<p>I just found out yesterday that I was taken off the Stanford waitlist. I’m not quite sure about FA at this point, as they somehow put me as International when I’m not (I’m a perm. resident and therefore qualified for FA). I’m in contact w my regional rep and I really hope it all gets sorted out. FA aside, as I hear that Stanford has an amazing FA policy, I’m having a hard time weighing the two schools, esp as I stopped looking into Stanford and focused soley on CMC after S passed me up in the first couple WL rounds (it was too painful XD). Now that I am actually faced with this incredibly hard decision, I was hoping you guys could help me out. </p>
<p>I have several concerns/questions about Stanford:
Stanford’s a lot bigger than CMC is (where you can walk everywhere haha). Does it feel like the school is sometimes too large? Or is it really easy to quickly connect to people? Are there orientation programs, trips, etc? Does the campus ever feel too isolated? </p>
<li>I kno that for freshmen year, there are lectures etc as the intro classes have a lot of people. What is the quality of the TAs? How involved are the profs in teaching undergrads, or are they mostly focused on research? How easy / accessible is counseling/the administration? Is the focus more on graduate students or undergraduate students?
I am pretty sure that I will want to attend law school after college, and I really like class discussion, etc and focusing on writing. I’m worried about this, as Stanford seems to be more focused on science/math etc while CMC is a liberal arts college and more focused on reading/writing. I’m also worried about science/math classes being graded on a curve… esp as those are def not my strong suits and Stanford abounds w math/science geniuses XD. Currently I’m undecided as my major, but I’m thinking gov/poli sci or maybe even history. </li>
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<p>3.How are the career services? CMC has paid internships for the summer so I was wondering if Stanford has a similar program, I’d love to have internships for all summers. CMC also has the Washington program, which Stanford doesn’t have and will be hard for me to give up XD. I also really want to do study abroad. Also, how easy is it to get involved in research/philanthropy? </p>
<li>How important a part do frats/sororities play in student life? I really don’t like what I’ve heard of most sororites/frats so I really hope they don’t dominate the social scene. Are most of the students politically aware/involved in politics? How is the Stanford debate team? </li>
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<p>Thank you guys so much. I’m so excited to be taken off the WL and honored, but as I had already submitted my deposit/made CMC friends it’s also hard to give that up. I have til this friday to decide so right now I’m extremely confused!
Edit: From my post, it seems like right now I’m leaning towards CMC. However, that’s not really the case. I change every couple hours XD depending on what I’m thinking about. I’m not asking about CMC as I kno so much about it, but I am asking about Stanford as I don’t kno as much about it as I do about CMC. I’ll really appreciate any info/suggestions. ty!</p>
<p>I’m slightly bitter CMC rejected me, but I’ll try to not let that influence me. I personally value small liberal arts colleges for their focus on undergraduate education. One of my closest friends didn’t attend a top 20 liberal arts college like CMC, but even at her small LAC in Pennsylvania, she has had the opportunity to do so much, including internships, studying in washington and india, traveling and doing research in both Mexico and Venezuela. She just graduated this past may, and later this summer is headed to arizona to do a year long paid fellowship. I attribute that to the attention and resources the lac gave her. She wasn’t the “typical” student there but graduated with high honors. She wasn’t wealthy, didn’t have high sat scores, graduated from an LAUSD high school of all places, but I believe was extremely nurtured by the school.</p>
<p>I don’t know what national universities are like(i’ll be attending one in the fall) but i have a feeling that the benefit of top liberal art colleges especially claremont mckenna are the resources and the attention the school gives to its students.
be careful in assuming CMC’s paid internships, because from what i remember you have to apply to be granted a stipend if your internship is unpaid and it you’ll only be eligible to be paid if it is with a non profit organization. but whatever the case, i’m pretty sure they have resources for paid summer internships, but don’t assume that all companies will want to pay you. its a big misconception, especially the bigger the name the company is that you’ll be interning at. </p>
<p>and then you have Stanford, which I don’t know to much about. the name is bound to take you places, just be aware that the name can only take you so far, and it won’t guarantee you a thing other than a diploma at the end of your undergraduate education. if stanford is not the type of school to nurture you the way CMC might be prepared to go after your opportunities. </p>
<p>If CMC is offering you significant aid, and stanford is not, go with CMC.</p>
<p>While I tend to think Stanford is generally overrated for various reasons, I don’t think there is any question that the opportunities afforded there are going to be significantly greater than those at Claremont McKenna.</p>
<p>This is about as close to a complete no-brainer as it gets. If it was Pomona College, I could see reason to pause and think. But it’s NOT Pomona. Go with Stanford, and don’t look back.</p>
<p>CMC is probably like Harvard, upon graduation, 41% of the job-bound graduates did not have any job offers. Stanford may be a little different, not only you get a diploma with Stanford name on it, you may get … 24 job offers upon graduation (back to 2006, if you studied MS degree in CS). Those are supposed to be top secrets, so don’t tell everyone.</p>
<p>You have a piece of gold in your hand, and you are asking for… the value?</p>
<p>I would pick CMC which I think you would benefit more from in the long run. All these people saying Stanford opens more doors and is better haven’t given any proof as to the ses statements. CMC is a top top LAC and Stanford is a top top University. It depends on what you want. However, there is no wrong choice, both are fantastic.</p>
<p>darling, look up a recent thread entitled “What makes HYP different?” I think some of the responses (by Shawbridge and others) apply to Stanford, too, and might help you visualize what “opening doors” means.</p>
<p>How driven are you, though? Are you focused on maximizing every advantage you can get for yourself to become a big success? If so, then Stanford could be the better choice. Or are you the kind of person who values living a balanced life, and what you want right now is simply the best learning experience? If so, then I think the most important factor is whether a LAC or a university would be a better fit for your learning style and personality. They are both excellent, and it’s not as though CMC would hold you back from a good law school.</p>
