Where should my friend apply EA? Harvard v. Princeton v. Stanford

Chance Me / Match Me!
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Hello!

I am asking this question for a friend who is not on CC. Now, let me warn you. Some of his stats might seem crazy. I have seen people on CC in the past mock people with stats similar to him. But I 100% assure you that the person exists. Just PM me if you want more details about him. I have no intention of wasting anybody’s precious time. He just needs opinions on where to apply early.

So basically, he has already made up his college list and he is contemplating where to apply to early. Right now ,he has narrowed down my choices to Harvard, Stanford and Princeton. He hasn’t visited any of the schools and nor will he be able to in the near future (unless he gets admitted, of course). He would be happy to go to either of them (if at all he gets in). I think that applying EA gives him an advantage (albeit a very slight one), he would do anything that maximizes my chances at any of those colleges.

He is fine with the class sizes at all the colleges. He has lived in a metropolitan city for all my life. Weather can be managed. Research opportunities and the ability to take grad classes matter a lot to him. In addition to that, he plans to major in math/applied math + economics. I know he can’t double major at Harvard, but he had a look at their website and the joint concentration looks fine to him. He might take a few CS classes here and there, but he is 100% sure that he will not major in CS.

HE DOES NOT NEED AID. He can pay full freight.

Here are his stats to help you: he will 99% have accomplished the following by November. I have put an asterix at the awards/accomplishments that he has not yet achieved, but has a high chance of achieving.

SAT 1 - 2270 (second attempt, single sitting)
ACT - 35 - 36 (Taking it in September)
SAT subject tests: 800 (PCM)

School grades: 9th - 84%, 10th - 93%, 11th - 96%, 12th mid term - 96%, 12th board marks - 92% (predicted)
****The average at his school is pretty low. Like really low, something around 50 - 60% So although my school doesn’t rank, he is in the top 5% He has taken the most rigorous courses available to him.

Awards: INMO participant (akin to USAMO in India), Google Science Fair(* He basically created a novel method to diagnose cancer, something better than the first winner of GSF; he might end up winning something if he is lucky), top 50 in the nation at a semi-major CS competition plus a few national/state level scholarships. Published research x 6 (3 of them were very high impact journals, something similar in stature to PNAS, Annals of Mathematics)

ECs: Research in math and computer science (over 4 years), soccer (team captain), basketball (captain), 1 paid and 2 unpaid internships in STEM institutes in our country. 1 internship at a start-up, 1 or 2 clubs in school (president in both) and

The biggest disadvantage, he is from India. So he will be competing with highly competitive olympiad participants.

Again, he does not need financial aid at all. He will stop all these activities after July to focus on essays.

Please give your honest opinions. This has been worrying him for the past few weeks.

Thanks in advance!

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“Right now ,he has narrowed down my choices to Harvard, Stanford and Princeton.”
"He has lived in a metropolitan city for all my life. "

Trouble with cut-and-paste?

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Does one city/area of the country appeal to him more than another? Boston vs. Palo Alto… very different! So, I’ve not ever been to Princeton/Jersey, but I lived in Boston for 8 years and have been in CA (SoCal, mind) for 4.5, so I can compare/contrast coastal vibes, if that helps. I’ve visited Stanford/Palo Alto a few times, as a friend got his PhD there + I have family in Palo Alto. I’d say both Stanford and Princeton will feel “college town”-y, whereas Harvard is in Cambridge and is essentially Boston… it’s definitely more city. I’d recommend having a car at Stanford/Princeton, but you don’t need one for Harvard. I loved Palo Alto a lot when I visited–it’s super cute, with nice restaurants, coffee shops, etc… kind of expensive, given it’s Silicon Valley, but nice. NorCal is a great place to live–Cali has a laid back vibe (Californians are naturally pretty chill).

Boston, on the other hand, and I imagine NJ by extension, is very Northeast: a bit more bustling/urban/brisk manner. I am a Northeasterner so obviously I love my people, but some don’t like the brusk nature of Northeasterners. But if you’re a bit more serious/don’t like to be bothered by strangers (ha!), the Northeast is great. I often miss “my people” out here in Cali :slight_smile: Generally, Harvard would offer more immediate access to culture & city life. It’s just a few stops on the Red line to downton Boston and everything there–theater, museums, etc.

In terms of school culture, I can only speak to Harvard and Stanford from an outsider perspective (I can’t believe I don’t know any Princeton people?!), but I liken the vibes to: boho-intellectual for Harvard, and eco-granola-intellectual for Stanford. Both good, but not everyone connects to the boho-hippie vibe one finds in Cambridge, or the eco-Cali-vibe in Palo Alto. The people I know from both schools are consummate nerds (and all very passionate, driven & creative!), just slightly different flavors of nerd :slight_smile:

Maybe some people who actually go to the schools can offer some perspective, but that’s my advice–he should really consider geographic location & the culture of those locations + school culture to pick a favorite. They’re all very different schools! But academically, you can’t really go wrong…

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@JustOneDad Sorry for the minor errors. I am a human after all :-p

@proudterrier Thank you for your reply. I will ask him to have a closer look at the location and culture at these schools. I appreciate your help