<p>as someone who looked into both yale and dartmouth, (i ended up applying early to dartmouth, and after receiving a likely letter i 100% will be attending) there was really no comparison between the two. i know a lot of this preference for dartmouth exists for personal reasons, but after browsing CC it seems as if many applicants are after HYP mainly because of their names.
personally, at yale all i could think was 'get me out of new haven ASAP'... but does anyone else think that a lot of people pick a school that may be wrong for them due to the fact that certain ivies are historically more prestigious?</p>
<p>obviously, the chance to attend any ivy is an amazing opportunity as all are tremendous institutions.</p>
<p>“does anyone else think that a lot of people pick a school that may be wrong for them due to the fact that certain ivies are historically more prestigious?” </p>
<p>I’m not willing to judge whether “a lot of people” are at schools that are “wrong for them,” but of course some will choose one school over another on the basis of perceived prestige. It may turn out to be the right school anyway. I often joke that D chose the right school for the wrong reasons – or, at least, for some reasons that turned out not to matter even before the first quarter was over. She did find that many students at Harvard seemed unable to explain why they were there other than “it’s Harvard,” which may be what you’re getting at. She doesn’t have any problems explaining why she loves Dartmouth, and I expect you will not either. Congratulations, and welcome.</p>
<p>I come from a family of Hs, Ps, and Ds. There is no shame to a degree from Dartmouth. Embrace it and enjoy! The value of the “prestige”-making connections, being accepted-is entirely adequate at Dartmouth! (I am KIDDING-Dartmouth is a great school with a great reputation.)</p>
<p>As for people who chose Yale – I did so expressly b/c it wasn’t a bucolic setting. I loved the fact it was integral to New Haven for all its blemishes and blessings.</p>
<p>What you saw as a negative was a attraction to me.</p>
<p>And once you’re at Dartmouth for a bit, youll come to realize that “prestige” thing amongst the top schools is a bunch of baloney. No one there or other Ivies seriously compares themselves to the other schools. They all quickly realize one better be humble in such a community so one better keep one’s mouth shut about “my school Y is better than school X”</p>
<p>You learn it’s something the teenagers obsess about. As an Ivy student, you see how flimsy that rat race really is. </p>