<p>I know the original point of this thread was to discuss which school would be a better fit for the OP, but I just had to point out (the obvious) that Stanford is ridiculously higher in terms of prestige than Brown when it comes to the Asian community. There is no contest. I come from an Asian family and a few vocal relatives are still chiding me for choosing Brown over a few other “more prestigious” schools. :rolleyes:</p>
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<p>Marsden nailed it!</p>
<p>I think a huge difference is the curriculum at both schools. Brown is really into the free/not structured very liberal approach.</p>
<p>Stanford is more prestigious than Brown by far. Other than the states, the rest of the world doesn’t even know Brown (let alone it is an ivy league). In Asia, it’s 1. Harvard and then 2. UCLA. Yes, it’s weird, but basically everyone in Asia knows UCLA.
But as mentioned before, it doesn’t make S a better school than B.</p>
<p>Well, to the rest of the world, either America’s streets are paved with gold (OK, maybe that’s not so true any longer) or paved with self-involved, spoiled people or blood-thirsty thugs. We know none of this is true. Stereotypes abound where there is a lot of information and not much fact. So, it doesn’t really matter which school is more famous or prestigious where. The fact of the matter is that these two schools are both wonderful, similar in some ways, very different in others, and may or may not be right for each student. This is just an example of picking nits, and is pretty silly in the long run. Rowan makes the best post, because s/he is comparing the two and giving information that people can actually use. Much more useful, don’t you think?</p>
<p>I don’t think international prestige really has any meaning. If anybody knows anything about undergraduate education, these two institutions are in the top 10-15 in the world, depending on field. Just because some guy in Asia doesn’t know what Brown is does not make it less prestigious. Prestige is related to the opinions of academics, employers, educators, grad schools, etc., and it’s difficult to make a case that either is overall more prestigious. </p>
<p>Stanford is a huge name, but it might not be so if there were more top schools on the west coast.</p>
<p>That is very true indeed!</p>
<p>Stop being so ambitious. Dang.</p>
<p>Brown and Stanford are pretty comparable in terms of prestige. I don’t think you can really argue that Stanford is “more prestigious by far” at all. Definitely let your daughter visit both schools before making a decision. Good luck!</p>
<p>…Come. on.</p>
<p>Stanford>Brown. I cannot think of a single area (academics) where Brown is better than Stanford</p>
<p>Neuroscience? I’m a junior, and I"m looking at both brown and stanford. Brown has a definite neuro department with a neuro concentration and even a cog neuro concentration too. I think they were the first undergraduate school in the country to offer it. Stanford has it, but it’s a combination of bio and psych. their grad programs definitely have neuro, but for undergrad, they don’t. (This is all from the research I’ve done on both schools).</p>
<p>I won’t make a definitive comment on Stanford and Brown’s prestige, because they are both fine schools, but stanford overall is larger, has more grad programs, etc, so in terms of the absolute value of research and activity, there’s just more going on at Stanford.</p>
<p>art, for one, and the above mentioned neuro disciplines, also applied math, egyptology, history of math, gender and sexuality studies, south asian studies, middle eastern studies, american civilization…</p>
<p>but all i’ve really done is given you a list of programs that brown has that stanford doesn’t (and correct me if I’m wrong). look, once you’re talking about school the caliber of brown and stanford, it is highly dubious to claim that, for example stanford’s english is better than brown’s. it’s much more an issue of of fit than so-called quality of academics. additionally, there’s a considerable amount going on here, it’s just geared towards us undergraduates and so it’s not quantified in the same way as grad research, which is ultimately useless to you unless you can a. learn from it in a productive way, or b. are a grad student. I can tell you that when I was at Tulane, which has a much larger though probably less prestigious in most areas, grad program than Brown, I certainly garnered absolutely nothing from the grad department, except annoyance from grad TA’s who didn’t give a crap. </p>
<p>As an art student, however, and having done research into this issue, I will say that Brown’s art department is better than Stanford’s, with a greater breadth of courses, resources, RISD, and a focus on art and not simply art as an integrative tool for the rest of your education. And other schools have better art programs than Brown. I happen to like it very much, some don’t. </p>
<p>but stanford sure has us beat on sun. $hit.</p>
<p>the answer’s pretty straightforward…</p>
<p>if you are doing anything even remotely tech related = Stanford. All other majors, you cannot go wrong with either; at this point it becomes matter of personal preference on location, weather, etc. </p>
<p>Keep in mind though, Stanford’s “traditional” art programs … suck. New media art programs are top-notch, however. (i am minoring in art with a focus on digital art).</p>
<p>And people, prestige should literally be the last thing to consider, especially when we are comparing two top-tier schools.</p>
