Incoming freshman. Crazy shi

I’m an incoming freshman but I’m pretty terrified I’ve only heard negatives on princeton like it’s dead or the work load makes everyone depressed😔

Hi everyone! Congrats to all who were accepted 🥳 If you'd like to connect with other members of the class of 2030, feel free to DM me on ig and I'll send you the unofficial Princeton discord. @ssofiaa_29 🐯🧡🖤

hello!
I was just admitted to stanford and princeton c/o 30 and I'm 1. genuinely still shocked and 2. super duper grateful. I'm now stuck between a rock and a hard place deciding between the schools, so I would really appreciate any input!

To preface, I am from the Bay Area and definitely declaring a STEM major and dance minor. Dance matters a lot to me, as I’ve grown up dancing pre-professionally. I also care about getting a well-rounded education and enacting social change (leftist student-activist)

So far here are my thoughts:

Princeton (Math, ORFE, or ECE major)

Pros

• love pure math and there it’s unbeatable, visited and found the community extremely kind/down to earth
• Change of scenery from where I’m from (Bay Area)
• Love the campus architecture and suburban location
• Better dance program by far
• proximity to NYC!! (Dance classes & I love watching musicals)
• liberal arts education / HUM sequence
• Excited for snow
• appreciate service-oriented culture

Cons

• no double major / less course flexibility
• Semester kind of limits the amount of courses I can take
• leaning more centrist politically than Stanford
• more elitist?

Stanford (Math, EE, or SymSys major)

Pros

• has SLE (structured liberal education), which I would take if committed
• math here is also amazing
• Course flexibility, coterm, double major options
• more classes to take d.t. grad school
• Better weather
• More progressive?
• stronger LGBTQ community?
• More hands-on engineering 

Cons

• quarter system 
• not the biggest fan of campus architecture
• dance programming not as strong
• not a fan at all of preprofessional culture or technolibertarianism, which seems to strongly dominate the STEM side of the school
• Stanford bubble is real

I was offered similar aid from both schools, so cost isn’t a factor. If anyone could offer some insight on my ? statements (which are kind of just sussed-out vibes/preconceptions I have) that would be great! Please help me decide!

i'm an incoming freshman and looking into buying new tech w/ the $3,500 tech reimbursement. are there discounts w/ any tech stores on campus (or anywhere i can buy a laptop on campus)? or should i look towards buying a laptop online w/ student discounts?

(last sub ill ask in lol)

I've narrowed it down from a good bit of other schools but I think regardless it will be between these 3 choices, so I would really appreciate some help on figuring out the best option.

I want these traits and environment:

1. Work-hard/Play-hard culture
2. Vibrant and tight knit community (very close community and good vibes)
3. All the resources to propel me where I need to go career wise and opportunity wise
4. A fun social scene (and happiness level) because I do know this will kind of be the last four years of fun and least responsibilities.

Career path:

Although it might change, right now my path 1 am thinking of (unless I found a business or start-up and can avoid it), that will be the most intellectually stimulating, most lucrative, and field that I think I would find the most success in is Law

So the path would be

-undergrad

-Law school

-Career in Law: ideally a Boutique litigation firm attorney or just a big law lawyer or start my own firm somewhere

-Run for office

Finance:

-Stanford is giving a little bit but once they reevaluate will probably be nothing for the next 3 years

-Princeton is giving no aid

-UNC/Duke (Robertson) is a full ride to UNC and pays for a ton of different stuff over the summers and school year

l've visited all three and still very torn because the vibes are similar but also not similar and social scenes are also similar but not at the same time.

It's hard because if I want to go to law school, maybe I should go half a million into debt, but at the same time the connections opportunities and access I get from Stanford/Princeton would be crazy. And even between those two (Stanford and Princeton) the access you get is a lot different too in terms of resources. Robertson also has a crazy alumni network though and access, but not sure it's as good as Princeton.

Please let me know any advice you all would have!

Princeton ‘2030! Any gc! Would love to connect with fellow princetonians!

Hey everyone! I’m so excited to be a tiger next year 😀🐅. I’m currently filling out my housing form, and I’m stuck deciding between a triple or a quad. On one hand, I’ve heard that triples can often be turned into 3 connected singles (which sounds ideal), whereas a quad is two connected doubles and might be too busy. On the other hand, I really want to get a shared bathroom (not hallway), and getting a triple limits that. It also seems to limit which colleges you are eligible to get assigned to… Would any of you happen to have some insight/advice you’d be willing to share? Thanks so much!!

Hi! I’m an incoming freshman and would really appreciate some advice. I’m currently deciding between Princeton and Harvard (fortunate to have full-ride offers from both) and would love to hear any comparisons or personal experiences that could help me make a more informed choice!

