<p>I'm considering applying, but I'm not really familiar with Stanford. What are some reasons to go or not?</p>
<p>It is no Harvard but if it is the best you can do, then go for it.</p>
<p>Reasons for applying:
World famous
Active, accomplished student body
Great weather</p>
<p>Reasons for not applying:
Palo Alto is a bore
Campus looks like Taco Bell headquarters
The better school is across the S.F. Bay*</p>
<ul>
<li>I’m referring to UC Berkeley. Tongue in cheek. (Go Bears.)</li>
</ul>
<p>“it is no harvard”? Maybe in reputation only… Jesus Christ. The **** some of you high schoolers say.</p>
<p>Stanford Engineering >>>> Harvard Engineering which is enough for me. Close to silicon valley? Yes please.</p>
<p>Sent from my DROIDX using CC App</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>And thank goodness for that. One Harvard is too much as it is.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Tell that to the kid from my D’s high school who was accepted to Harvard and turned down by Stanford (and went to Yale).</p>
<p>First off, you gotta have good cred.
Assuming you do</p>
<p>Pros
-Harvard of the West
-Football with geniuses
-Highly Regarded/Prestigious
-Weather</p>
<p>Cons
-West Coast(Everything big happens on the east)
-West Coast
-Really? A prestigious academic institution with a football team that is actually good? What a joke</p>
<p>“West Coast(Everything big happens on the east)”</p>
<p>Oy. (You need to get out more.)</p>
<p>What do you plan to major in? This should be your overriding concern. Depending on your major, Stanford may not be a match. Having said that:</p>
<p>Pros (limited to other things that have not been said):
- More personal attention
- The school is deeply connected with the surrounding technology community and getting internships while in school and a job after graduation is possible even in a down economy as many local firms recruit there.
- Extremely entrepreneurial culture. Many businesses were started by students while they were still in school.</p>
<p>Cons:
- Outrageously expensive and few merit scholarships. Expect to pay at least $200,000 for an education if not more. The school does offer needs based aid. But, if you are middle class or above expect to graduate deep in debt or be prepared to work and have your family devote much of their resources to paying for your education.</p>
<p>Odad, you might want to update your sources of information. Stanford does not offer merit aid, but generous financial aid and athletic scholarships.</p>
<p>OsakaDad, the line between need-based and non-need-based is blurred at the top schools - need-based aid at HYPSM is often considered merit aid at other schools. Stanford gives “need-based” aid for families making up to $200k, which IMO definitely enters “merit territory”; that’s why about 70% of the students are supposedly on need-based aid from Stanford, and an additional 10% receive merit aid.</p>
<p>[The</a> Undergraduate Program: Stanford University Facts](<a href=“http://facts.stanford.edu/undergraduate.html]The”>http://facts.stanford.edu/undergraduate.html)</p>
<p>To the OP, I’d recommend you look at the Stanford subforum for more detailed info. Another good exercise would be to search all the forums for “Stanford vs. ____” in the thread title (the idea being that in comparing Stanford to other schools, inevitably there are those who will emphasize the pros, others the cons).</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Pro of Harvard:
- Stanford of the East</p>
<p>Pros:<br>
-diverse mix of amazing students who are actively engaged in learning
-beautiful campus set in safe area, close enough to beaches, SF, skiing (Lake Tahoe)
-professors who are tops in their area of study
-four years of on-campus housing and ample parking for those who want to bring car (although a car is not needed)
-great athletic facilities and open space trails, even for the casual student looking to keep off the freshmen 15
-good financial aid for low income and middle income families
-decent amount of school spirit-- not overly invested in athletics to the detriment of other campus activities
-awesome NoCal weather-- usually mild and sunny, with only June and September being warm
-quarter system-- allows more opportunity to take unusual classes. Also, if you can’t stand a class, it is over faster. </p>
<p>Cons:
-large, spread-out campus (I liked this, but D felt this would be a pain and didn’t want to ride a bike to get to class)
-large lecture-style for intro level classes (split up into much smaller discussion sections, but still, can have 100-500 in some intro level courses for lecture portion)
-quarter system— faster pace may be difficult for some students. It seems that as soon as you start it is almost mid term time
-competition in weed out classes is intense (everyone was the big fish in their high school, almost everyone has taken the AP course, etc…)</p>
<p>That said, I loved going to Stanford and am a biased supporter. It isn’t for everyone though. My D got in early, but decided to go elsewhere and follow her own path.</p>
<p>pros: when you are accepted ( you won the lottery)
cons: when you are rejected (most likely)</p>
<p>btw, why ppl pick on Palo Alto? It has plenty of activities…</p>
<p>Pros: Stanford is one of the most outstanding universities in the world, in every way.</p>
<p>Cons: There may be another outstanding university you like better, and wish you could have gone there instead.</p>
<p>
…and kickers who choke. Poor guy.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>The usual definition of “need based” is that it is based solely on the student and family finances, not academic or other achievement beyond that needed to get admitted to the school. It so happens that Stanford and a few other schools have very generous definitions of “needy”, although many more schools have definitions of “needy” that reach significantly above the middle income (e.g. UC’s Blue and Gold Opportunity covers those from families up to the approximately 70th percentile of income). The usual definition of “merit based” means that some non-financial criteria (academic, extracurricular, or athletic) is used to determine the awards. Some aid is both “need” and “merit” based.</p>