<p>What is Harvard typically like and who normally 'fits in' or is the perfect match for such a prestigious school? What makes Harvard different than other schools?</p>
<p>I am only a HS student, but I guess there will be no right or wrong answers for your “fits in” question.
What makes Harvard different? I think there are a lot of things, starting with very generous fin aids :)</p>
<p>It’s really hard to answer your question because Harvard is different for every person. To get an idea, maybe you could look for Senior Reflections on the Harvard crimson blog. There are a wide variety of clubs and organizations on campus and chances are even if you have “fringe interests,” you’ll be able to find people who share those interests (e.g. next semester I’m thinking of starting an E-sports association on campus). I’d say the people who “fit in” are those who are motivated both academically and socially. When I mean socially, I don’t mean that you have to be a huge partier (but if you are, Harvard’s nightlife is amazing), but there are just so many opportunities to make connections with professors and alumni through formal social events that it would be a waste of your tuition if all you did was spend 4 years in the library. I hope this little spiel answers a some of your questions. If not, shoot me a private message and I can tell you more.</p>
<p>well said, Icedcoffeee. </p>
<p>My D is entering the Harvard-NEC program next year. So maybe I will drop you a line.</p>
<p>She likes tea.</p>
<p>Some schools seem to have A Type. Students at Amherst are smart, outdoorsy, and were probably popular in high school. Students at UChicago make schoolwork their first priority, are cold-tolerant, and like scavenger hunts. Obviously, I’m generalizing like mad. There will be exceptions at any of these, probably large ones, but there seem to be sizeable pluralities or small majorities that fit these types. One reason I chose Harvard was that, beyond all being really motivated at something, there doesn’t seem to be a single prevailing Harvard type. Off the top of my head, here are is a fairly long list of Harvard types:</p>
<p>-Political junkies who follow every campaign to the letter, whether reporting on one or working within one
-Humanities nerds who like talking philosophy or art criticism half the time they get drunk
-Artistic types who host screenings of four-hour Japanese adaptations of Shakespeare Friday nights rather than getting drunk
-Politically and socially conservative activists who right now seem to be digging in on traditional marriage as a priority, but do other work as well (OP–they tend to be Christian, but I do know one young woman who converted to Islam in high school, spent her junior year studying Arabic in the Middle East, and is an active member of the politically conservative scene, should that be important to you.)
-Liberal activists
-Feminist/LGBTQ activists who have a good chance of living in the Co-op (our one special-interest housing option) and tend to support other liberal causes like organic farming
-Science types who spend so much time, productively, in lab that they accidentally finish their thesis on cancer in their junior year, or who blow past the end of the undergraduate chemistry offerings by the end of sophomore year
-Musical theater geeks who will always, like plants, seek the spotlight
-Science types who spend less time on lab than all that, and are among some of the best musicians and dancers on campus
-Social climbers/butterflies who cluster in the finals clubs and tend to have come from New York private schools or posh British public ones or even, maybe, Massachusetts/Connecticut private ones, some of whom are excellent and genuine and some of whom are as vapid and self-absorbed as you’d expect
-Athletes who live for their sport
-Artists/writers/musicians
-People who party “a lot” (3x a week is probably high for Harvard; this is low for some very good state schools at which I have friends.)
-People who go to parties but don’t drink and just dance and have fun
-People who prefer not to go to parties at all
-Pre-entrepreneurs who have spent a lot of time working in startups and are going places
-World-saving do-gooders
-Fashion plates
-People who go to class in sweats every day
-The token group of stoners, of whom there seem to be fewer by percentage than in your average high school
-Quiet and introspective types, who spend a lot of time thinking. I appreciate their perspectives, so I tend to be one of their token Loud Friends
-Driven pre-meds
-Pre-finance and pre-consulting types…this I can say less about than any of the others. I have at least a couple friends or am in the social circle of a couple of every single one of the preceding categories. I know these exist, because something like 20% of each senior class goes into the two combined. I’m sure I’ll have a couple friends surprisingly end up in one or the other, but, while I’ve seen the people gunning for these jobs spilling out of recruiting events by the bushel, I can only name four, out of the hundreds and hundreds of people I’ve met at Harvard.</p>
<p>Now, many of these groups combine with each other. I know a budding entrepreneur, going significant places in business, who is also a good poet, and a dumb-as-a-post-seeming athletic recruit who is also a really, really, really good modern artist. And me? Well, as my academic adviser put it on hearing my work habits, I’m a “natural structuralist.” I like to put things in (lots of) categories!</p>
<p>I am from Norway and I have already been in contact with the head-coach for Harvard Nordic Skiing. I would definetly contribute at the ski team, but I am not that sure about the academics. Here in Norway I would say I am one of the best in class, but then again I do attend a school where athletics are more important than academics. This year at school I have a very nice balance between academics and athletics.</p>
<p>Therefore I wonder how much time Harvard students spend at classes and how much time they spend studying themself? This may be a dumb question, since this is very individual, but if someone could give me an example it would be very helpful!</p>
<p>"Therefore I wonder how much time Harvard students spend at classes and how much time they spend studying themself? This may be a dumb question, since this is very individual, but if someone could give me an example it would be very helpful! "</p>
<p>This is from my Harvard Law School experience, not a Harvard undergraduate experience, but I spent about the same amount of time studying, or perhaps less, at Harvard than I did at my undergrad school, which was a US top-10 liberal arts college. People in general seemed to study a good bit, but there was always time for extracurriculars, weekend trips, etc.</p>
<p>The people at Harvard were much, much, much, much smarter than in undergrad, and so if I wanted to be #1 in the class I would have had to study 24 hours a day, but I knew that wasn’t possible, so I just did my reasonable best. And since the people at Harvard were so much smarter than I was, they didn’t need to study a lot to do well; they just learned quickly.</p>
<p>For the first post in this thread: the only typical characteristic of a Harvard student is that the person is smart and motivated. There is every imaginable type of person on the campus.</p>