Princeton vs Stanford + others

Colleges and Universities A-Z Princeton University
1

This past week, I got accepted into Princeton, Cornell, Columbia, Hopkins, Yale, and Stanford. I want to go into the field of medicine, so I plan to do a biomedical engineering/bioengineering undergrad. I’m really having trouble deciding between the schools. I prefer East Coast (I know I’m a peculiarity liking cold weather and what not) and would actually love to live near or in a major city.

First of all, which school would probably have the best program academic-wise? And then, which area would be the best in terms of things to do?

2

Those are all great schools, so you can’t really go wrong with whatever you choose. I would probably end up making my decision on how I felt about the campus after visiting and the fin aid packages. One other thing to consider is Princeton’s undergraduate focus, which may make research and access to professors easier than at other schools, which will come in handy for med school applications. Good luck!

3

In addition to bioengineering http://www.princeton.edu/cbe/research/bio/, you might want to check out the Integrated Science Program http://www.princeton.edu/integratedscience/, which offers an interesting and fairly intensive approach to biological, physical, and computational science.

4

All those schools send kids to med school. Son freshman at pton, also got into harvard and yale. Went for engineering and now in mol bio looking to do premed. He is very psyched and thinks the opportunities are boundless. Thinks top 10 med schools well within reach and loves the personal attention and resources such as research even as a freshman that are best found at pton.

5

@thefuryoffawful They’re all equally strong academic-wise: tops in the nation.
If you want east coast then you can obviously eliminate Stanford. Maybe go visit the campuses and see what you like (possible use spring break or just take a week off of school to go visit the campuses).

If you say you want to live near a major city, I would say Columbia because it’s in New York City.

6

Without knowing anything else about the OP, if this thread is posted only in the Princeton forum, that might be a subtle indication that OP would be truly happiest at Princeton! But really you can’t go wrong with those choices. :slight_smile:

7

Also note that while Columbia is in NY, Princeton has a train going right to NY, without being directly in it, a good middle ground, in my opinion.

8

If you want East Coast, eliminate Stanford.

If you want urban, eliminate Princeton, Stanford, and Cornell.

If urban-adjacent suffices, add back Princeton and Stanford.

If you think New Haven and Baltimore are lame cities, eliminate Hopkins and Yale.

And so on.

9

Academic differences between these schools are minor. So your decision really should come down to your stated preference for the East Coast + cold weather and your wish to “live near or in a major city.”
Based on your preferences, Columbia’s the best fit, with Princeton second.

10

The campus feel is really different, being in a major city, vs. near one. If you want to be IN a city - with the resultant more dispersed community - choose Columbia. If you are OK to be near a major city, because you mostly want access, then choose Princeton.