Princeton vs. UCLA | ApplyingToCollege | Page 1

uncut bloom Apr 3, 2022, 12:31 AM

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suffering from success lol

vagrant glacier Apr 3, 2022, 12:46 AM

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Princeton Pros:
-Prestige and strong alumni network
-Amazing faculty and highly-ranked CS program
-Research opportunities (senior thesis and the opportunity to work with renowned professors)
-I live in San Diego, so I've always wanted to see snow
-Close to NYC and city life; has a beautiful campus
Cons:
-NO financial aid at all (81K a year) because of last year's stocks
-Grade deflation
-Possibly cutthroat or elitist? Would love more insight
-Probably worse food than UCLA (I'm very into food lol)
-Literally cannot transfer any AP credits

UCLA Pros:
-Top-ranked CS program, good professors
-Cheaper (I'm in-state), and waiting on UCLA Regents (which could decrease tuition even further)
-Best dining halls in the nation and beautiful campus
-Next to LA, in a pretty safe area
-Generous with AP credit transfer
Cons:
-Big class sizes, enrollment is difficult
-Might not be easy to find research opportunities because of heavy competition
-Less prestige than Princeton (not sure if it matters??)
-Heard that some professors are only average and that Prof. Eggert's class is a pain

Tiebreaking considerations:
-Internship and job opportunities for students at both schools
-Any insight on environment and student culture from current students?
-Would love to hear how Princeton's eating clubs are (I don't know much about them)

amber yarrow Apr 3, 2022, 1:56 AM

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for the pton grade deflation thing i’m pretty sure they ended that policy (https://thetab.com/us/princeton/2017/10/03/average-gpa-rises-3-435-two-years-grade-deflation-repeal-5393) & you could try to appeal the aid package since the subreddit suggests they are pretty good about lowering it to protect yield

Princeton University

Average GPA rises to 3.435 two years after grade deflation repeal

Your likelihood of getting an A in some courses just went up again

next heron Apr 3, 2022, 3:13 AM

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lol go to ucla

teal helm Apr 3, 2022, 4:23 AM

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Princeton has one of if not the best undergraduate education. Also, in terms of prestige and recruiting Princeton is better as more recruiters would recruit at ivies. Also, undergraduate size of the 2 schools. UCLA has so many kids that they have waitlists for classes so students are unable to take their pre req courses while Princeton won’t have that problem. In my opinion, Princeton.

vagrant glacier Apr 3, 2022, 4:25 AM

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Thank you so much! That was a really helpful summary!

teal helm Apr 3, 2022, 4:25 AM

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Np glad to help.

hollow mirage Apr 3, 2022, 4:27 AM

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yeah i think princeton is def the way to go as long as the distance from home isn't an issue for you

dreamy wharf Apr 3, 2022, 4:55 AM

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hollow mirage yeah i think princeton is def the way to go as long as the distance from home is...

And if price isn’t a problem

vagrant glacier Apr 3, 2022, 4:59 AM

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Yeah I was mostly just debating if the cost was worth it

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Since UCLA is a really great school too

stable fractal Apr 3, 2022, 6:12 AM

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i haven’t had a problem with not getting my prereqs here at ucla yet (and i had the latest enrollment time for spring quarter) but the school of engineering has this form called an enrollment consideration request if your class ever fills up before you get the chance to enroll

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it isn’t 100% guaranteed but they do look at the data of how many students submitted a form and try to add more seats

#Princeton vs. UCLA