To go to Princeton, or to not go to Princeton

Colleges and Universities A-Z Princeton University
1

<p>So I've decided that Princeton is my top choice out of HYP for undergraduate, but I'm currently considering whether attending Princeton is a better alternative (for a multitude of reasons) than attending a top school in my home country on a massive scholarship. I'd really appreciate if someone could respond to my questions ASAP - I've got to make a decision really soon to start organizing visa forms and so on.</p>

<p>1) Is there enough time to have a social life at Princeton? I don't like the idea of being so far away from home yet having no support network. On that note, is there good pastoral care offered by the university?
2) Similarly, is there enough time to throw yourself into the extracurricular program and maintain a job (required for financial aid)? I really want to be involved in things...
3) How difficult is it to gain entrance into a top graduate school (Oxbridge, MIT, Stanford...) as a graduate? Is it hard to gain good enough grades? Would I be better off doing very well in my home country and saving some money? (In general, are there many fellowships available in the US/UK for PhD studies? If so, then the saving some money suggestion doesn't hold much weight...)
4) Do many students stay at Princeton over the breaks?
5) How hard is it to use connections to get summer jobs overseas?
6) How easy is it to get research positions with professors? Is there enough time?
7) Is it difficult to 'shine'?
8) What sort of academic extra curricular opportunities are present? Is it really really difficult to participate in anything, because of the quality of the cohort?
9) How much do students get to interact with faculty?
10) Is everyone just obsessed about grades and getting into grad school? I know that I might come across this way at the moment, but once I hit uni, I want to throw myself into my studies and pursue what I'm passionate about - and not because I want a pretty number on a piece of paper. Is the cohort scaringly competitive and is there a lack of collaboration?
11) How intellectually challenging are the courses?</p>

<p>Thanks in advance!</p>

2

<p>My freshman daughter comes from a European country. She did consider (cheaper) alternatives in the UK, but we were always focused on the States for college and when her choices were laid out, it was not a difficult decision.</p>

<p>Princeton has been wonderful for her so far, without going into details, she is involved in extracurriculars, has plenty of friends, support and fun, and is working very hard with her five-course load. She is looking into a research position for next year and is pretty confident she will find something satisfactory, paid or unpaid. In any case, junior and senior year, students, I believe, are guaranteed to be working on research directly with professors for their required papers those years.</p>

<p>She applied for and obtained a terrific expense-paid summer internship in Asia. I feel that is largely due to Princeton’s support. She has stayed on campus for breaks (except Christmas), along with others, taking short trips to New York and Philadelphia.</p>

<p>I think her opportunities for graduate school, either in the U.S. or Britain will be enhanced coming out of Princeton because of its reputation for rigor and excellent preparation in academics. Most PhD candidates are funded in the U.S.–maybe depends on the field. I would guess the same in the UK, but I’m not sure.</p>

<p>If you want to “throw yourself into your studies and pursue what you’re passionate about” then Princeton is the place to do it. Most foreign programs I know of don’t give you the same flexibility to explore other interests and delve into fascinating topics outside your area of study. As with anywhere, you’ll find all kinds of people at Princeton, but you should have no problem collaborating and getting help from fellow students. Also, the advising, writing center and general communications that are in place are all part of an excellent support system. I really don’t know if you can get as much anywhere abroad.</p>

