<p>Hi everyone,</p>
<p>Just looking for some advice as to whether I should go to Yale or Stanford. I'm planning to major in political science and go to law school, and I love both Y/S. I know a lot about both of them, went to the full Bulldog Days and Stanford Admit Weekend program, and I still haven't been able to make up my mind. Anybody have any insights that could help a wavering prefrosh?</p>
<p>I have a good friend who chose between the two and chose Yale. I think she liked the community at Yale better, but I can’t speak to that, as I got waitlisted there. Did you go to the Yale Political Union with Howard Dean at Bulldog Days? I don’t really get too starstruck by politicians (and let’s be honest, its not like Howard Dean is especially big-time) but I thought the atmosphere of the YPU. It was full of genuine excitement and even though I didn’t really have a previous interest in the democratization of China, I thought it was really exciting.</p>
<p>I’m interested in EP&E (for Business, not Law School) and the YPU was the Political part of the whole experience that most impressed me.</p>
<p>Simply go to Yale, it is the best in political science and humanities. Don’t second guess.</p>
<p>Not to mention Yale’s Directed Studies. You can also take John Gaddis’ Grand Strategy course. The bulldog beckons.</p>
<p>I went to the YDA during much of the Howard Dean thing. Saw the beginning, though. Didn’t think he was terribly impressive. :(</p>
<p>If you live in NYC, as indicated in your profile, does it matter that you’d be on the opposite coast? It’s not easy to get home. New Haven is far enough away to be out of sight but close enough if you want that. Otherwise, you know east coast weather and maybe you’d prefer west coast weather. Do you tan or burn? Do you like major college sports? Stanford is Pac-10 and Yale is not at that level though it certainly has some fairly well known rivalries.</p>
<p>I think an issue might be whether you want to feel “right at home” with a fair number of New Englanders at Yale, or would you like to feel like an exotic outsider, as someone attending Stanford, from NY. </p>
<p>D is a westerner attending Yale, and definitely feels like she brings something new to the mix, and is soaking up experiences and points of view from the “other” coast. Staying in the west would have been easier, but not better.</p>
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<p>Simply untrue. For political science:</p>
<p>Stanford = #1
Yale = #5</p>
<p>[Rankings</a> - Political Science - Graduate Schools - Education - US News and World Report](<a href=“http://grad-schools.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-graduate-schools/top-political-science-schools/rankings]Rankings”>http://grad-schools.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-graduate-schools/top-political-science-schools/rankings)</p>
<p>That is for GRADUATE school.</p>
<p>Why can’t you note the difference between grad and undergrad? There’s a GREAT difference between the two.</p>
<p>But again, I really doubt that there will be a difference between Yale and Stanford in Political Science. I mean, it’s Yale and Stanford we’re talking about 
just go where you think you’ll be happier. (I’m a 2014er, and I turned down Stanford and Harvard and committed to Yale, fyi)</p>
<p>You have two great schools to choose from. Here are four factors that influenced me as I chose Y over S:</p>
<p>1) Residential college system. Before I even arrived on campus, my master and dean had memorized my name and face. It is a true “small community that feels like a LAC with the resources of a large research community.” The freshman at Stanford do not all live together, do not live in Res colleges, and the size of the campus is so large that it sometimes hurts the sense of a community imo.</p>
<p>2) “Public” intellectualism. Although not competitive, Yalies are interested in their studies and love to discuss everything from economics to moral philosophy at the dinner table. At Stanford, it seemed to me that caring a lot about academics or having such conversations was considered “showy.” Although very smart students attend, Stanford tries to show that they are more “relaxed” than other schools, and I think it sometimes comes at the expense of that level of debate and discourse. Also, I was also not sure that I even buy the “relaxed” atmosphere: Stanford students refer to “duck syndrome” on campus, where they “pretend to be fine on the surface but are struggling to keep afloat.” This is probably partly driven by the stress of their trimester system rather than Yale’s semester system.</p>
<p>3) Athletics. Quite simply, I did not care about having the best sports teams and I did not want to hang out with athletes a lot since I think they are generally the lower tier of students. That is not to say that Yale does not also have some “dumb” athletes, just that I think the “athlete culture” is more socially dominant at Stanford and I thought that athletics segmented the student body more imo. That said, if I really were a sports fan and cared about it a lot, that factor would have gone in Stanford’s favor.</p>
<p>4) Students are happy. At both schools, students seemed pretty happy to me. I thought the happiness at Yale was a little more infectious though.</p>
<p>You have two great choices. You can’t go wrong; those were just a few of my thoughts as I decided to go to <3 Yale.</p>
<p>bluescreen, it’s true that you have two great schools to consider. However, it isn’t true that intellectual discourse is at all rare, or considered “showy”, at Stanford. Many students enjoy spirited discussions about their readings and classes in their residences, over meals, etc. Stanford students do, by and large, know how to balance work and play, and how to recharge so that they can stay on top of their studies. Also, with respect to freshman living, it’s good to keep in mind that Stanford is all about maximum choice, for both learning and living. There are numerous large clusters of all-freshman housing for those who prefer that, and there are also four-class residences, freshman/sophomore residences, and themed residences for students who would prefer those. Each housing option provides a great deal of community. Having lots of housing options also creates a plethora of dining options to keep things interesting, since students can eat in any campus dining hall. Finally, you would by no means be an “exotic” entity as an East Coast transplant to Stanford–there are plenty of East Coast kids there, delighted by the very mild winter temperatures, and the extended periods of sunshine throughout the rest of the year.</p>
<p>zenkoan, it is true that my intellectualism thing is based on my own observation and talking to students. And it is also true that the students are very smart. However, I don’t think that it is a superficial distinction. </p>
<p>E.g.
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/stanford-university/166942-intellectualism-stanford.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/stanford-university/166942-intellectualism-stanford.html</a></p>
<p>“I was a bit disappointed with the lack of intellectualism. I’ve kinda gotten used to it, but do miss it a bit. I have one really awesome friend here who makes tons of bad physics/philosophy jokes which I thoroughly enjoy. We discuss issues from our philosophy class on a somewhat regular basis. I have another friend who would make bad physics puns too… only I don’t really see him all that much anymore. My point is that while you can find the kind of intellectualism that you desire, I don’t think it’s all that easy to find.”</p>
<p>I think there is at least a cultural difference. Some people prefer the Yale approach; others like the Stanford alternative.</p>
<p>booyaksha, everyone is certainly entitled to his own opinion. However, if you find yourself mining an old CC post from 2006 to corroborate yours, that might give you some pause. ; ) </p>
<p>Yale and Stanford are both great places, and you’re right that they have somewhat different cultures but, having spent time on both campuses, I don’t detect an appreciable difference in intellectual vitality. (If there were, I doubt I could boost Stanford; I’m a big fan of the life-of-the-mind myself.)</p>
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<p>wow. just wow.</p>