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MSN: "Top 10 Schools with the Happiest Students"
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Date: September 23rd, 2007 11:33 PM Author: Fragrant Casino Degenerate Subject: survey of 120,000 college students Top 10 Schools with the Happiest Students"
MSN (2007)
While the factors that go into creating a college campus full of "happy" students may vary, one thing is for certain: some schools do a better job of it than others. Observing the attitudes of the students on campus will tell you more about a school than all the brochures you've read, virtual tours you've taken, and conversations you've had with eager admissions officers. While you'll still need a campus visit to seal your impressions, The Princeton Review's survey of 120,000 college students for the Best 366 Colleges: 2008 Edition, revealed the top ten schools with the happiest students.
1. Whitman College (Walla Walla, Washington)
At Whitman College, the sheer variety of opportunities to have fun keeps students happy. One student reports, "There is always a ridiculous amount of things going on around campus. Sometimes the trouble is choosing what you are going to do or having time to do all of the things you are interested in. There are tons of clubs (and some really odd ones, like the Ender's Game Alliance and the Flight Club) to get involved in and lots of musical performances, plays, parties, speakers, etc."
Students who considered Whitman College also looked at Pomona College, Carleton College, University of Puget Sound, and Colorado College.
2. Brown University (Providence, Rhode Island)
"The social scene is a lot like the academic scene" at Brown "in that there is a huge variety of options, and people tend to experience most of them. From hanging out to cocktail parties, from hippies partying in their co-ops to kids studying in the library, from fraternity parties to watching a movie, everything you can imagine doing for fun happens." Students agree that "Brown is a school that definitely parties, and Wednesday night through Sunday students here are partying," but not until they get their schoolwork done.
Students who considered Brown University also looked at Amherst College, Williams College, Smith College, and Yale University.
3. Clemson University (Clemson, South Carolina)
"Clemson football and tailgating are the most amazing experiences of college," most Clemson undergrads agree, noting that "Saturdays in the fall there is no question where everyone is." Aside from their intensity for football, "Clemson students approach life 'Southern style': We're pretty laid-back, we like to have a good time, we work hard, and we have pride." The surrounding area offers plenty in the way of outdoor activity, as "Lake Hartwell borders the campus. We're about a half hour from great hiking and mountain biking, and the weather is great most of the time, so we spend a lot of time outdoors."
Students who considered Clemson University also looked at Georgia Institute of Technology, University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, Auburn University, and Furman University.
4. Princeton University (Princeton, New Jersey)
Princeton University students love that they are in good company. One student writes, "I have friends who are Presidential Scholars, stayed with the UN Secretary General in Paris over fall break, produced hip-hop CDs, or represented different countries at the Olympics. Back home, I would have thought it amazing if I could meet just one of these people. If I stopped thinking of my friends as friends and thought of what they have accomplished, it's mind-boggling and a little humbling."
Students who considered Princeton University also looked at Harvard College, Yale University, Stanford University, and Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
5. Stanford University (Stanford, California)
It's true that Stanford students "work hard" but they "play hard, too." At Stanford, playing hard comes in various forms. One prominent form, of course, is partying. On any given Friday (or Saturday) night, "You can find most students heading out to one of the many parties that are held around campus." Others choose to hit "local bars/clubs, and, on occasion, [ride] into San Francisco" for the city's nightlife. Given the "perfect" weather, it's hardly surprising that undergrads also like to take it outdoors for a good time. "Running, swimming, and sunbathing are some of the more common outdoor activities."
Students who considered Stanford University also looked at University of California-Berkeley, Princeton University, California Institute of Technology, and Yale University.
6. University of Tulsa (Tulsa, Oklahoma)
All students here complete the cross-disciplinary Tulsa curriculum that one student says "has been incredible in helping me learn to think in a variety of ways, and connect thoughts across curricula." One undergrad explains, "TU is pretty laid-back in my opinion because they trust us to be adults, and we haven't abused their confidence so far." A freshman from California says she had a bit of "culture shock. The fried food and the popularity of football freaked me out at first. But the Oakies take you in." Nearly everyone is "very serious and passionate about what we are studying."
Students who considered the University of Tulsa also looked at University of Oklahoma, Southern Methodist University, Saint Louis University, and Baylor University.