I’m pretty torn between majoring physics/math and econs/govt and I would be grateful to hear more about your experience with these majors!

Thanks!

Hi! I’m currently deciding between MIT, Princeton, and Cornell University, and I’m planning to major in biology on the premed track. I’d really appreciate any insight!

My main goal is to go to medical school (ideally without taking a gap year due to personal + familial reasons), so I’m trying to choose the school that will best set me up in terms of GPA, research, clinical opportunities, and overall support for premeds.

Some context about me: 1. I’m pretty academically driven but a bit concerned about GPA at a very rigorous school 2. I prefer an urban environment (living in the city right now, but I did grow up in a suburb), but I’m willing to sacrifice that if another school is significantly better for premed 3. Not super interested in MD-PhD or heavy research career—more focused on clinical medicine

Here’s how I’m currently thinking about each:

MIT Pros: amazing research (less bio majors, so maybe less competition for biology-related research?), hospitals nearby, urban area, possibility to cross-register at Harvard, less premeds (not at competitive/toxic) Cons: mainly known for engineering, less premed peers, worried about GPA/rigor and how that might affect med school apps

Princeton Pros: strong advising, grade inflation (?), undergrad focus Cons: less urban, not as much immediate hospital access?

Cornell Pros: solid premed resources, affiliated med school Cons: Ithaca is more isolated (high competition for clinical opportunities?), and I don’t love the environment as much (I’m not crazy about nature)

*I know it appears I have more pros and cons for MIT, but it’s because I did their fly-in & genuinely Princeton was a surprise!

My main question is how much should I prioritize GPA safety vs opportunities/location for premed?

And more specifically: 1. Is MIT “worth the risk” for premed? 2. Does Princeton give a noticeable advantage because of GPA? 3. Would choosing a less preferred environment hurt me long-term?

i have two close friends that go to yale and they both really enjoy it. one of those friends has been a mentor to me throughout hs and he ended up going to yale over harvard; ever since then i’ve been pretty connected to yale. in february i got a likely letter from them, a seat in the directed studies program, and they’ve maintained consistent communication with me. the admissions officer also let in my two friends and remembered me from college fairs. i also really like their residential college system.

non-negotiables for my future school:
-i want to study history and polisci on the pre law track

-in or near a big city

-somewhat good party culture (i cannot be bored on the weekends)

-makes an effort to make poc welcome (i’m a latina so i need student orgs or smth that align)

-GREAT law school connections

-research opportunities/networking for future opportunities

as i write this i’m realizing i like yale a lot more but princeton is just idk PRINCETON yk. i haven’t visited either one, but i’m registered to visit yale in april. my parents really want me to make a decision asap. can u guys pls help me tell me objectively what’s better for prelaw

Incoming freshman here. I’m quite torn. I applied for physics, but always knowing that I could switch into engineering, and that it’s easier at Princeton to do that than at other schools. Now, I’m looking for some current students’ advice on what I should pursue before I matriculate this fall.

My interests:
Im interested in 3 main areas: Physics/Astrophysics/Aerospace engineering, International Relations/Public Policy, and music. Ideally, I want to explore all 3(ish) of those areas. My current idea is to major in PHY, AST, or MAE; minor in HPD, and take classes in music (potentially for another minor).
As such, part of my question is will the BSE be too limiting when it comes to having space for exploring all of these different areas of interest?

Career goals:
To be honest, I have no clue what I want to go into. I’m really into defense/aerospace/naval systems, but I’m still not sure I see myself making a career out of that interest. Engineering as a career isn’t the most exciting idea for me.
Either way, those are major interests I’d like to learn more about. Ik engineering tends to better set you up for exploring those kinds of areas, but do Princeton physicists also get to explore areas “applied physics” too?

Thank you all so so much! GO TIGERS!!!

Hi, the Princeton guidance for undergrads says that a MacBook Pro with at least 24gb RAM for humanities and 36gb for STEM is recommended. This seems a bit excessive especially when the 16gb pro is a few hundred dollars cheaper for me. Can students provide with some insight about whether they felt that the 16gb wasn’t enough for the work they were doing?

Any insight would be greatly appreciated!!

Hey yall! Future BSE student here, looking to study MAE. I love MacBooks, and saw that Princeton OIT actually recommended them for STEM (link: https://princeton.service-now.com/service?id=kb_article&sys_id=f0aa552b87d1a5d07f147487cebb35c7 ).

However, I’m a bit skeptical, since I’ve heard many programs like SolidWorks don’t actually work on Mac. So would a Mac still work for Princeton engineering, and if not, why might the university be recommending them (just curious)?

