<p>I've heard roadtrips to SoCal are not uncommon........is this true?</p>
<p>why not?
there's so much to do in southern california, and it'll take mm... i'dl like to say anywhere between 5-6 hours to get to LA, another hour to get into orange county, and another two or so to get to san diego
it's a good idea for a weekend trip</p>
<p>I have to confess I didn't go to Stanford undergrad, but I did go to it grad.</p>
<p>What struck me was how great a balance it provided for undergrads of academic excellence plus a decent life quality. </p>
<p>To put it very simply, students seemed happier at Stanford than at any other of the most elite competitors. The beautiful environment plays a factor, both the location and the campus (aside from parking). The faculty are more teaching friendly than at many comparable institutions. There's also the influence of Stanford's "culture"--students get the message that they can be somewhat more "mellow" and sociable while being as academically capable and focused as anywhere else.</p>
<p>Would I recommend Stanford over any other college? Not quite. It depends on the applicant. But I'd recommend it most highly for many applicants.</p>
<p>and if the Tree hadn't done something stupid a couple years ago he would be allowed to dress up and do his thing in NCAA play. </p>
<p>crazy. what did it do?</p>
<p>I like stanford because I want to own the world. Oh, and I've always dreamt of having s** on the hot cement of Palm Drive...seriously. :)</p>
<p>um.... lol?!</p>
<p>i haven't exactly been in the campus yet but i went to the school's official website and looked at the pics.</p>
<p>reaction: gorrrrgggeeeooouuusss campus.</p>
<p>in addition to that, Stanford puts as much pride and effort on its athletics as much as it does on academics.</p>
<p>-gorgeous, gorgeous campus which I fell in love with the first and second
and third and gazillionth times I went.
-relatively close to home .. which means I'll need constant transportation back and forth (CAR!) but also that my parents won't see me every weekend.
-SUDAC
-academics. need I say more?
-bragging rights (hahahah! because I'm Asian and it would give my parents great satisfaction to be able to tell other Asian parents that their eldest daughter got into Stanford)
-weather (I've been a NorCal girl all my life, and I've become quite accustomed).
-STANFORD SHOPPING CENTER! <3 hahah.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>HAHAHAHAHAH. Wouldn't that hurt quite a bit?</p>
<p>And yes .. what did the tree do?</p>
<p>Haha! That would be interesting....like right in the middle of plam drive? Good luck! haha!</p>
<p>happy students
good social life
Overall, it's CALIFORNIA! ++ good weather, climate, etc etc.
definitely stanford</p>
<p>Stanford definitely has its own personality. We have all sorts of random traditions (like fountainhopping, tree week, etc.) plus the AMAZING Leland Stanford Junior University Marching Band (LSJUMB). Some would argue that alone is enough reason to come here... Most students are just really happy being at Stanford and couldn't imagine themselves anywhere else. I think that's probably the best reason to come here, the fact that everyone who goes here loves it so much. There seem to be a lot of people who are really good at various academic disciplines/activities. It's very common to find that the student who wins the contest for best paper in IHUM also happens to be a math/science genius. Everyone I've met here is just really, really interesting. Everyone has some interesting story to tell and/or some really cool, unusual interest. Although students work hard and want to succeed, they still help each other out both in and out of academic contexts. Study groups in classes that grade on strict curves are plentiful. Whereas at some schools it might be more like "I want to do well so I'm going to try to make everyone else do worse so I can get a good grade" here it's more like "I want to do really well but I also want all of my friends to do really well." Students seem to be pretty well balanced. A lot of people try to do a million activities and sometimes sacrifice sleep, so I guess in that respect they aren't so well balanced... but in terms of interests and such, most people value academics but also value friends/partying/activities/etc. Somehow that plus the supportive environment helps cut down on stress a lot. Even though I think I probably have more work here than I did in high school (which was still a LOT), I feel less stressed and somehow feel like I have less work. It's weird. </p>
