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The Facts

Princeton is perhaps the smallest of the Ivy Leagues, which most students conclude is an advantage. The school has less than 5,000 undergraduates, and each year they only accept about 1,601 students out of a staggering 15,726 applicants. Out of those admitted, around 94% were in the top 10% of their high school graduating class, and their average high school GPAs hovered around an impressive 3.83. The average SAT scores are equally impressive, ranging from 1370-1560.

Princeton offers two degrees: the bachelor of the arts (B.A.) and the bachelor of science in engineering (B.S.E.). They offer 35 concentrations (majors) in various departments; some of the most popular choices include politics, history, economics, public/international affairs, finance, and of course, engineering. Every student, regardless of which concentration he or she has chosen, is required to do outside independent projects which culminate in a mandatory junior year paper and a senior thesis.

The schedule is rigorous, packing a full semester into a mere twelve weeks, with first semester exams held after spring break, a practice which some students deem “cruel and unusual punishment.”

The school is located in the small town of Princeton, New Jersey, which is quite quaint and rather sleepy, and is mostly inhabited by people somehow related to the university itself. The campus, however, is absolutely lovely and usually action-packed, with neo-gothic buildings and long stretches of green.

Student Life

Many students say that Princeton maintains a good balance of work and play, something rare to hear from an Ivy League school. Students tend to be clustered together in small and cliquey groups according to specific interests, and students say that your reputation is often dictated by the reputation of your respective group. There are complaints of the student body being primarily preppy and elitist, but it is also rare to hear anything different from a prestigious Ivy League university.

The town of Princeton is upscale and doesn’t really have much to offer in the way of night life. However, it does offer a cluster of cute shops, cafes and bookstores which students tend to frequent. Most of the action is on campus. It has over 200 primarily intellectual student organizations, like the “American Whig-Cliosophic Societ;,” the oldest debating club in the country, which was founded by James Madison and Aaron Burr in 1770. The sports team, The Princeton Tigers, play over 38 varsity sports, and even more intramurals.

There is always live music and other performances occurring, and also the inevitable dorm party. There aren’t any fraternities or sororities (they were banned in 1855), but there are eating clubs; these unique organizations began as an alternative way for students to dine, but they have now evolved into the equivalent of a Greek house. Princeton is very close to New York City by train, so many students hang out in Manhattan on the weekends, which obviously offers plenty of social opportunities.

A lot of the guys are dorky engineers, but they have sweet intentions, and many of them grow up to be quite handsome. The girls at Princeton undoubtedly adapt to love geeks!

What’s Good

“The no-loan policy opens up the school to many income levels, which makes the campus more socially diverse; it's a nice change.”

“Princeton really promotes a studious environment; even the campus is saturated with an intellectual past.”

“There is really easy and inexpensive access to New York, which makes the bore factor of Princeton pretty much irrelevant.”

What’s Bad

 “It is so incredibly cliquey! I can’t seem to find a little group to join, and I don’t really like that whole scene anyway.”

“There is absolutely no social life to speak of outside of those little eating clubs which are pretty dull anyway.”

“Squeezing a whole semester into twelve weeks is terrible. And having exams right after winter break gives me no choice but to study on vacation.”

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