<p>Good luck to anyone who was admitted to Harvard or any other colleges. Last year my daughter has to make a difficult choice of making among top three elite colleges. Financial aid played an important role. Yet after been there what she has learned. This is not to downplay any other college, it is just to let anyone who thinks on fence why Harvard offers unparallel resources outside of classroom.</p>
<p>Many elite colleges offers equivalent education compare to Harvard. However, what Harvard offers outside classroom that makes it very different institution and only few colleges can even match Harvard resources and name recognition. Sometime due to over commitment, a student can be in trouble due to lack of sleep but this is a place where one can thrive. There are so many opportunities that one has to finally give up pursuing different interests and this leads to a less competitive and cut throat environment as opportunities are more than anyone can dream off. </p>
<li> Money for extracurricular activities that may be only available in top few colleges as it allows student to pursue their intellectual pursuits. Even freshman can start their own clubs in fields that excites them. </li>
<li> Chance to meet foreign leaders president, prime ministers, diplomats and many more intellectuals who can offer diversified views</li>
<li> Student gets lifetime opportunities to meet leaders, decision makers and important people. Student learn firsthand learning from those who make important policy decisions; learn their views on what make these people tick, why they pursued different strategies to solve problems.</li>
<li> Even as freshman with no connection a chance to work for hedge funds, investment banks doors opens when there is even no connection to even students with limited resources.</li>
<li> Most important - meeting like minded students who are equally driven and motivate others people to perform on their level<br></li>
<li> Very diverse student body with different views where one can get mix.</li>
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<p>My child is in the same situation this year and I would certainly like to hear from others about their experiences at Harvard, Yale and Princeton. We have not yet visited Harvard and plan on doing so soon.
proudamerican-Thanks for sharing with us.</p>
<p>Good list proudamerican, but as I was reading the things you listed, two particular schools, Yale and Columbia, fit those descriptions as well. Esp with number 2 - the lectures given at Columbia last year and Tony Blair’s coming to Yale to seminar next year…
Maybe I am trying to get over my waitlist at Harvard, but still, I just don’t think that Harvard offers any particular advantages in undergrad over colleges like Yale, Princeton, Stanford, MIT, etc… When it all comes down to it, I think student body/atomosphere, location, financial aid, and mostly importantly - your acceptance, should dictate where you go…</p>
<p>Nato, I have to disagree.
I’m picking Harvard because I’ve visited and I fell in love with the campus, Cambridge, the whole atmosphere. I really mean that… I only visited on a lark because my parents and I had a half day to kill in Boston, and I was hoping to run into a friend of mine. We ended up on the tour and it was all downhill from there. Initially Harvard wasn’t even on my list. The name has nothign to do with it.</p>
<p>I am not saying EVERyone, but a large amount of people choose Harvard over other options because of the huge prestige and sway Harvard’s name holds in our society. </p>
<p>I know 4 kids right now who got into Harvard and other Ivys/Stanford/MIT, but actually want to go to elsewhere (than Harvard). However, each of these 4 kids have parents that are pressuring them to choose Harvard instead, and not for Financial aid reasons, but simply because Harvard is “the best.”</p>
<p>I also know some other Harvard admits who intend to go without a question. When I ask them why, and they say, “Well, Harvard is…Harvard.”</p>
<p>I just have noticed that there seems to be these very high societal pressure that you shouldn’t turn Harvard down because, well, its Harvard.</p>
<p>Anyone going to a school just for a name (Harvard or otherwise) is, quite frankly, an idiot. As has been mentioned there are certainly people that fall into this category. </p>
<p>People always vastly over estimate the amount of benefit they’ll get out of the ‘name’ of a school. It’s far far more important to attend a school that fits ones personal academic, lifestyle, and extracurricular needs. If that happens to be a school with a good ‘name’ then great, but if it’s not then it’s no big deal. </p>
<p>There was a time when unless you held a degree from a few select schools then you were essentially a second class citizen academically speaking (and career wise too). Those days are, more or less, gone and most people in a position of power and influence in today’s world understand that there are many excellent schools to choose from. It’s ones own personal achievements that really matter these days far more than the name of the school you went to. One should attend a school that, in their opinion, will provide the best environment for them to blossom and develop to their own best potential. For some, Harvard fits that role and for others it doesn’t.</p>