7. The College of New Jersey (Ewing, New Jersey)
The TCNJ campus "is gorgeous, with tree-lined paths and brick buildings in the Georgian Colonial style," though some students wonder whether construction will ever end." Extracurricular options are varied here. Those involved in the Greek scene say it's "always available and fun." We're told the Greeks and the sports houses are the location of many off-campus parties. Tuesday, a.k.a. "Tuesday Booze Day," is one of the big party nights here. That's because "the school doesn't offer a lot of classes on Wednesday."
Students who considered The College of New Jersey also looked at Villanova University, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey-New Brunswick, Rowan University, and Montclair State University.
8. Bowdoin College (Brunswick, Maine)
Students love how Bowdoin "embraces the intellectual experience in a balanced, healthy way, so that its students are generally very happy. There is an awareness that in college, learning comes from everywhere, so there is a real effort by the Bowdoin administration as well as Bowdoin students to bring speakers, events, and entertainment to the campus so that students can learn in every way possible." Extracurriculars are part of the constant learning; students here "are always doing at least one if not ten things at a time."
Students who considered Bowdoin College also looked at Middlebury College, Bates College, Colby College, and Brown University.
9. Yale University (New Haven, Connecticut)
Yale is extremely demanding academically, but students here still find time for plenty of extracurricular enrichment and fun. One student reports, "People generally study Monday through Thursday, and oftentimes have extracurriculars in the evenings. On the weekends, people tend to study during the day and go out at night." Undergrads tell us that "art, music, theater, and sports are huge, loved, and well funded, as are organizations such as the Yale Daily News, the Slavic Chorus (a cappella is huge here), Just Add Water (a comedy troupe), and the fire-juggling club (best Halloween show in the world!)."
Students who considered Yale University also looked at Harvard College, Princeton University, Stanford University, and Brown University.
10. Thomas Aquinas College (Santa Paula, California)
What do students at TAC think about in their free time? Well, they ponder the usual questions, like, "What is life? Why are we here? What makes the heavens move? Can you prove that God exists?" In general, writes a senior, "Life at Thomas Aquinas College is focused around the academic program," which means that the questions spurred in class regularly carry into Friday and Saturday nights. Official campus parties, such as formal dances and banquet dinners, are also in line with this focus. Off-campus activities "whether it be drinking in the woods or going to the opera, also complement the program."
Students who considered Thomas Aquinas College also looked at Benedictine College, the Catholic University of America, University of Dallas, and Christendom College.
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Date: September 24th, 2007 9:36 AM Author: rusted headpube Subject: An essential ingredient for successful organizations Is a membership that wants to be there and no where else. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=691261&forum_id=1#8683430) |
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Date: September 24th, 2007 10:25 AM Author: Spectacular Hairless Roommate Crackhouse Subject: This is the kind of thing I'm talking about, when I say you give the writers of these snippets way too much credit.
"Students who considered Brown University also looked at Amherst College, Williams College, Smith College, and Yale University."
Do you really think people who considered Brown looked at Williams and Amherst more than Wesleyan given that the environment of Brown is way more similar to Wesleyan; not to mention that Wesleyan has a student body closer in size to Brown than Williams or Amherst? In addition, obviously, at least 45% of Brown did not look at Smith at all.
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Date: September 24th, 2007 11:41 AM Author: Fuchsia anal idea he suggested bawdyhouse Subject: These writers are not guessing They conduct numerous surveys to arrive at their conclusions. With regard to prestige, test scores, national ranking, etc., Brown is more on a par with Amherst and Williams than Wesleyan and Smith. The latter are great schools but not quite at the level of Brown in terms of the criteria mentioned above. Environment is just one factor, albeit important. For example, Harvard and Yale are always always linked to Princeton as comparables but the environments are quite different (inner city v. suburban). |
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Date: September 24th, 2007 11:58 AM Author: offensive philosopher-king business firm Are all St Lawrence grads like you?
