Stanford
Francesca Fernandes

Choosing Stanford

[written on 3/31/22]

Given that Stanford admissions decisions are coming out quite literally tomorrow, I thought that this would be a fitting topic to talk about, since it’s been on my mind for a while.

First of all, I do want to acknowledge the extraordinarily pretentious nature of this post—obviously getting into Stanford is the hardest part (making the decision between Stanford and another school is much, much easier), but if you’re still deciding between Stanford and XYZ University (God forbid it’s Berkeley!), here is my argument for why you should choose Stanford. 

(I know, it really does sound as if I’m sponsored by the Admissions Committee or some shit like that. I’m honestly really just writing this because I love this school so much, and, almost exactly one year ago, it was the last place I wanted to go. This is for other people in that position.)

Throughout my years in high school, I had cycled through my fair share of “dream schools,” but none of them had ever been Stanford. I remember liking Brown because it was so artsy and laidback; I remember falling in love with Yale because of its resemblance to Hogwarts (original, I know), its wonderful theater program, its residential colleges, etc. 

I applied REA to Yale, and, in opening my decision, was sorely disappointed. A deferral. That’s what I had gotten. 

I was crushed. I did everything I could to change that deferral to an acceptance: I submitted good senior year grades, worked on new projects, contacted people from the school, etc, etc, etc. When regular decisions came out, I opened them, expecting the worst. 

Instead, I was greeted by the cheery bulldogs, the blue waving flags telling me that I had gotten in. Even though I don’t even go to Yale now (LOL), I still remember this being one of the happiest moments of my life. 

So yeah. Knowing that I could very well go to my “dream school,” Stanford was the LAST place I wanted to go. I had really only applied because my mom pushed me to, and Stanford had been everything I did NOT want in a college. It was 20 minutes away from home (yuck!), in the midst of the toxic Bay Area culture (also yuck!), was not very well-renowned for its theater program, etc, etc. 

And so when Stanford regular decisions came out, I prayed for a rejection. Please. Because I knew, God forbid I knew that if I was not rejected, my mom would find a way to get me to Stanford come Hell or high water.

Well. I was not rejected. In fact, I was greeted by red confetti, by a cheery “Congratulations!”, by a warm email from my Stanford admissions officer. And after telling my mom about my acceptance when I went home, I remember thinking that my dreams of Yale were over. Stanford was cheaper; Stanford was closer; Stanford was everything a Bay Area parent could ever want. 

So for the next few weeks my mom and I fought. We argued constantly. I, telling her that I had worked so hard to get into Yale, that this was my decision, that Yale had a better theater program, that Yale would be a new start, blah blah blah. My mom argued back, telling me that she was the one paying for my education, that I would not be majoring in theater, that college would be a new start regardless. I even made her a PowerPoint on why I should go to Yale over Stanford.

After tears and anger and frustration and so many arguments I can’t even keep track, I committed  to Stanford. Granted, at this point, I had come to entertain the idea of going to Stanford, but I still remember feeling utterly forlorn when I clicked that button to deny Yale’s offer of admission. 

Now, all of this is just to tell you that Stanford, at that time, was anything but my dream school. 

Now it is the complete opposite.

As I have met new people here and taken fantastic, amazing, absolutely spectacular classes here, I’ve slowly come to realize that Stanford is my dream school. Stanford is everything I could’ve ever wanted in a college. Now when I talk about this, I am completely ignoring the “prestige.” Obviously that gives anybody a leg up. But genuinely, Stanford is such a great place, full of bright minds and passionate people.

Clearly I am being Stanford-specific here, but my point is that you will be happy at any college you go to. You will fall in love with your experiences there, with the people there, with everything that school has to offer you and more. Your “dream school” is not some school that you’ve idolized in your head. Your “dream school” is the one that wants you for everything you have to offer, the one that is excited about your potential. 

