Anyone on here with a current student at Princeton or very recent grad?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wonder if someone isn't trying to encourage an admitted student to turn down Princeton so their kid can get in off the waiting list. The admissions department indicated within the last week that they expect to make some offers within the next few weeks.

That wouldn’t be my first conclusion. Princeton is known to be kind of an unhappy place in recent years, hence all the suicides.

Nah, the vast majority of students have a great experience. You're wallowing in misery for reasons that have little to do with Princeton.

To outsiders, this sounds exactly like the kind of misery that Princeton is known for.

I think Princeton has changed in recent years. Alumni from the past seem to have very fond memories and a lot of close friends. It’s the opposite for current students and more recent grads.

I agree with this, I grew up in Princeton and had friends that attended in the 1990’s. Today’s version seems to bear little resemblance other than the eating clubs remain the center of campus social life. Back then, I think they were all bicker, but my memory might be wrong.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wonder if someone isn't trying to encourage an admitted student to turn down Princeton so their kid can get in off the waiting list. The admissions department indicated within the last week that they expect to make some offers within the next few weeks.

That wouldn’t be my first conclusion. Princeton is known to be kind of an unhappy place in recent years, hence all the suicides.

Nah, the vast majority of students have a great experience. You're wallowing in misery for reasons that have little to do with Princeton.

To outsiders, this sounds exactly like the kind of misery that Princeton is known for.

I think Princeton has changed in recent years. Alumni from the past seem to have very fond memories and a lot of close friends. It’s the opposite for current students and more recent grads.

I agree with this, I grew up in Princeton and had friends that attended in the 1990’s. Today’s version seems to bear little resemblance other than the eating clubs remain the center of campus social life. Back then, I think they were all bicker, but my memory might be wrong.

Your memory is wrong. There have been sign-in clubs since the late 1960s.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wonder if someone isn't trying to encourage an admitted student to turn down Princeton so their kid can get in off the waiting list. The admissions department indicated within the last week that they expect to make some offers within the next few weeks.

That wouldn’t be my first conclusion. Princeton is known to be kind of an unhappy place in recent years, hence all the suicides.

Nah, the vast majority of students have a great experience. You're wallowing in misery for reasons that have little to do with Princeton.

To outsiders, this sounds exactly like the kind of misery that Princeton is known for.

I think Princeton has changed in recent years. Alumni from the past seem to have very fond memories and a lot of close friends. It’s the opposite for current students and more recent grads.

I agree with this, I grew up in Princeton and had friends that attended in the 1990’s. Today’s version seems to bear little resemblance other than the eating clubs remain the center of campus social life. Back then, I think they were all bicker, but my memory might be wrong.

Your memory is wrong. There have been sign-in clubs since the late 1960s.

I think I was confusing the issue — the three hold outs were just opening to women back then.

[Anonymous]

This culture sounds bizarre

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wonder if someone isn't trying to encourage an admitted student to turn down Princeton so their kid can get in off the waiting list. The admissions department indicated within the last week that they expect to make some offers within the next few weeks.

That wouldn’t be my first conclusion. Princeton is known to be kind of an unhappy place in recent years, hence all the suicides.

Nah, the vast majority of students have a great experience. You're wallowing in misery for reasons that have little to do with Princeton.

To outsiders, this sounds exactly like the kind of misery that Princeton is known for.

I think Princeton has changed in recent years. Alumni from the past seem to have very fond memories and a lot of close friends. It’s the opposite for current students and more recent grads.

A recent survey of graduating students found that 92% would attend Princeton again if they had a do-over. That’s a fairly high percentage, but maybe it was higher in the past.

If they wanted to boost the percentage of happy students they could inflate grades and offer admission to a less diverse group of students. They see their mission as offering unparalleled resources and opportunities to a diverse and talented group of students, but they don’t relax their academic standards like some T20 schools and they largely leave it up to students to chart their own academic and social paths (although all freshmen and sophomores are members of residential colleges that organize a lot of social events). They also have a lot of kids pursuing challenging STEM majors, and some struggle to keep up. The same thing happens in STEM programs at many universities, but it may hit differently at Princeton because you mostly have kids who’ve always known only success and may not have the same resilience as kids elsewhere.

For those who do navigate Princeton successfully, there’s generally no other place they’d rather have attended.

This is very astute

[Anonymous]

This post made me think about everyone I know who went to Princeton. Which made me realize: I know five people who went to Princeton, and three of them are virgins. In their 30s. Unclear about eating club affiliations. At least one of the virgins was in one but unsure about the other two.

Also does anyone remember the poster on here who told her husband she went to Princeton on their first date and then she wound up marrying him and has kept the lie going for 20 years at this point.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here I just want to elaborate a little my DC says that some people do have a fantastic experience there the athletes absolutely do and there’s a lot of legacies from New York City and they all have a pipeline into the bicker clubs, etc.

