I want to apply to Princeton and Stanford for a major in International Relations and they both are the best in those programs. But i don’t know which one to apply early for, and i can only apply to one of them because of their restrictive or single-choice early action program. Any suggestions?
All things being equal, I’d apply REA or SCEA to the one opposite of the one that has the highest acceptance rate RD.
Princeton’s EA rate was 18% last year v 7%RD, Stanford’s 11% v 5%RD
In round numbers, that was 700/3800 EA for Princeton and 750/7000 for Stanford.
Look at Georgetown, Tufts, JHU, W&M and GW for other top tier IR programs that have somewhat higher admissions rates. If you are a go-getter, GWU, though not as selective as some of the others, trumps all of them for the combination of in-term internship options and facilitating internships within your class schedule.
Good jobs in IR require a masters and all of the good masters programs require work experience before you can apply. Those internships become the jobs that you need to get the rest of the way.
Also, what is your SAT/ACT and GPA? Like another poster said, are these even the place you should apply to?
Odds are slim at either school so apply early to whichever school you prefer.
Princeton defers a majority of their EA students while Stanford has the the lowest deferral rate of the elite schools.
Consider how you want you want to feel in December when EA results come out deferred or rejected.
Having toured both with my daughter, the campus enivronments are totally different. Stanford is in a major metropolitan area, although not in a city itself. Princeton is in a sleepy little town. Decide which one fits you better, as the education will be excellent in both.
Are you interested in IR with a particular part of the world? If it’s Asia/Pacific, you’ll likely find more opportunities/connections at Stanford.
Don’t really agree with this summary:
Palo Alto is near some metropolitan areas via the highway, but it’s storefronts/size is actually pretty similar to Princeton. Princeton is a bit more rural becaus it’s not California, and people didn’t build 1,600 square foot homes on top of each other. For 20 miles in ever direction. Princeton feels smaller because the campus is on one side of the main drag through town (parallel vs. perpendicular alignment of town) but Princeton has a surprising number of shops and restaurants if you look around, and has all the big chains not far away on route 1.
To get to San Francisco from Stanford or NY from Princeton is about the same amount of time. Princeton is a smaller campus, but a lot of that is the division 1 athletics. Size of the schools and weather are more a factor than the type of local environment.
@EyeVeee , I guess we’ll agree to disagree.
I lived in the Bay Area. The Palo Alto Caltrain station is walking distance from Stanford, and San Francisco is a 45 minute express train ride. In the other direction, San Jose is about 25 minutes. And in between those two cities, there are thousands of restaurants, of which many hundreds are easily accessible within walking distance of a train station. Also having a car in California is a viable option as it can be used throughout the year, and there are plenty of places to park outside of San Francisco.
Princeton has one major street, Nassau, and much of the action happens around there. The area around the city of Princeton is very rural–farmland in some places. Getting to NYC requires getting to the Princeton train station which is a few miles away. Best case to NYC is about 90 minutes, or about double that of Stanford to San Francisco.
hebegebe - you are not really correct about the Princeton train situation. There is a dinky on campus that connects with many/most of the trains that go to NYC or Philly. It takes 5 minutes on the Dinky to get to Princeton Junction, where you get the NYC or Philly train. From Princeton Junction, the ride to NYC ranges from 55 minutes to 90 minutes (assume about an hour). Trains from Princeton Junction to Philadelphia take about 75 minutes. It’s very easy to get to either city and the best case to NYC is 67 minutes, not 90.
And I agree with EyeVee. Maybe because I’ve been to Princeton so frequently, I don’t find it as sleepy as you seem to feel it is. It’s a smaller, more accessible campus than Stanford, but the actual town has tons of restaurants etc. and seems to me to be somewhat similar to Palo Alto. I do think that the more important differences in the two schools are size, weather and athletics.
I stand corrected on the time to NYC.
But to the OP, get a feel for the campus yourself, and the surrounding area. See if the campus fit matters to you, as well as the size/weather/athletics that others have mentioned.
Stanford may be closer to SF, but Caltrain doesn’t run as often as trains run from Princeton to NYC.
I don’t think Princeton is in a rural town, I would call it suburban. It’s an upper-middle class town, quite nice. I am NOT a fan of central Jersey, but it can’t be compared to the true “rural” areas of this country. I’ve heard there’s a downtown area.
@EyeVeee You know, New Jersey is actually the most densely populated state. In many areas, houses ARE built “on top of each other”. Princeton definitely isn’t urban, though.
Have you visited either campus? My cousin attends Princeton and she loves it there. She said the moment she stepped on campus during her visit she knew she had to get into Princeton.
I’ve been to both several times, including visits to both within the past year to see family…
@newjerseygirl98 - I was born and raised in the state, but being the most densely populated state doesn’t have anything to do with the two towns / areas being discussed.
I have been to Princeton’s campus many many times, and have friends there- it is definitely not a rural campus. It is more downtown suburban.
It’s a matter of fit. Have you visited? Stanford has it on weather (unless you are one of those who needs the change of seasons including the cruddy one with the slush). Princeton is smaller which could be a plus or a minus depending on how you feel about size. Because of the overwhelming emphasis on Silicon Valley/Tech/Entrepreneurship at Stanford, some students in the humanities and social sciences complain about being second class citizens. But D, who majored in a humanities subject (not IR) at Stanford loved the personal attention she got from faculty, small upper level class sizes, personal relationships with the grad students who encouraged her to continue for her Phd - so the ‘tech culture’ didn’t bother her. Others may feel differently. If ‘big sports’ is your thing, Stanford might work for you. Again, D couldn’t care less (but because of the good weather, she actually took up marathon running - not something I expected from my former rug rat.)
If you live on one coast, I’d say go to the other just to experience a wider world and different culture. But if being near home is important to you, that’s a legitimate factor in the decision-making too.
Ultimately, if you get in, you can’t go wrong, so pick whichever feels right and don’t second guess yourself.