress - go to Brown. Brown is more survivable with less strain.</p>

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<p>I posted this previously on another thread. I think it remains germane:
Brown and Columbia are at opposite extremes among the Ivies in terms of approaches to curriculum. Brown bases its approach to learning on the work of John Dewey and believes that the person who knows best what would be of most value to a student to learn is the student. Brown also believes that learning is a process and students need freedom to challenge themselves intellectually without fears regarding grading. Thus Brown has no core curriculum because it wants all students to choose their own courses, with faculty guidance, and take ownership of their learning. In theory, a student who loved computer science could take every single one of their courses in that area, although the student’s faculty advisor would strongly encourage greater exploration.
Columbia, on the other hand, believes that there is a core body of knowledge, primarily but not exclusively based on the thinking of the great minds of the Western canon, that every person who is to be considered well-educated should know. Therefore, Columbia has all students take the same core curriculum for two years. Princeton is somewhat in the middle in that it requires students to take a broad range of courses in distribution areas, but also leaves room for electives and allows a limited number of classes to be taken pass/fail. Brown de-emphasizes grades and focuses on written feedback from professors; Princeton very much believes that grades give students important feedback and spur students to do their best. Princeton places a great deal of emphasis on writing and research and has mandatory junior papers and a capstone senior thesis. Brown is considered among the most liberal and “artsy” of the Ivies; Princeton among the more conservative with strong programs in both the liberal arts and the hard sciences, particularly engineering. Whether those reputations will actually manifest themselves in how you experience campus life is something I don’t feel qualified to answer. My guess is almost any student who would be accepted to both colleges would be happy at either one. I think both have a wide range of students but that if you are very much into doing “your own thing” or into progressive causes you might find more such people at Brown, and if you are generally socially conservative or career oriented you may find more such people at Princeton.</p>

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<p>if you go to princeton, literally everyone knows what it is. so... can't go wrong there.</p>

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<p>"If you don't like to party, your social life will revolve around: a) your BF or GF. For some reason, Princeton has a high romance quotient"</p>

<p>--> do Princeton students find the time for romantic encounters? I think they'd be busy with work, work, work. Any takes on the dating scene?</p>

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<p>What about the Stanford name???</p>

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<p>Everyone knows about Stanford, too.</p>

<p>Pac10 rules</p>

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<p>I might be biased towards Stanford because I will be attending in the fall. However, my bias should not be particularly strong considering my identical twin brother will be attending Princeton (we both got into our first choices---I do drama and dance, he is a jazz guitar player-----each school fits particular interests). I also loved Brown when I visited, but got into Stanford early and didn't end up applying. Anyway, I wouldn't argue that Stanford's name is more regional. There is, in fact, a Harvard article out that states that Stanford is Harvard's new competition (though this article was semi-intended to be a jab at Yale). Stanford also creates an amazing network, and is, in fact, more prestigious worldwide than Princeton is. Stanford has arguably the best overseas program of HYPS as well (BING Overseas Studies). I think, however, if you talk to most people in the west and the midwest, and most educated people in the east, they will tell you that Stanford's name is equally as prestigious. However, most people will tell you that both schools are incredibly elite, the best of the best, (though I do tend to disagree with choosing a school based solely on "prestige"), and that you will receive an incredible education at both institutions. Visit both. It just depends on the fit. Stanford is absolutely my type of school and Princeton is absolutely my brother's. Put it this way, do you want to study with Tobias Wolff, Eavan Boland (Irish Poet), David Kennedy, and Philip Zimbardo (Stanford), or Toni Morrison, Paul Muldoon (what a coincidence, another Irish Poet), Robert Fagles, and Cornel West? Congratulations! You have choices most people only dream of.</p>

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<p>So clgbound, you asked a question which you now answer yourself?!?
Does anyone care to answer MY question?</p>

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<p>The question was rhetorical...it was kind of like a "C'mon, consider Stanford!"</p>

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<p>Stanford more prestigious than Princeton...world-wide?.....-_-</p>

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<p>Yup. It's a probably a product of the fact that Princeton doesn't have large grad schools, but in a lot of Europe and ESPECIALLY Asia Stanford is considered to be more prestigious</p>

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<p>Meh. I still love Princeton better. :D</p>