<p>But he's not at Adams. He's told me about having to hike to 5th floor.</p>
<p>Some of the dorms and houses have elevators. Most don't.</p>
<p>
[quote]
@marite: are you sure? Because I stayed at Adams for a weekend and there was an elevator....
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Most of Adams doesn't have an elevator -- you must have been in Claverly, a dorm which is overflow for a few houses (mostly Adams + Lowell, and also where I'll be living next year!).</p>
<p>that it's in Boston...not b/c Boston as a city is bad...I'm just a Yankees fan :)</p>
<p>(Sox fans, you can start your tar-and-feathering now...)</p>
<p>
[quote]
Town: driving and parking are absurdly difficult.
[/quote]
But then you don't really need to, do you?
[quote]
I've been thrilled with most things at H, but the condition of some of the facilities really surprises me, especially given H's financial resources.
[/quote]
Compare to my college facilities 30 years ago, I love them. We lived in traditional dorms, 2 beds on a hall with a group bathroom. I think a lot of the spaces are difficult to renovate because they are continously in use. H is building "trade space" much like Yale has used to renovate it's houses. A yes, some of the buildings are 300 years old and have to be handled gently.</p>
<p>True bandit - I went to college in NC > 30 years ago without air conditioning. Today I'd die, but as I reflect on that time I have no recollection of the non-A/C being an issue.</p>
<p>I was sight-seeing Eton College once and overheard some foreign parents of prospective students exclaiming that it looked more like a prison than the most famous prep school in the world. </p>
<p>The price of having so much history is indeed outdated facilities. I hear that there are some spare rooms on first floors available for students who break a leg in winter and cannot face the prospect of trudging up and down several flights of stairs for up to six weeks.</p>
<p>I'd complain about the weather- it's quite foggy in the fall, and this can be pretty irritating. (It's beautiful here today, though). You get used to it, but it can be discouraging to have to run to class in pouring rain once a week or so. (This is, as I said, a seasonal thing).</p>
<p>Of course, a lot of schools in the Northeast have these issues, particularly schools so close to the ocean. But it's probably my biggest complaint.</p>
<p>One thing I'd disagree with is the "price of history." It's true that there are a number of outdated classrooms- this sometimes bothers me as well. However, the older dorms are beautiful. Recently built dorms at younger schools have (reasonably) focused on fitting the maximum number of students into the smallest space, leading to the tenement-style layout that can be found at schools like BU, Northeastern, and even Stanford.</p>
<p>Consider the quality of life:</p>
<p>"Student life at Harvard lags peer schools, poll finds"</p>
<p>By Marcella Bombardieri, Boston Globe Staff</p>
<p>Student satisfaction at Harvard College ranks near the bottom of a group of 31 elite private colleges, according to an analysis of survey results that finds that Harvard students are disenchanted with the faculty and social life on campus.</p>
<p>An internal Harvard memo, obtained by the Globe, provides numerical data that appear to substantiate some long-held stereotypes of Harvard: that undergraduate students often feel neglected by professors, and that they don't have as much fun as peers on many other campuses.</p>
<p>The group of 31 colleges, known as the Consortium on Financing Higher Education, or COFHE, includes all eight Ivy League schools, other top research universities like the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Stanford, and small colleges like Amherst and Wellesley.</p>
<p>This is a much more current survey, of this year's graduating seniors rather than those of the class of '02.</p>
<p>The</a> Harvard Crimson :: News :: Seniors satisfied overall; extracurriculars get high marks</p>
<p>More on quality of life. Here is an article based on the results of the COCHE survey for the class of 2006. COCHE, The Consortium on Financing Higher Education, has 31 member colleges and universities and was founded in 1971 " to examine how selective, private colleges and universities could discuss their commitment to providing exceptional educational opportunities for highly talented students as well as best practices in fiscal management." </p>
<p>News</p>
<p>**Class of 2006 Dissatisfied with Advising, Social Experience</p>
<p>As social life marks heat up, seniors still lukewarm on concentration advising**</p>
<p>Published On 10/19/2006 3:48:28 AM
By ALEXANDER D. BLANKFEIN
Crimson Staff Writer</p>
<p>Despite the College’s recent efforts to improve the undergraduate experience, members of the Class of 2006 said that overall, they were less than satisfied with their advising and social experiences. This continues a three-year trend of dissatisfaction among undergraduates. </p>
<p>According to an internal Harvard memo obtained by The Crimson, students remain dissatisfied with the amount of contact with their academic advisers and their concentration advising. Students also said they were less than satisfied with their social experiences.</p>
<p>"No elevators in the dorms or Houses. S will be on 5th floor next year!"</p>
<p>As one who lived on the 18th floor of Mather senior year (facing the river; my roommate drew number 1 in the housing lottery!), I'm happy that there are a few exceptions to that.</p>