<p>I agree that people who think that a degree from an Ivy, or any other big name, are stupid. </p>
<p>But remember: Sometimes (not always) but sometimes when someone says, “Harvard is… Harvard” what they’re saying is, it’s not just “the best” (put in quotations because I agree that this is subjective). Prehaps what they’re trying and failing to say is, Harvard is more than just a name, it’s an amazing place to live and study for 4 years. I know that’s the case with me.</p>
<p>Here’s what “Harvard is Harvard” means to me - something that I label a “Harvard moment” when I hear about it. A close encounter with a world leader that wouldn’t have happened elsewhere, or a huge grant toward a summer internship, or a friend who does something amazing that blows you away. I’m sure they can happen elsewhere, but they’re regular occurrences at Harvard.</p>
<p>I’m picking Harvard over my other acceptances (Princeton Yale Stanford Wharton) because of the Crimson. I mean, it’s a daily newspaper with its own printing press and an amazing list of former editors (including JFK and Roosevelt). To me, no other university can match that</p>
<p>Hi! I hope you don’t mind that a current Princeton student weighing in. </p>
<p>I think locospocous is going in the right direction. The Crimson is definitely something that is unique to Harvard and only Harvard. If journalism is your absolute passion, contact undergrads on the Crimson staff to hear about their experiences. Not only the editors but also the regular writers. </p>
<p>Motivated students, connections, and world-class leaders coming to your institution, you’ll find that that at all the top universities. </p>
<p>In the end, I just want to say congrats to you all! You’ve got great choices ahead of you so don’t stress about it. Visit and go with your gut feeling. You’ll do great at whichever school you fall in love with.</p>
<p>What a great thread - can we keep this going? I really would love to hear about more personal experiences from students who attend Harvard. Harvard is always so downgraded here on CC–I think it’s time to set the record straight.</p>
<p>I chose Harvard because it was the only school that offered everything I wanted.</p>
<p>A vibrant urban location – great housing communities – great departments in every single liberal arts area – amazing international student body – killer theater and music – lots of other colleges right nearby – an incredible sense of tradition – a place where I felt accepted without having to hide any part of myself.</p>
<p>Harvard is unquestionably the most prestigious school on the planet, with resources any other school could only dream of. It is the benchmark for all schools aspiring to be the best.</p>
<p>Well, it depends WHAT you are considering. </p>
<p>Law? Yale is thought to be the best.</p>
<p>Medicine? Harvard is often thought of in the same realm as Johns Hopkins.</p>
<p>Engineering? MIT/Stanford are often considered the best and most “prestigious.”</p>
<p>UNQUESTIONABLY the most prestigious? It all depends on what you are considering. It is an incredible school yes, but it is by no means the best/most prestigious from every perspective.</p>
<p>And the benchmark of all other schools aspiring to be the best? Well, this is not a complete truth. Many schools find many issues with Harvard’s approach to undergraduate education, problems with grade inflation and such, and consistent history with favoring the elite and practicing questionable admission policies with legacy children/the Z-list. In truth, a lot of schools model their admissions to NOT be like Harvards, and be based purely on merit. Schools that come to mind are Caltech and Cooper Union.</p>
<p>Again, I like Harvard and all and am looking into it as an option for grad school, and many schools do indeed aspire to be like Harvard. But the benchmark in which ALL schools are compared against and aspire to be? Don’t think so. No school is.</p>
<p>No, it’s not… in fact no school fits that description. Every school is strong in some areas and weaker in others. There’s no question Harvard is a top tier school but trying to argue that it’s ‘unquestionable the most prestigious’ is not only impossible but also quite shallow and silly.</p>
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<p>Again, this is a silly overinflated and over-the-top statement. Of course it has lots of excellent resources, but so do many other top schools. Some of those resources will be better at Harvard, but others will be better elsewhere. The suggestion that other schools ‘could only dream of’ being like Harvard is just silly and wholly unsupported by any evidence. </p>
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<p>Not only is that not true, but in some cases the opposite is true. Every college is run differently and some would strongly disagree with the way Harvard does certain things… thus not aspiring to be like Harvard but using Harvard as an example of what they don’t want to do. That’s nothing against Harvard and is just pointing out that there are many different ways to run a university and there is no one ‘correct’ way. The decisions as to which university system is best is up to the applicant deciding where to attend. However, the suggestion that Harvard is somehow this utopia of academia that all other schools seek to emulate is quite simply false.</p>