3 different aliases in one thread! |
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Date: September 24th, 2007 2:30 PM Author: Spectacular Hairless Roommate Crackhouse That was part of my point that you're hanging on every word they say like gospel. They claim Smith is an overlap school with Brown and Wesleyan is not. In addition to environment, Wesleyan is closer to Brown in test scores and rankings than Smith. The fact the these writers say otherwise does not make it any less true. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=691261&forum_id=1#8684224) |
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Date: September 24th, 2007 3:49 PM Author: Fuchsia anal idea he suggested bawdyhouse Subject: It's difficult to understand exactly why students choose schools However, these polls or surveys, because they represent the opinions of thousands of students, they have a very, very small margin of error. In the polling/public opinion world they would be looked at as very accurate. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=691261&forum_id=1#8684558) |
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Date: September 24th, 2007 3:55 PM Author: Spectacular Hairless Roommate Crackhouse You really think MSN or any of these snippet writers are polling tens of thousands of students? Smith would have to be double as popular as Wesleyan among Brown applicants in order to be accurately listed in the top four. Do you really think this is likely? (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=691261&forum_id=1#8684583) |
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Date: September 24th, 2007 4:04 PM Author: Fuchsia anal idea he suggested bawdyhouse Subject: Yes, I do Public opinion polls are a science. Political science majors, pollsters, etc. know this all to well. Surveyors/pollsters focus on margin of error (as in the case with political elections). Survey results are measured by their margin of error, which in political science can be easily calculated.
These are for profit companies that deal with the education consulting business. You don't last long in business if you produce a bad product. |
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Date: September 24th, 2007 9:51 PM Author: Spectacular Hairless Roommate Crackhouse Subject: How do you explain this? Princeton Review's list of top 20 overlap schools for Brown:
Brown University Box 1876 Phone: 401-863-2378 45 Prospect Street Fax: 401-863-9300 Providence, RI, 02912 Website: www.brown.edu ReviewMap Review Map -- A *new* way to search for the right school. Surf the schools that Brown University applicants also consider, and group them by size, geography, selectivity, and more.Think of it as the "six degrees" of admissions! Use ReviewMap Now! About ReviewMap Other Schools To Consider Students who considered Brown University also looked at: Amherst College Boston College Boston University Columbia University - Columbia College & Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science Cornell University Dartmouth College Duke University Georgetown University Harvard College New York University Northwestern University Princeton University Stanford University Tufts University University of California-Berkeley University of Chicago University of Pennsylvania Washington University in St. Louis Williams College Yale University
If these polls are a science, then how is Smith not on it if it's top 4 on MSN? One of these "scientific" polls must be wrong.
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Date: September 25th, 2007 11:21 AM Author: Fuchsia anal idea he suggested bawdyhouse Subject: One needs to look at the PR criteria statement at its site I guess one needs to look at the PR criteria statement at its site. Given that one oddity, in my view, in total, the other overlap schools listed throughout the ranking appear to make sense. On their face the overlaps do pass the smell test. From what I have found, the PR criteria are typically more detailed than some might believe. Clearly, sometimes the slightest difference in criteria will produce differing reults. PR however, typically details the criteria for each survey. |
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Date: October 9th, 2007 12:50 AM Author: offensive philosopher-king business firm Y-Y-you mean.. P-P-Princeton and B-B-Brown are *peers*????? (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=691261&forum_id=1#8745877) |
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Date: October 9th, 2007 12:18 PM Author: Fragrant Casino Degenerate Subject: Peers in level of student happiness only "Students who considered Princeton University also looked at Harvard College, Yale University, Stanford University, and Massachusetts Institute of Technology."
You must be confused with the Fiske Guide which seems to list Brown as an academic Harvard peer school. Princeton's peers however, for good or bad, are typically those listed above.
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Date: September 25th, 2007 3:24 PM Author: Fragrant Casino Degenerate Subject: Proxy for student happiness may be parents giving rate Princeton just announced that parents of current students gave to the annual fund campaign at a 41.8% rate this past year. an astonishing rate and clearly an indication they are HAPPY with their child's education. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=691261&forum_id=1#8688515) |
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Date: October 7th, 2007 7:45 PM Author: Fuchsia anal idea he suggested bawdyhouse Subject: If not the parent's rate, then the alum rate for sure Where Princeton's rate is an astounding 60+ percent. SOMEONE IS VERY VERY HAPPY ABOUT THAT PLACE. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=691261&forum_id=1#8740374) |
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Date: October 8th, 2007 11:04 AM Author: cracking church building ape holy shit @ "Thomas Aquinas College"
rotf |
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Date: October 8th, 2007 10:04 PM Author: wonderful navy brethren depressive Uh, Making college lists isn't hard at all. Especially for finding cross admits for a school like Brown. With a US New Ranking, list of Academic Department, a couple generalizations about school attitudes, you have a solid list. Mainly because the same list exists for about 20-30 schools, same range. College choices in the Northeast are always highly predictable, unless someone goes outside the box and finds UCLA before they graduate from high school, which usually doesn't happen. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=691261&forum_id=1#8745023) |