yale or harvard????

<p>Sorry, I don't frequent internet forums much and I tend to be unfamiliar with most acronyms. What does "IMHO" mean? "In My Heartfelt Opinion"?</p>

<p>Byerly,</p>

<p>While I agree that more people choose Harvard and that prestige and reputation are important things, the difference between Yale and Harvard's prestige/reputation is never going to prevent you from getting a job or getting into a grad school you want to go to. Most people know they are just about interchangeable. The only time when going to one or the other will make a difference is if you get in a situation where you are being hired by a graduate of one of those schools and your alumni connection makes a difference, but that is generally just luck and it could swing both ways.</p>

<p>yes byerly, my mother is on the faculty at yale, but she is brand new, she will be starting next year so she hasnt yet been indoctrinated with anti-harvard sentiment yet<br>
im leaning yale but i agree with the others that the harvard rep is hard to turn down it's major drawback in my eyes seems to be the lack of sense of community among hte students; self-focus and awareness of competition vs. community and support</p>

<p>... whatever THAT means!</p>

<p>Well, even though you are starting to spout the standard anti-Harvard cliches, I won't give up hope. </p>

<p>After all, even President Levin of Yale allowed his kid to go to Harvard. Maybe your mom won't hold you back!</p>

<p>Byerly, In your opinion, what can an applicant do to improve his or her chances of being admitted from the waitlist? Are we allowed to write letters (proclaiming our undying interest in the college); and if so, how will this influence their decision? (Especially if 300-400 candidates all send letters...or award updates, etc.) Thank you in advance for your reply...I'm off to practise (and take some stress out of AP biology).</p>

<p>Regarding reputation and prestige: maybe in the US, there isn't much difference between HYP reputation-wise, but internationally, Harvard really has the upper hand. I live in Canada right now, and although most people have heard of Yale, Harvard to them is THE school to go to. I've lived in two other continents besides North America, and it's the same there also. Harvard is considered the best university in the world (though some may say Oxbridge, but generally, Harvard is considered #1), while Yale and Princeton have only vague recognition. Again, however, this is only my experience.</p>

<p>Just as EA deferreds are advised to do, update them on final grades, awards, honors, etc..</p>

<p>And remember, its hard to say you're in direct competition with anyone: they tend to look for someone with similar strengths as a person they've "lost" in order to maintain the diversity design they started out with.</p>

<p>I'm an "international" (im labeling myself for the sake of simplicity) with the same choice to make... It's true that Harvard seems to be known incredibly well internationally, but yale is getting is beginning to become good competition in this field (helped by the last 2 US presidents Yale diplomas and the 2 recent presidential candidates). </p>

<p>Princeton gets mentioned much less in comparison.</p>

<p>Although there is still a gap between Yale and Harvard in terms of international recognition, I don't want this to affect my decision and I feel it shouldn't affect anyone's for that matter. Go with whoever you think will give you the best opportunities (probably hard to choose). Personally, I'm inclining towards Yale because of a perceived strength in social sciences and more attention to undergrads. The Yale board seems to be full of cool people too.. and Harvard's board of whiners.. which I'm beginning to see as stereotypes of the H and Y undergrads?</p>

<p>Ive been accepted at harvard princeton stanford and yale (woohooo!)
right now im hesitating between harvard and princeton. any advice anyone? (planning on majoring in political science)</p>

<p>Well since this thread is titled "yale or harvard," why don't you post your good news somewhere else instead of de-railing this conversation?</p>

<p>sorry... no need to be so sour...</p>

<p>Picudo-you talk about int'l recognition. what do you mean exactly? of course anybody on the streets in any country in Europe drools at the mention of the name Harvard, but probably won't know much about princeton or yale. On the other hand, for the people who know their stuff (employers or job-interviewers for instance) Pton and Yale are just as good as H.</p>

<p>Sorry for sounding cross... stuff on the internet comes across much more harsh than it would in real life :)</p>

<p>Last night, I talked to Harvard Law professor Lani Guinier. She went to Harvard for her undergrad. I was really surprised with what she had to say and I thought I'd add it here for you to think about. I was waitlisted this year at Harvard, and she told me that if I was accepted I should not go! She said I would get a better undergraduate education at BYU! When I asked her why, she told me that the professors didn't care about the undergraduate students at all. They simply taught big lectures and then pretty much ignored the students. She also said that at the end of her four years at Harvard, she could not get a single teacher recommendation!
I was personally shocked by this. I had heard things about Harvard not being undergraduate oriented, but I didn't think it was THAT bad. Anyway, you might want to consider this. If anyone has anything to add to agree with/refute this, by all means speak up. I really wanted to get off the waitlist there, but now I'm a bit worried.</p>

<p>Flipchick:</p>

<p>My S audited two courses at Harvard last year. He asked the profs for a rec, and got it. Now, I heard of some colleges where, if you are not in class, the prof will call your room and wake you up. Harvard profs won't do that. But my S has found his Harvard profs very approachable. He went to their office hours when he could, and when he could not, he sent them emails. And they responded.</p>

<p>Thanks, marite! That's good to know. Now I'm back to really hoping (foolishly, I know) that I get in off the waitlist!</p>

<p>Flipchick, you raised a good point that is oft brought up about Harvard, but I would advise against BYU for more obvious and less than obvious reasons. Of course, if you're comfortable going there, then that's your choice. ;)</p>

<p>Well, I'm mormon, so I would probably be very comfortable there, but I always wanted to go to a "better" school. I know I'll be happy there if I don't end up somewhere else, but I can't help but be happy that people have had better experiences at Harvard than Lani had.</p>

<p>AXFR:</p>

<p>You're right. Among the better-informed all three sound just about the same. In fact, they might even consider Y or P's ugrad superior to H's. From personal experience though, I've found that outside the US Harvard seems to be better-known, with Y coming a close second and P further behind.</p>

<p>IMO the difference in academics is pretty much negligible overall. Each has its strength/weaknesses and advatages/disadvantages. It's probably (perhaps obviously) best to go with whichever "feels" like the best fit after learning as much as possible about them and student life etc.</p>

<p>Oh no, I wasn't talking about the quality of the school, I'm pretty sure that it's up to the cademic standards of most top institutions, I was moreso talking about the social life. Not parties or anything, but a family friend went there before transferring, and she said that the student body is extremely close minded, and they will ridicule anyone who is different from they are. She also said that the homogeny is mind boggling - if you want a college experience that will open your mnd to other cultures and people, dont go there! But from what i can tell from your posts you're a smart girl and I'm sure youll make a good choice.</p>