Ugh. I went to a big three and the legacy girls who went to Princeton were the worst. I remember a group of them sitting around discussing strategy about getting into eating clubs. I think they were all obsessed with getting into..was it Ivy? Cottage? They acted like it was a matter of life and death.

They had last names most of you would recognize. Former railroad baron type or other Gilded Age-ish type wealthy families.

Agree she should stay at Princeton, study abroad, and try a sign in club.

[Anonymous]

Op here-unfortunately study abroad my not work with major. Also really is craving more connection to people there if they can make that happen. Yes Ivy and Cottage sound about right.

[Anonymous]

I went to Princeton (and was in Colonial) in the 1990s, and I live in Princeton now. In some ways it is a very different place than it was then. There are fewer "ordinary" upper middle class kids like me; now everyone seems to be either an athlete, a minority/low-income/first-gen person, or a white/Asian UMC kid who is very exceptional in some way, with maybe a few legacy normies mixed in.

Study abroad after sophomore year is very challenging because of Princeton's independent study requirements (two junior papers and a senior thesis).

Does your kid do any activities? That's a good way to make friends. And your kid should definitely sign into a non-selective club. I was just at Colonial last weekend for brunch. It has been largely Asian for the past 10-15 years, but so what? Asian people can be lovely.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:A recent survey of graduating students found that 92% would attend Princeton again if they had a do-over. That’s a fairly high percentage, but maybe it was higher in the past.

If they wanted to boost the percentage of happy students they could inflate grades and offer admission to a less diverse group of students. They see their mission as offering unparalleled resources and opportunities to a diverse and talented group of students, but they don’t relax their academic standards like some T20 schools and they largely leave it up to students to chart their own academic and social paths (although all freshmen and sophomores are members of residential colleges that organize a lot of social events). They also have a lot of kids pursuing challenging STEM majors, and some struggle to keep up. The same thing happens in STEM programs at many universities, but it may hit differently at Princeton because you mostly have kids who’ve always known only success and may not have the same resilience as kids elsewhere.

For those who do navigate Princeton successfully, there’s generally no other place they’d rather have attended.

This is consistent with what colleagues say about Princeton over coffee. In particular, the bit about STEM students who always have been top X% now finding they are bottom 50% sounds very true.

A good question is whether there is correlation of their suicides with STEM (and maybe with Economics or similarly hard math-centric degrees) or whether it is not correlated with STEM (and similar degrees). Suicides and rustication at Oxbridge often correlates with students who were top 10% before Oxbridge and now are bottom 50% at Oxbridge.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My DC just finished their sophomore year. Went through bicker and did not get into eating club. (As the majority of people who bickered and most every they know!) They are a mainstream kid who has not found their people and doesn't have a group of friends in the way they would like. Frustrated with social structure of the school. Will mostly like join a sign in club in fall but they all seem to have a "personality" that is not their's. (LGBTQ, druggie etc). So miserable they are considering transferring. Can anyone with direct experience at the school over any advice or hope?

Transferring from Princeton?!?

Yeah, right.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Do not transfer out of the Princeton brand name. No college is perfect. Your child needs to focus on academics and socially do whatever he/she wants to do. It's unfortunate that they are so sensitive to petty high school social dynamics. Princeton is incredible and they can do so much to maximize their experience there.

This. And your kid needs to learn resilience. Agree study abroad would be great.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Op here-unfortunately study abroad my not work with major. Also really is craving more connection to people there if they can make that happen. Yes Ivy and Cottage sound about right.

Ivy and Cottage aren’t places for you if you don’t already have friendships/connections with the members. She is barking up the wrong trees if she is looking for friends. Can you help her expand her potential friend pool beyond rich connected NYC legacies? Join the Prince, play a club sport, start volunteering, pick a sign in club where the friendliest kids who didn’t get into the bicker club are going?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Op here-unfortunately study abroad my not work with major. Also really is craving more connection to people there if they can make that happen. Yes Ivy and Cottage sound about right.

Ivy and Cottage aren’t places for you if you don’t already have friendships/connections with the members. She is barking up the wrong trees if she is looking for friends. Can you help her expand her potential friend pool beyond rich connected NYC legacies? Join the Prince, play a club sport, start volunteering, pick a sign in club where the friendliest kids who didn’t get into the bicker club are going?

OP here-reference to ivy and cottage were in reply to earlier comment. Def not an option for someone unconnected! Sign in options limited but will try.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My DC just finished their sophomore year. Went through bicker and did not get into eating club. (As the majority of people who bickered and most every they know!) They are a mainstream kid who has not found their people and doesn't have a group of friends in the way they would like. Frustrated with social structure of the school. Will mostly like join a sign in club in fall but they all seem to have a "personality" that is not their's. (LGBTQ, druggie etc). So miserable they are considering transferring. Can anyone with direct experience at the school over any advice or hope?

Join Muslim or Jewish Student groups, both are pretty welcoming and supportive.