<p>Good luck!</p>

3

<p>1)Yes, the residential colleges and upper class eating clubs provide the opportunity to socialize with a small group of friends. To learn about pastoral care for your religion see: [Princeton</a> University - Religious Life](<a href=“http://www.princeton.edu/main/campuslife/religious/]Princeton”>Religious Life | Princeton University)
2)Yes, many varsity athletes also are on financial aid and have a campus job. You will have to have good time management skills but many students are involved in ECs and have a job.
3)Princeton graduates have a very good record of gaining admission to the top grad school programs. See: <a href=“WSJ in Higher Education | Trusted News & Real-World Insights”>WSJ in Higher Education | Trusted News & Real-World Insights; One problem with this chart is that it only looks at admission to law, med, and business school. Admissions to PhD programs are not considered. Fellowships are common for PhD programs.
4)Ten percent of the student body is composed of international students. The campus thins out on breaks but there are sufficient number of students to have a social life.
5)I obtained a paid summer job in Denmark working for Phillips Electronics. The ease of obtaining a summer job would be different for each country and major.
6)All A.B. Candidates are required to conduct independent research during their junior and senior year. The science departments have some summer research opportunities.
7)It is difficult to shine at HYP but you will be motivated to achieve your full potential. You will be challenged by your professors and classmates. Being challenged to do your best is more important than shining.
8)Please review this list of student organizations. See: [Directory</a> -*Office of the Dean of Undergraduate Students - Directory](<a href=“http://www.princeton.edu/odus/activities/organizations/directory/]Directory”>http://www.princeton.edu/odus/activities/organizations/directory/) Most students participate in student clubs, intramural sports, and attend campus sporting and musical events. A balanced life is desired so that you can relax and be refreshed for your academic studies.
9)More than most other universities. Princeton has a 6:1 student faculty ratio. Your independent research will require close collaboration with a faculty member. All professors have office hours where you can meet with a professor to discuss the course.
10)No. The students are amazingly normal but very talented. Your classmates will include Olympic athletes, great musicians, science contest winners, class presidents, environmentalists, etc. The atmosphere is collaborative - not cut throat. If you are passionate about your interests you will fit in perfectly.
11)Interesting, exciting, eye opening.</p>

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<p>Just something small on the numbers: Princeton’s 2010-2011 viewbook indicates Princeton has a 5:1 student-to-faculty ratio; a tad better than 6:1… Am I missing something? (We are just referring to undergraduates, right?)</p>

5

<p>1) Is there enough time to have a social life at Princeton? I don’t like the idea of being so far away from home yet having no support network. On that note, is there good pastoral care offered by the university?</p>

<p>Yes, definitely. Not sure what pastoral care is…</p>

<p>2) Similarly, is there enough time to throw yourself into the extracurricular program and maintain a job (required for financial aid)? I really want to be involved in things…</p>

<p>Job is not required by financial aid haha. If you don’t want to do work study you can just take out a loan or get a job somewhere else.</p>

<p>3) How difficult is it to gain entrance into a top graduate school (Oxbridge, MIT, Stanford…) as a graduate? Is it hard to gain good enough grades? Would I be better off doing very well in my home country and saving some money? (In general, are there many fellowships available in the US/UK for PhD studies? If so, then the saving some money suggestion doesn’t hold much weight…)</p>

<p>Really freaking easy from Princeton.</p>

<p>4) Do many students stay at Princeton over the breaks? </p>

<p>Maybe like 30% stay over Fall break, 10% over winter break, 60-80% over intercession, 30% over spring break.</p>

<p>5) How hard is it to use connections to get summer jobs overseas? </p>

<p>Well, it’s easy to get summer jobs overseas. We have a huge international internship office, but if you wanted to use connections to get summer jobs overseas, it’s probably not hard either.</p>

<p>6) How easy is it to get research positions with professors? Is there enough time?</p>

<p>It’s so easy that it’s required if you’re a science major. Otherwise, it’s really really easy.</p>

<p>7) Is it difficult to ‘shine’?</p>

<p>Nope.</p>

<p>8) What sort of academic extra curricular opportunities are present? Is it really really difficult to participate in anything, because of the quality of the cohort?</p>

<p>Same as anywhere else, really… Lots of dance groups, a capella groups, club sports teams, random organizations, etc.</p>

<p>9) How much do students get to interact with faculty?</p>

<p>As much as you want, really. One of my friends goes to office hours of some professor almost every day.</p>

<p>10) Is everyone just obsessed about grades and getting into grad school? I know that I might come across this way at the moment, but once I hit uni, I want to throw myself into my studies and pursue what I’m passionate about - and not because I want a pretty number on a piece of paper. Is the cohort scaringly competitive and is there a lack of collaboration?</p>

<p>Haha definitely not.</p>

<p>11) How intellectually challenging are the courses?</p>

<p>You’ll be satisfied.</p>

6

<p>Just a word of caution: OP sounds like an international; so if you’re not an american citizen and require an F1 visa, most off-campus work (i.e. where the University is not your employer) is off-limits for you ([F</a> visa - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia](<a href=“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/F_visa]F”>F visa - Wikipedia)). Don’t bank on getting a “job somewhere else”.</p>