<p>From RowanMD
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<p>This.</p>
<p>Rowan, great post. When did you graduate? I think I might know you…</p>
<p>I would second a lot of what Rowan has said. I attended Brown for my UNDERGRADUATE education and learned not only how to think about different things in different ways, but also how to see the connections between different disciplines - truly, Brown offers a tradition yet unparalleled liberal arts education. I also learned WHY seeing how different disciplines are related is important and how to write well - both extremely valuable in the “real” world. </p>
<p>The “community” at Brown is a special one - it is open and accepting of differences, yet different groups still actively engage one another in a variety of dialogues, both inside and outside of the classroom. Although it has a reputation for being uber-liberal, in truth, it is much closer to the middle of the road than some students there care to admit (IMHO). I was personally challenged by the socio-economics of the place - there were MANY very wealthy kids at Brown and coming from a pretty modest place in life, this was at first tough to deal with. However, Brown has been aggressive in attracting a far more diverse student population in the past 10 years and friends I have who work there report that there is more and more diversity on campus. My sense from friends working in admissions and development there is that legacies and development cases also don’t get nearly as much consideration for these relationships in the admissions process than they do at other schools. </p>
<p>I saved a mega-research university (Harvard) for graduate school, and I’m glad I did. I wouldn’t change my time at Harvard for anything, but for me, personally, the focus on the undergraduate at Brown really blew Harvard away, despite Harvard’s graduate prowess. I ultimately chose Brown over H, P, S, and some other schools for undergrad because I didn’t want to be in huge classes and taught by teaching assistants; I also wanted to explore a variety of disciplines and meet people different from myself. Brown was the perfect choice for me. </p>
<p>In terms of prestige, I think the argument is moot. Stanford DOES NOT have the cache that Brown does on the East Coast or in Europe and the Middle East. Stanford is clearly the bomb on the West Coast and in Asia. However, they are both OUTSTANDING institutions and the students who attend either are extremely privileged to be at them. I personally feel that Brown did an exceptional job in preparing me for graduate school and opening me up to the idea that service to others is an ideal we should all value. It is a special place in this respect. Stanford, on the other had, is in California (and, seriously, the winters in Providence can be brutal) and has a more preprofessionally-focused student body that provides an excellent network post-grad (as does Brown, but I don’t think Brownies are going into law, business, and other “professional areas” at the same rate as Cardinals - there are a lot of Brownies in teaching and education, non-profits, film and tv, and creative professions). Regardless, they are both amazing places and, as I tell all prospective students I meet, the academic and social fit of a place is ultimately way more important than prestige, especially when you are looking at places of this caliber. I still get crap from friends and family for turning down H, P, and S for college, but ultimately, I know that I made the right choice for myself.</p>
<p>ClaySoul - glad you are liking the art department at Brown…are you majoring in art? This was the one department at Brown that I felt was difficult to get classes in if you weren’t a major or senior.</p>
<p>Great post AdOfficer. I completely agree.</p>
<p>Bottom line from my personal experience- Everyone asks about Brown on every job interview. It’s made me very marketable and I believe has gotten me in the door for each interview. My interviewers have all mentioned that Brown grads they have encountered are free-thinking creators that push boundaries and thus are great for think-tanks, research, etc. </p>
<p>One thing to add. Brown is now need-blind. The multicultural student body is now extremely socio-economically diverse as well. I bet it’s even more of an awesome, dynamic place to be now! </p>
<p>BTW, going back for my 10 year reunion this May!</p>
<p>I’m from the West Coast and from what I can tell, people here put Stanford on level with Princeton and MIT so as far as prestige goes, Brown can’t even compare. Probably cuz I live in the Silicon Valley and for a lot of people, anything that isn’t related to engineering and comp sci (and maybe medicine or business) a waste of time. </p>
<p>However, I don’t think Stanford is too big on the humanities. Like I said earlier, a lot of people here don’t think too highly of subjects such as history and English. So if you’re not into science-y stuff, go to Brown.</p>
<p>^ This thread is from 2006. The OP must be graduating from wherever soon.</p>
<p>This thread is really old. But anyway…</p>
<p>I hate how people tend to take “prestige” into consideration even when the schools are clearly on an equal level. Stanford is not better than Brown; Brown is not better than Stanford. That said, some may prefer either school. Also, one cannot go wrong when one is choosing between the two…</p>
<p>but…</p>
<p>Brown is know to give lots of attention to its undergrads… I would pick Brown over Stanford any day.</p>