When I think about going to Yale now, I think that I couldn’t have been more wrong about everything it had to offer. I think about how fucking freezing cold it would be right now, how I would be miserable by its cliquey (or so I’ve heard) residential colleges, how I would hate the pretentious East Coast nature and being unable to see my dog for months at a time.

And then I think about everything I love about Stanford and all the wonderful, fantastic, amazing people I’ve met, and how I wouldn’t give that up for anything. I’ve met people and professors and taken classes that I know I will already remember for a lifetime. 

And so will you—at any college you go to. Regardless of whether you get accepted to your “dream school” or not, you will go to a place that’s meant for you.

(But, just in case you really want to see why you should choose Stanford over any other school, here is my list. Please come here. I really mean it. This place is fucking amazing.)

WHY YOU SHOULD CHOOSE STANFORD:

(obviously none of this is ONLY at Stanford, but I’m just telling you what I love most)

  1. Fantastic people
    • Is this Stanford specific? No, but everyone here is genuinely so kind, driven, PASSIONATE, and full of personality. Nobody here is one-sided or one-dimensional; I’ve met people from all walks of life (Vermont! Thailand! Shanghai! Missouri! Etc!) and all backgrounds, who have interests in just about anything you can imagine. I’ve met STEM geniuses who are also secretly amazing at creative writing, and aspiring politicians who have more musical knowledge than I can even imagine. Everybody’s perspective can, and most certainly will, change your life and the way you think about it.
    • Also everyone here is so nice, it’s really not hard to make friends. Everyone wants to be your friend.
  2. Easy research opportunities
    • I swear getting to do research here is one of the easiest things I’ve ever done in my life. I hear about my friends at other colleges struggling - it’s so easy here. Email a professor and you’re done. In fact, professors here, who are all top-tier in their field, WANT you to do research with them. 10/10 recommend.
  3. Great professors
    • With the exception of the math department (LMAO), even the introductory classes are taught by top-tier professors. My introductory E&M course was taught by the very guy who invented chaotic inflationary theory (a revolutionary theory in quantum physics) alongside Stephen Hawking. My modern physics course, which was only about 20 students, was taught by a man who basically pioneered an essential part of superstring theory.
  4. Great dorms
    • More minor but our dorms (or at least Burbank) are great. ESPECIALLY if you live in a themed dorm, the community there will really be just fantastic. The dorm community is great, and it’s super easy to make friends if you’re friendly. The RA’s really do care. Also the rooms are just nice in general, and the roommate pairings are really spot-on. Many of my friends (including me) are planning to stay with the roommate they were assigned with, because they paired us together THAT well.
  5. FANNNNTASTIC dining hall food
    • lol I always hear my friends at other colleges complaining about the food: that is definitely NOT a problem here. The food is fantastic. Examples of great meals we’ve had: ramen, steak (yes, STEAK), burgers, orange chicken, etc. There’s good food every day.
  6. Stanford throws its money at you
    • It’s so easy to get funded here. If you want to do a passion project, Stanford will fund it. Want to do research? Stanford will fund it. Want to make a podcast in the Galapagos? Stanford will fund it. Want to travel to Italy to study the Scientific Revolution? Stanford will fund it. Want to spend $2000 making a top-tier album? Stanford will fund it. You get the point.
    • I have friends who are doing the wildest projects of their dreams because Stanford funds them. It’s great.
    • Adding onto this, there’s basically free resources everywhere since STANFORD WILL THROW ITS MONEY AT YOU. 
  7. Good weather + beautiful campus
    • This really does sound like a minor factor, but let me tell you that it is not. The weather and gorgeous campus WILL make your day every day. I go on walks ALL the time because it is too beautiful to not. 
  8. Grade inflation!
    • Hehe. hehe. I hear about my friends at Cal struggling and, yes, we definitely DO struggle here, but grade inflation has ALWAYS come in clutch.
    • (I want to add that this does not mean that Stanford is “easy.” You will DEFINITELY struggle lol. But my point is that you won’t have to be insanely super worried about your grades because the curve is always very nice at the end.)