<p>Here are some thoughts on Harvard that may be relevant, from Sean Carroll, a physicist at Caltech, who got his Ph.D. from Harvard but his bachelor's from Villanova. I think there's a lot of truth in it, though would disagree with some of its particulars. I'd post a link, but it's on Carroll's blog, so I can't. Those interested can surely google his name and "Cosmic Variance" though.</p>
<hr>
<p>The Purpose of Harvard is Not to Educate People </p>
<p>Harvard University’s endowment is $35 billion, and some people aren’t happy about it. Massachusetts legislators see money that could be theirs, and are contemplating new taxes. Social activists see money that could be going to charity, and want to divert it. Distinguished alumni who have landed at public universities wonder why, with all that cash, Harvard graduates such a tiny number of students.</p>
<p>johnshade thank you for your perspective. Important points to consider when choosing a college.</p>
<p>Consider the quality of life. Here are the links to the articles:</p>
<p>**News</p>
<p>Class of 2006 Dissatisfied with Advising, Social Experience</p>
<p>As social life marks heat up, seniors still lukewarm on concentration advising**</p>
<p>Published On 10/19/2006 3:48:28 AM
By ALEXANDER D. BLANKFEIN
Crimson Staff Writer</p>
<p>Despite the College’s recent efforts to improve the undergraduate experience, members of the Class of 2006 said that overall, they were less than satisfied with their advising and social experiences. This continues a three-year trend of dissatisfaction among undergraduates. </p>
<p>The</a> Harvard Crimson :: News :: Class of 2006 Dissatisfied with Advising, Social Experience</p>
<p>This one is from The Boston Globe:</p>
<p>"Student life at Harvard lags peer schools, poll finds"</p>
<p>By Marcella Bombardieri, Boston Globe Staff</p>
<p>Student satisfaction at Harvard College ranks near the bottom of a group of 31 elite private colleges, according to an analysis of survey results that finds that Harvard students are disenchanted with the faculty and social life on campus.</p>
<p>Sometimes I laugh at how entitled people get.</p>
<p>"undergraduate attention"</p>
<p>What does this exactly mean? That your professors dont drop by your door to say hi? So ****ing what? If anything, less attention is more realistic (i.e., you gotta have the initiative to consult others) and prepares you better for what to expect. If you had the drive to get here, why is continuing that so hard all of a sudden? Man up or shut up, that's all I have to say....</p>
<p>what does this article mean by dissatisfied with social experience? aren't you at school to learn? what do they expect Harvard to do, come by and see if anyone wants to play</p>
<p>Sometimes I laugh at how ignorant people are. </p>
<p>When undergraduates at Harvard complain about a lack of "undergraduate attention", they have a basis for their claims. Since graduate programs and research are so prevalent at Harvard, a lot of the big-name profs aren't available to help students, since frankly, they have much better things to do. It's not that people become lazy after they start attending Harvard, it is just impossible to interact with profs; TAs and even upperclassmen play a big part in an undergraduate's life. </p>
<p>And as far as the social life at Harvard, not all of the learning happens in the classroom. By interacting with peers in more casual settings, students develop a skill set necessary to succeed in the working world (interpersonal skills)</p>
<p>Do you attend Harvard? From my experience, you won't get any more "undergraduate attention" at any of the other top schools compared to Harvard. It's not like professors at schools like MIT, Princeton, Yale, etc., (where graduate programs and research are just as prevalent) have more "undergraduate time".</p>
<p>I went to Harvard 30 years ago. I was very interested in child language development. It was a very hot subject back then. Roger Brown had just published a book that is still quoted today. It was the textbook for my course on language development. </p>
<p>So... I never even saw Roger Brown (did see BF Skinner once on the elevator in the psych building). However, I worked closely with a junior faculty member who was amazing. I took three courses with her on language development. She became a sort of mentor to me. </p>
<p>However.. when it came time to write my thesis, she was too busy to be my thesis advisor. She offered to be one of the readers (and she was). She suggested a grad student to be my thesis advisor. The grad student was wonderful and is now very accomplished and quoted in the field. </p>
<p>A few years ago (around the time of my 25th reunion), I ran into this same junior faculty member (now at another college) at a conference. She remembered me, and I had a chance to thank her for her advice and mentoring many years ago. </p>
<p>So... I didn't get to work with the big wigs. The "little wigs" are now big wigs in the field. I don't really feel that I lost out. I did get to take a graduate seminar senior year with another big name professor.</p>
<p>Oh how things have changed. I don't know of anyone who doesn't have a full professor advising them on their thesis, and most people who approach it in a reasonable way (ie not a few weeks before the proposal is due) get their first choice 'bigwig.' I'm love my advisor and talk with him constantly in lab, where he always makes time for everyone, undergrad or grad.</p>