<p>That 41 percent you mention I believe is a statistic relative to this year’s graduating class because of the economy. there was an article online, i don’t remember the source(its bound to be on cc as a discussion topic as well), that the percentage at Harvard went down to 41 percent. </p>
<p>When CMC is ranked as a top 5 school in terms of job/career placement among its competition(including national univerisities), then that is a statistic worth looking at.</p>
<p>The whole MS thing is irrelevant since the poster is looking for an undergraduate education. Plus any majors that are marketable ie CS or engineering, are bound to get recruits and students who receive multiple job offers. Remember that you may graduate with a degree, but that does not mean you’re good at what you do(especially in pre professional fields).</p>
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Yes the name. Generally speaking Name schools get recruited by top companies/organizations with respectable positions that some people at low tier schools could only dream of or try really hard to get them on their own. When someone knows or sees that you attend/graduated from a school like Stanford, generally speaking people will be interested in you, or at least interviewing you. Its your job from there on to get the job, no one just hands you a job, that’s why internships etc while in school are very important. The more you network the better it’ll be for you at the end. You could do that at either school since CMC is very well respected and does get some big name companies and organizations recruiting at their school.</p>
<p>I agree with RML. I do like LAC’s but I don’t see how you can give up Stanford. It will be better in the long run. Though, I would have a problem knowing that I was on the wait list and they originally didn’t want me. I would think that I only got in because someone couldn’t go, but that’s just me personally. I’m sure some people can care less about that.</p>
<p>I don’t think Stanford is necessarily the better choice, and if you like Claremont McKenna better, you could get a perfectly good education there. CC poster xiggi did his undergraduate work at CMC, and he’s certainly a great deal more articulate and informed than many posters at elite universities. :D</p>
<p>That said, Stanford is perhaps the better choice if you truly have no preference. Stanford is small enough to have a strong focus on undergraduates, and it has the rare mix of superb academics and thriving social scene. If you decide not to pursue law school, Stanford is strong in virtually every field.</p>
<p>Either will get you into a great law school, and your law degree is what will be most important later down the road. Why not pick the best fit? As for which one that is…you’ll have to decide that for yourself. ;)</p>
<p>I’m sort of interested by what you mean CMC has paid internships for the summer? Is there a program at CMC where CMC matches students with employers for the summer? Stanford does have a program called Stanford in Washington which is really strong and very likely comparable to CMC’s program. I would personally choose Stanford, but I wouldn’t say I’m the least biased.</p>
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<li><p>Nah, Stanford never seems too big. You have a bike and can get around campus easily. There’s a frosh orientation program and your freshman dorm will plan dorm trips.</p></li>
<li><p>Every class at Stanford is taught by Professors. As with TA’s, really the true horror stories are in the intro chemistry courses where they have primarily foreign TAs. Just so you know, this will happen at almost all schools since Americans generally don’t go for PHDs in techie subjects. For history, polisci, etc, you’ll be fine. Obviously the quality of teaching is variable but there’s a website called courserank.stanford.edu which tells you about the good Professors and TAs to get. I wouldn’t worry about the math and science classes since you only need to take one of each to graduate and there are classes primarily designed for kids taking the course to get out of a general education requirement. Seriously, that’s the last of your worries unless you want to double major in EE. Stanford places very well into top law schools as does CMC, and while the same focus on undergrads is certainly not there a la CMC, in terms of the opportunities gained by Stanford’s size I think Stanford comes out on top. Of course, it’s up to you.</p></li>
<li><p>Career Services…is not that good. I’ll be frank. You’ll have to do it by yourself, especially since they work for grad students too (of which there are more) and cater to techies more (which is good for me, but not for you). That is a weakness of Stanford, and you should take that into consideration.</p></li>
<li><p>I know people who hate frats/sororities coming in frosh year who ended up joining them. Not only are they a) not a big deal when it comes to social life, they are b) nothing at all like the stereotypical frats. Seriously it’s a non-issue. As for the other things you mentioned, many (most) students participate in some form of philanthropy or research during their time at Stanford. If you want to get into it it’s easy. I dont know about the debate team to be honest, so you may want to ask some other students about it. Hope that helps!</p></li>
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<p>Thank you for all of your opinions! I’m taking them all into consideration. </p>
<p>I’m not quite sure which is the better fit to be honest… i’m not much of a partier! i love political debates, and intellectual discussion, etc as opposed to getting drunk etc. so i really don’t kno how to choose based on fit as i feel as if i would do well in both. I’m really driven as my goal is to attend a top law school and also network and build connections etc. I want a pretty laid back, non competitive college (where people don’t demand other people’s grades but help each other to succeed). Will I get that at Stanford? The Stanford name is hard to turn down in this aspect, but would i be better prepared for the rigor of law school through a liberal arts college? it’s all so confusing right now. Is there a typical Stanford student versus a typical CMC student? like are Stanford students more focused on tech careers? </p>
<p>morsmorde: thanks for your honest assessment of S’s career services! it’s sad that they’re not better XD from what i’ve heard, CMC will fund internships that you find and apply for stipends from the school. they also subsidize concert tickets etc and trips to disneyland haha. i’m guessing that doesn’t happen at Stanford?</p>
I’m really torn right now XD.</p>
so i really don’t kno how to choose based on fit as i feel as if i would do well in both. I’m really driven as my goal is to attend a top law school and also network and build connections etc. I want a pretty laid back, non competitive college (where people don’t demand other people’s grades but help each other to succeed). Will I get that at Stanford? The Stanford name is hard to turn down in this aspect, but would i be better prepared for the rigor of law school through a liberal arts college?