<p>There are two extremes when it comes to top students. At one end there are students who are geniuses but lazier, and at the other end there are very hardworking organized and know how to study students. Of course most people are in between or both. But when it comes right down to it, what will bring you more success in college, to for example, survive Princeton's grade deflation? </p>
<p>1.) Being naturally smart, with a high IQ, getting straight A's in high school by barely studying, and being a quick learner.</p>
<p>2.) Hardworking, organized, careful notetakers, got good grades in high school by going to class, taking detailed notes, and having good study habits.</p>
<p>Thoughts?</p>
<p>hmm i definitely think that work ethic is more important. i mean, going to a school like princeton, theres gonna be tons of geniuses out there, so you cant just kinda fly through college like you would in high school. i know i got to work on my work ethic during senior year! haha maybe cal bc will give me my much needed wake up call</p>
<p>that being said, i think natural smarts really are gonna help too.</p>
<p>I’m not in college or anything, but I did spend a summer studying in Cambridge, and the people who did best had a strong work ethic. If you’re lazy and/or unfocused it’s hard to work with all the distractions that come along with a college.</p>
<p>A combination of both … you have to be smart in order to have the drive to apply to a stable work ethic.</p>
<p>^ agreed. If you dont have work ethic, it doesnt matter how smart you are… And if youre a moron it doesnt matter how much work ethic you have because for some reason you dont have the mental capacity of someone who is smarter (to a point obviously)j</p>
<p>Id say to be successful at Pton or ANY top school, you need to be smart with a work ethic.</p>
<p>^ obviously, but which quality would you rather have better than it is right now if you were headed to college?</p>
<p>How smart you are is not in your control. How hard you work is.</p>
<p>If you were smart, you’d realize this and focus on improving the one that you can actually do something about.</p>
<p>That being said, your hypothetical scenario is completely bogus, because getting straight A’s in high school without working hardly requires an absurd level of intelligence. If you’re vying to be one of the more intelligent students at a place like Princeton, that level of intelligence should be a given.</p>
<p>Once we reorient ourselves and only consider students at Princeton, then the question comes down to definitions. If someone is lazy and understands concepts without doing work, yet does not get the A in the class, you would be hard pressed to call that person a genius (naturally smart, perhaps, but hardly a genius). There are also countless people who work super super hard but can barely manage a 3.0 (or 3.5, or whatever threshold you want to set). So then you look at just the people who make the top grades. There is a mixed population of people who work hard and are sufficiently intelligent, and people who are even more intelligent, enough to not need to work hard. </p>
<p>Who’s better off in this scenario? It’s difficult to say (and arguable both ways). But based on your original definition of “success” being defined as doing well in college courses, then I would say the naturally smarter kids win, since they have much more time left to pursue other things.</p>
<p>Best case scenario is to be smart enough to get by without doing much work, but putting in that work anyway because you know that you can only do better that way. And believe me, there are many many kids here who do just that. So if you’re trying to allocate your resources because you can only choose one, then you’ll be at a severe disadvantage.</p>
<p>6 parts natural smarts, 4 parts work ethic</p>
<p>I agree with newest newb.</p>
<p>Hahaha, TheMatrix has this down to a science… 3:2 :: smarts:work ethic. Remember that it’s kinda hard to change your “smartness”, so spend your time on working hard in college. And don’t get distracted or procrastinate.</p>
<p>But where’s the luck, pleasure and pain?</p>
<p>But can smart students get by in challenging colleges with average/sub par work ethic?</p>
<p>I think it’s mostly hard work, assuming you’re relatively smart.</p>