I do think schools like Harvard, Stanford, and Princeton are themselves tourist attractions for some (there are for profit tours of the Harvard campus multiple times a day). In Princeton, being a smallish town, it’s probably a little more noticeable.
@TomSrOfBoston writes:
I’ve heard this a lot. I’ve always wanted to ask…as opposed to what?
@Rivet2000 Colleges that do not feel the need to give the impression (mostly to parents) that they are a sheltered haven from the real world.
How about those that just want to have pleasant surroundings where students can wander and debate issues facing the “real world” ?
Washington St Louis. Went into visit as top choice. Did not even apply. Felt very packaged and beautiful but the substance was not what we expected.
My kid goes to a school (U Richmond) where the campus could be characterized as “too perfect”. In fact I’ve seen that very accusation leveled here in CC. But if they chose to stop mowing the lawn I don’t think it would somehow make the experience better or more authentic. Plenty of time for funky authenticity during his “college graduate in debt” phase. Nice > not as nice.
I am of the mind set that if the administration neglects the aesthetics of the campus, they are just lazy.
All fine institutions should take pride in the grounds and maintenance of their buildings and facilities.
To me it suggests that something of value happens here. Name a museum, hospital, government building, national park…etc. where being poorly maintained or seemingly neglected is considered is a positive.
My take on it anyway.
@dragonmom3 Or strapped for cash, which is potentially alarming. We saw a few schools that looked a little rough around the edges and had me wondering about financial health. Wouldn’t keep me away if I really loved the place but it certainly isn’t a check in the positive column.
When you visit a campus can have an impact on how a campus looks sometimes. During the summer or during a drought or right after spring thaw, landscaping can look a bit ragged. Before graduation weekend or other big event when the landscaping and maintenance crews are out in force, things can look very manicured.
@doschicos Good point. It isn’t always apples to apples on season and schedule when it comes to landscaping. Harder to ignore deferred maintenance issues like crumbling sidewalks, peeling paint and stained carpet. It all adds up to the condition score you tally unconsciously. Again, not the end of the world but there are so many beautiful campuses and they’ve set a high bar, particularly as there doesn’t seem to be a consistent connection between price and beauty (or for that matter price and academic quality).
@OCDaddy Your username is pretty funny in the context of this discussion. 
@doschicos You mean in the context of this entire insane website!
Wow, really? I had the exact opposite reaction to Villanova? @STF4717, what buildings were run down? I only went in a couple of buildings, but they were very updated and very nice. I went in the Business building and the new student center. They were both incredible. I haven’t seen another student center that’s anywhere near as nice as Villanova’s.
And I thought the grounds were also as nice as any other school I’ve seen.
We didn’t see the dorms. Are they run down?
Iris and B. Gerald Cantor amassed the largest private collection of Rodin’s works with over 750 pieces that were donated to over 70 museums, notably the Stanford University (187 sculptures), the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, The Metropolitan Museum and the Brooklyn Museum in New York. Other parts of the collection travel through a large number of museums in the U.S. and around the world.
Both Stanford and Philadelphia have incredible collections, and both are brilliantly displayed. Apparently, Stanford’s collection is larger; it has more than 200 pieces, while Philadelphia has under 150 pieces. Perhaps the greater difference lies in how they are exhibited – The Rodin Museum in Philadelphia is in an elegant Beaux-Arts–style building with gardens that reminiscent of the museum in Paris, whereas the Cantor Collection at Stanford is displayed primarily in three galleries, a large sculpture garden, and a few scattered around campus. The Cantor Centre where many of the works are displayed had to be rebuilt after an earthquake damaged the building in 1989; it reopened in 1999.
Also, the Stanford/Cantor collection is newer - the Cantors started collecting in 1945, whereas the Rodin museum in Philadelphia opened in 1929, with the vast majority of its works donated by Jules E. Mastbaum, who started collecting in 1923 and died in 1926.
BITD going down to Nassau Street and hanging out was something NJ teens did often. Including lunch at PJs Pancake House. It all seemed quite advanced and amazing to a NJ small town HS kid. Beards, pipes, long hair, record stores, artsy films etc etc. A real 60s outpost.
@LoveTheBard Interesting, thank you! I was truly just reciting what Rodin Museum in Philly says on its website, someone needs to correct them!
@OCDaddy Being from southern California I assumed your username had to do with Orange County and wasn’t something clinical?
Not officially diagnosed but my kids think I’m completely OCD when it comes to the college stuff. 
fwiw, I love a beautiful campus. SCU for example, is incredibly gorgeous and so well maintained. USC and Stanford are very pretty too. UW has amazing setting and grand buildings with an urban flare. UO is cozy with big trees. But I also love an old limestone building at a U in the midwest surrounded by crabgrass. The only ones that I am not a fan of are the business park looking schools, but that’s just me. And the tourist at Stanford, while understandable, yes, there can be way too many on any given day.
@Mnacttutor Could you elaborate on in what ways the substance wasn’t what you expected with WashU?