<p>I'm currently trying to decide between Yale and Princeton. I'm also thinking about going premed; is there one which would be more suitable? I'm also interested in economics and history, but I'm into a pretty wide range of subjects. Yale guaranteed me a spot in their Directed Studies program, so I'd like to hear what anyone knows about that. Cognitive science sounds really cool; does anyone know about the programs in that area at these two schools? I'm not positive at all as to what I'll concentrate in. I would appreciate any thoughts on these topics or just general differences. Thanks!</p>
<p>honestly, go to princeton. princeton is a beautiful campus AND the city is very nice, unlike at Yale. Also, the focus at Princeton is on undergrads, where Yale you will get little respect while they nurse their grad school students. Princeton does give out graduate degrees, yes, but their focus is on undergrads. That in itself makes it an amazing educational facility</p>
<p>The area around princeton is awesome. I haven't been to new haven, but i think i'll be making some trips there soon enough seeing that i'm probably going to school 20 mins from there haha.</p>
<p>porsche930, </p>
<p>If you are planning on going pre-med, Yale has the edge. Both Yale and Princeton offer good pre-med programs, but you also have the additional resources of the Yale medical school.</p>
<p>For more general information on Yale vs. Princeton, visit this thread: <a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=165596%5B/url%5D">http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=165596</a></p>
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Princeton's History program is > Yale's
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<p>Doesn't Yale have stronger humanities programs than Princeton? I know Yale has John Gaddis, so if you're a Cold War buff, you'll have a blast at Yale.</p>
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... where Yale you will get little respect while they nurse their grad school students.
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<p>That statement is indicative of ignorance on your part. Please don't go spouting personal opinions or heresay as if they were facts. You're still a high school student, and really have no authority in making such statements. To those of you who want to know what Yale is really like, send private messages to students who actually attend Yale. Take all other opinions with a grain of salt. (Which reminds me: porsche930, visit the Yale admitted students site's messageboards--there are a gazillion threads discussing teacher quality and undergraduate focus.)</p>
<p>Also, a note on the city of New Haven: Everyone makes it out to be Connecticut's version of Harlem. New Haven isn't really that bad. If you can survive any other big city, you can survive New Haven. It's called having a bit of common street sense. The area of New Haven surrounding Yale is gorgeous, and the restaurants surrounding Yale serve cheap, yet fantastic, international cuisine.</p>
<p>Just wondering....why does everyone say that New Haven is bad? (I mean I don't know...I'm curious, because it seems if freaking Yale is in that city, It'd be elite...dunno though)</p>
<p>Princeton (10 char.)</p>
<p>yale = princeton in econ, yale > princeton in history.</p>
<p>id go yale.</p>
<p>I'd go to Princeton. The town is very very nice, and also the kids that I know there are extremely happy.</p>
<p>UPenn is in the city, I haven't heard anything bad from my friends who are there.
Oh yeah, other than that student who got shot...</p>
<p>You can't go wrong with either school, New Haven's been changing drastically lately :-) (that's a good thing)</p>
<p>Princeton trolls: Yale is terrible, and is worse in almost every aspect.</p>
<p>This is not true. It is difficult to quantify which is better in humanities or undergraduate experience.</p>
<p>They are both wonderful schools that offer its students similar prospects at getting into top med schoosl. I've always head of Yale as being among the most undergraduate-focused ivies, which my personal experience has validated. While I have heard these rumors less so concerning Princeton, I don't doubt them to be true. While I do not doubt I would get an similar education at Princeton than at Yale, I was sure that it's social environment and eating clubs were not my thing. They are not worse, just different.</p>
<p>Look at the culture and little things that make each school unique. Visit them. Find which is a better fit.</p>
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...from everything ive heard from family and friends
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<p>That's exactly my point, though. Do you also have family and friends who go to Yale? Hearing how great Princeton is (and it is a great school--I'm not attacking Princeton, I just disagree with your statement about Yale) doesn't provide you a basis for the comparison of Princeton to Yale. Students rank Yale very highly in terms of personal satisfaction, and I doubt Yale would receive such a high ranking if students felt neglected by their professors, as you suggest. I have access to both current Yale students (Yale admitted students website) and Princeton students (past students from my high school, which sends a large number of students to Princeton every year), and from what I can tell, the two schools are the same. For all the talk about how Princeton is so superior because of its undergraduate focus, both Yale and Princeton students gushed about the same regarding academics, their classmates, and attention from professors.</p>
<p>Honestly, I think that Yale and Pton have totally different campuses, while their academic strengths in this case are pretty much matched. Visit both schools and make your decision based on the feel.</p>
<p>Princeton btw is in NO WAY a city haha. It's like a village. =P It's much safer than Yale's campus. There's nowhere you can go in Princeton and not feel safe.</p>
<p>Oh, which reminds me: Porsche90, do you plan on attending Yale for grad school (assuming you're going to attend grad school at all)? Because then I'd advise you to choose Princeton, because whatever school you attend as an undergraduate pretty much limits you from enrolling in a graduate program there.</p>
<p>Um Ginny who gave you that idea???
I talked to a Dean at one of Northwestern's grad schools and he told me that they slightly prefer applicants from their own school. The same holds true for UChicago. I think you've been given false information.</p>
<p>as far as location goes, I like the idea of a real city. I'm really not concerned about crime in New Haven; I like the fact that it's gritty, and the area around Yale is great. Princeton is a nice suburban town, but doesn't seem nearly as interesting. I'm leaning towards Yale because the schools just seem so closely matched in terms of academic quality in the areas I'm into that it seems like I should go with the one that offers the better living arrangements and social situation which, for me, seems to be Yale at this point. But, I'm spending a night at both next week, and I'm completely open to letting Princeton change my mind. Thanks for the comments so far. Any more thoughts?</p>
<p>Grad schools try to avoid inbreeding if possible. So yes, ginny is right, though she may be exaggerating a bit.</p>
<p>They at least give lip service to avoiding inbreeding.</p>
<p>Well, to call Princeton "a village" isn't very accurate either. I'd classify the area as a wealthy suburb. It's in the heart of prosperous Central NJ, and there's no shortage of people in this area at all. Combined with the fact that it's decently close to both Philadelphia and NYC (the single most awesome city in the world), there's a good feeling of connectedness. Feel free to disagree, but I've never had anything close to "a village" feeling at Princeton.</p>
<p>Princeton was also rated as among the best places to live recently by CNN:
<a href="http://money.cnn.com/best/bplive/top100_1.html%5B/url%5D">http://money.cnn.com/best/bplive/top100_1.html</a></p>
<p>With 17 movie theaters within 15 miles, 2,444 restaurants, 169 bars, it's no NYC, but it's not Hanover, NH or Ithaca, NY either.</p>
<p>
So you've attended them all?</p>
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With 17 movie theaters within 15 miles, 2,444 restaurants, 169 bars...
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It would be hard to get to 16 of those movie theaters without a car, as only a couple of them (if any - I've never used the public bus system). Princeton Garden Theater is the only exception. =P</p>
<p>By village I didn't mean ten huts around a campfire. I meant it's a very close and small community. Sure, there are restaurants, but you can't just walk a few blocks to get there. If you go to Princeton most of the shops you have at your fingertips are in Palmer Square - you would have to take the bus/car to get to the mall (which isn't even that great. At all.)</p>
<p>Whenever I visit Princeton I get the feeling that it's kinda like a village. I live in hardcore suburbia with a huge lawn and trees that were planted a little too carefully. I can't even get to my friend's house in my own development without a car. We don't talk to our neighbors. It's a very secluded feeling. Princeton isn't like that, but it's much, much smaller than any city.</p>