<p>Hi,
I'm a minority female who has been accepted into a few great schools, two of which include Princeton and Stanford. Obviously, I would like some advice on which one I should pick.
I love parties where I can feel free dancing, not necessarily drinking.
I am from the East Coast and have lived there all my life. I have been to Stanford however, but I was not converted into a West Coast Girl. I can see myself staying there for college though. The only problem is the distance. I come from a single-parent home with a modest income. However, financial aid has taken care of this problem.
I want to major in IR and take pre-med requirements. Eventually, I hope to pursue International Medicine.
Many of my friends are attending Stanford and so it gives me comfort to know that I will have some familiar faces but I am uncomfortable being ,at best, a 7-8hr plane ride away because my mother has health problems and I don't think I would be emotionally able to cope if I could not get home fast enough in the event of an emergency.
I am a very had worker, but I tend to thrive in places where there is a diverse community and there are avenues of support just in case I need them.
I would rather not be in a cut throat environment, but a degree from a selective undergrad institute would change the course of my life and bring me closer to my goal of being my family's support. </p>
<p>I want to be challenged but I do not want to feel like I am broken for the next four years. </p>
<p>I know that I am basically a grocery list of contradictions, but I am losing time and would appreciate any kind of insight.</p>
<p>"I would rather not be in a cut throat environment, but a degree from a selective undergrad institute would change the course of my life and bring me closer to my goal of being my family's support"</p>
<p>Wow this is refreshing a young person who isn't completely self absorbed. </p>
<p>You cannot make a strong choice.</p>
<p>Stanford is the stronger of the two for pre-med as they are outstanding in the biological sciences. I also think as a minority it is less preppy and high hifalutin than in Princeton. I think Stanford is also more diverse ethnically among students and especially among faculty and I think you would find more support there. Plus the bay area tends to be much more liberal politically and in regards to ethnic/race relations. I would choose Stanford based on those factors.</p>
<p>That said, if you feel you would have more peace of mind to conduct your studies at Princeton because of your mother's health than that is completely understandable. You would still be able to get into a fine med school obviously. I had a friend who passed up a full ride to go to a comparable school with no money simply because his mother was ill. However, his mother really wanted him to take the full ride. Talk to your mother and see how she feels about it. </p>
<p>But again, either choice is a great choice. Is Princeton giving you the same financial award?</p>
<p>I think Relampago meant to write, "You cannot make a wrong choice."</p>
<p>Either choice would be strong.</p>
<p>I grew up on the east coast, and graduated from Stanford; I ended up putting down roots here, and continue to live here in California almost three decades later. That happens more often than you might guess.</p>
<p>Happiness depends on a lot of things, but if remaining close to your family is as important to you as it sounds, Princeton sounds like the better choice.</p>
<p>Yes, because both schools are offering me basically the same package, its like money is not an issue here...I feel really lucky but I am still at a crossroads</p>
<p>I agree either is an excellent choice. I too think Stanford would fit you well, primarily because you will find less external competition there. I don't recall <em>ever</em> discussing grades, rankings, or how I compared to others. The competition tends to be with one's own expectations.</p>
<p>However, many things written in post #2 were true years ago but no longer. Remember Princeton pioneered the no-loan aid programs about four years ago, and Harvard and everyone else followed their lead. For this reason Princeton has a more economically diverse student body than almost any other school. There certainly remains a remnant of very conservative, east coast (& international) group that could best be described as snooty and entitled. But that is now a very small group as compared to thirty years ago, and is not limited to Princeton but to many elite colleges established more than 200 years ago.</p>
<p>Princeton is much smaller than Stanford. You will therefore get a little more individual attention.</p>
<p>On balance though, it sounds like you are not attracted to an environment where each person knows openly where they stand relative to other students, and the resultant competiveness.</p>
<p>you also have to think about the extra cost that comes into stanford even if the price sticker is the same. flights home, shipping all your stuff there and back or paying for storage. i would pick princeton because of the closenese to home with an ill mother. sometimes i even think 4 hours is too far when i think about if anything were to happen to my grandparents. i almost picked to go to a school 1.5 hours away, that being one of my main reasons.</p>
<p>stanford higher bio ranked but its not like youre comparing it a lesser state school in NJ, its still PRINCETON. stanford is a pretty big school, so knowing 7-8 people who go there really wont make that much of a difference unless you happen to live near them. and unless you make the effort, you will probably never see them walking through a crowd.</p>
<p>i also feel like stanford would be a bit more compeitive, princeton being no walk in the park either but a little less outwardly competitive</p>