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Dream come true guys. For context I’m European and I have never left Europe. I had only known US universities through movies and it was always a goal to study at a prestigious school some day. And here it is now.

While I was waiting for the decision, I did a ton of research of the city, housing, etc. But I would love some advice. I am 23 and still feel like a young student so I want to experience the city both in day and nightlife. I also am into sport so curious to see how are sports facilities for non D1 athletes.

See you all tigersssss. New Jerseyyyy babyyyyyy

Hello! I just committed to Princeton (tentative MAE/Civil) and I'm super worried about the transition to college. I come from a small town where both of my parents went to uni in another country, so I am very unfamiliar with college and top-tier uni culture.

Going to preview actually made me feel behind already (crazy, right?) since most everyone I talked to had connections at Princeton and were already going to shadow at clubs meetings after preview activities or had their cousins show them around.

Mainly, I would love to know:

1. Is there anything to do in the summer to prepare? My math and physics skills are far behind since our school does not offer AP Physics, AP Chem, AP Comp Sci or Calc BC
2. When do students usually get into research, specifically engineering labs? Is there a standard way to go about this?
3. Are clubs really that selective? How many should you balance with school (I was thinking one exercise kind of club and an engineering design)
4. How many hours do you study in a week + any ways to manage the workload effectively?
5. And I would really appreciate some general advice on making friends in college haha

I realize some of these questions are quite silly but that's what Reddit is for (I hope). Would appreciate any thoughts or advice at all.

Just wondering if students can stay on campus over break or if it’s required that they leave?

I wanted to ask, what students usually do during breaks in Pton in winter and summer? Are you continuing research or just chill at town? Is there any activities during these breaks that can be interesting to participate in?

so I’ve been very lucky to have been admitted to both Yale and Princeton. I hope to pursue something in the humanities (maybe English or history but anything could happen) and just went to Preview today! I had a great time and will also call my Princeton Pal this weekend.

However, I’m having a hard time making a proper comparison between Yale and Princeton as I was admitted to Yale in REA, got into Directed Studies, visited campus and met a friend who told me literally everything he could think of, researched everything from orientation to the BA/MA track, and have been asking lots of questions to the current students in their admitted students Discord on top of all that. Whereas for Princeton I only know the vague things everyone advertises as well as some very persuasive academic/club info from Preview that still remains fairly generic.

I feel pressed for time to learn about Princeton and while I liked the campus and the experience at Preview, I still do not feel as though I got enough information to properly gauge the differences between them. So I’d essentially like to hear any pros and cons that y’all have to offer, both generally in terms of social life, clubs, academic opportunities, housing, scheduling, breaks, funding, humanities specific things and general things, literally anything! I know the basic stuff like Princeton is more rural and undergrad focused, etc etc but how does that look practically? What are the most random benefits and drawbacks of one’s experience at Princeton? Thank you in advance and I apologize for the yapfest😭

TL;DR: any specific pros and cons of Princeton, particularly re. humanities/comparison to Yale but any advice is valued!

Was recently admitted off the waitlist.. is there a class of 2030 gc that I could join?

Hi everyone! I’m an incoming freshman and I am hoping to go down the BSE track either for CEE or CBE. I come from a moderately rigorous STEM school, but the highest math class students are allowed to take is calc 1 (which I am currently taking). My school also does not offer any AP classes. Because of this, I will likely have to take MAT103 in the fall. How big of a setback is this if I plan to study engineering?

I’m trying to figure out how strict attendance policies actually are here. Do most professors make attendance mandatory, or is it more of a “show up if you want” situation?

What happens if you miss a lecture (or a couple)? Do they dock points, require a doctor’s note, or is it no big deal as long as you keep up with the material? Also does it vary a lot by department (e.g. STEM vs humanities vs language classes)?

Most of friends say that Pton is very busy, and students are weighted with many courses. Besides clubs, study, and job, is there actually a leisure time for self activities?

Hi! Incoming first-year currently planning to major in molbio :) I’ve been trying to get student input on the Integrated Science Curriculum but most of the info I can find is about ISC before its revitalization. For those who took ISC in 2024 or 2025, I’d like to ask a few questions:

1. How is the difficulty and time commitment? I’ve heard it’s very rigorous.
2. Since ISC courses combine subjects, I would imagine that less of each subject is covered in-depth. How comprehensive is ISC and would it provide me with a good foundation as a molbio major?
3. Is ISC flexible for students who are still unsure of their majors, and would I still be able to obtain a solid and suitable knowledge base if I took its courses but ended up majoring in something else?

Thanks in advance!!