<p>Classes and profs are great. Stanford has one of the top programs in the world is pretty much every discipline. That is incredible. You will probably change your mind about your major so it's nice to know that you can do that and there will still be a good program in your new major. It's pretty cool that you can easily change to/from an engineering major since for undergrad there aren't separate programs for engineering, arts and sciences, etc. If you think you want to be an engineer that may be helpful. I've really enjoyed most of the classes I've taken. Now that the quarter is ending, I've realized that I'm really going to miss most of my classes/profs/sections. I like that there aren't too many required classes. There is IHUM and PWR. PWR is well... potentially useful, but not so much fun. I bet when I graduate I'll be glad I took it but right now I'm glad it's over. I've actually really liked my IHUM this quarter (Fate of Reason) and loved my section last quarter but wasn't so crazy about the profs. After that, you just have to take one class in each of the following: math, natural sciences, applied sciences, humanities, social sciences. That's pretty easy to do. I would do that anyway. Then you have to take a class related to two of the following: gender, global communities, american studies, ethics. There are a bunch of intro seminars that can accomplish that. I think it's important to know something about the world. As a responsible citizen you should know about what you're voting on. Overall, the requirements are pretty painless and overall I'd say they are worthwhile. I think fewer requirements would be a mistake because it's valuable to expand your horizons and sample different departments. You might find something that you really love that you never expected to like. Any more requirements, though, and I feel that I wouldn't have time to take classes just for fun. </p>
<p>Other more trivial things... all the resources on campus. Most schools that one might turn Stanford down for (which you should never, ever do unless it's for financial reasons) also have great resources. I've heard really good things about the advising offered as well as extra options for getting help in classes. (The advisor you are assigned to is pretty much unless, but the general all-purpose advisors who just advise people all day are supposed to be very helpful) You probably don't think that you'll ever need extra help in a class since most of you probably didn't in high school, but in college things change. You are surrounded by some of the most intelligent people in the world who are your age. You will probably meet at least one person who is smarter than you. The campus is pretty. The food is actually pretty good. There is at least a lot of variety and various dining halls which helps a lot. My bed here is actually more comfortable than my bed at home and the showers have better shower pressure and take less time to get warm than they do back home. Stanford is even amazing when it comes to the little, trivial details like that (which, btw, become less trivial when it's pouring outside and you are soaked and really want a nice warm shower... then it is the most important thing in the world). We have great weather, especially compared to other schools you might consider. I didn't think that was a big deal. It is. Sun makes people happy. Rain and clouds are depressing. </p>
<p>I'm sure there are many, many other reasons that Stanford is such an incredible place. I really love it here. If you have the choice of coming here I think it'd be incredibly foolish to turn down that chance. Then again I might be biased.</p>
<p>I love you. Seriously. My desire to be there has gone from like 1000 to 1 billion.</p>
<p>Oh, and weekend brunch at Wilbur. Belgian waffles, crepes, omlettes, carved turkey... it's good stuff! It makes Sundays (the day of work) worth living.</p>
<p>I dunno, can brunch at Wilbur really be better than brunch at Hobees? <em>grin</em></p>
<p>I LOVE brunch!! And every Sunday?
<em>Drools</em>
Haha make it the freshmen 25</p>
<p>why stanford?</p>
<p>from a link someone posted earlier:</p>
<p>
[quote]
Sophomore Gina Bateson, communications director of the Stanford Democrats, disagreed with Fairbanks.</p>
<p>According to Bateson, "1,000 students were in the anti-war strike last spring, compared with five Republicans at the affirmative action bake sale."
[/quote]
</p>
<p>lol</p>
<p>Good point. Heh.</p>
<p>And that's why? lol!</p>
<p>what's the general personality of the university?? like if you had to come up with a couple adjectives to describe the school and the people, what would they be??</p>
<p>I was going to say 'relaxed'. I IM'd my son with your question, and he said, "relaxed is probably the one of the words I would use". So, we vote for relaxed.</p>