Focused Studies at Princeton
School comes first at Princeton. Students are held to extremely high standards and there is little or no room for students to slack off or mess around. Students have access to a world-class institution though, and the opportunities for scholastic advancement are endless.
Students can study virtually any subject of their choosing. One of the things that Princeton’s undergraduate program is famous for is the amount of independent study and research that it demands students do. As juniors students write intensive research papers, working closely with a faculty member and having the opportunity to explore an issue of their choosing. As a senior, that research is kicked up a notch. Students are expected to produce a senior thesis, the primary benefit of which is that students get to study an area of their choosing in very, very fine detail. Unlike generalized studies which may leave students with a handful of short essays about this, that, and the next thing, students leave the university having written extensively on a topic that matters most to them.

Taking a Break at Princeton
Princeton students take academics very seriously. Attending Princeton means that you’re committing to four years of intensive study without a chance to slack off. But, when you have finished your studying or are looking for a break, Princeton also has a lively campus with much to offer all of its students.
There are a number of student groups that are constantly putting on events that suit every interest imaginable. Athletics are also big at Princeton. There are a number of formal sports teams as well as intramural sports that are organized on campus.
A short trip away from New York City, travelling to the city is a pastime that many students enjoy. Whether it is for seeing shows, shopping, or simply getting out of town, there are constantly university-led trips to and from the city. There are also a number of other off-campus excursions that the university organizes.

Princeton’s Prestige
Princeton University, located in New Jersey, is one of America’s oldest colleges and is an Ivy League school. Princeton enrolls just shy of 5,000 undergraduate students and about half as many graduate students. The university generally emphasizes its undergraduate program though, which is excellent for prospective college students! That said, getting into Princeton isn’t easy.
Princeton admits less than ten percent of its applicants, making it one of the most selective universities in the country. Students who do get in enjoy a number of privileges though. The university was one of the first to eliminate loans, instead providing grants for students who qualify for aid. Students also, quite obviously, have access to all that this top-ranking university has to offer.
Often associated with Harvard and Yale, few people know how tight the competition is between these three universities—in national and international rankings the three of these schools are often neck and neck for first through third, but in a number of rankings Princeton has come out on top.

The Princeton social scene almost defies description. During the first few weeks, you and your 15 new friends from your RCA group, OA trip or whatever else will probably spend a lot of time chasing phantom room parties, hosted by various student organizations . . . or random sophomores celebrating their new-found nonfreshmen status.

After a room party or two, your group may decide to walk out to the clubs on Prospect Avenue. Street life consists of the 10 active eating clubs, large mansions that, during the day, feed 75 percent of Princeton's juniors and seniors (the rest join the Brown or 2D food cooperatives, take on upperclass dining plans, or go independent). On Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights, many of the clubs host parties, which often include DJs, bands and theme parties (there is bound to be an "'80s Night" on any given night). During Orientation Week, however, the clubs are closed to all students. While this may seem unfair, it's because the University wants to introduce your class to other social options. One new destination, which is conveniently on the corner of Washington Road and Prospect Avenue, is Campus Club, which used to be an eating club and is opening in the fall with new programming and renovated hang-out space for all students. What with all the cafés, theaters, ice cream shops, common-interest student groups and free events on campus, there's a lot to see and do. And for the freshmen who are not interested in the party scene: go back and read that last sentence again. There really is lots to do here, so don't panic if you feel like you're surrounded by crazy people. It won't take you long to find your niche, once you start looking.

In any event, The Street will open to freshmen at Lawnparties, which happen the first Sunday after classes begin. Every club gets a band or two, and thousands of students get dolled up in their preppy best and walk up and down The Street listening to music, playing volleyball, throwing Frisbees, catching some rays and just generally having fun.

Princeton simultaneously strives to be one of the leading research universities and the most outstanding undergraduate college in the world. As a research university, it seeks to achieve the highest levels of distinction in the discovery and transmission of knowledge and understanding, and in the education of graduate students. At the same time, Princeton is distinctive among research universities in its commitment to undergraduate teaching.

The University provides its students with academic, extracurricular and other resources—in a residential community committed to diversity in its student body, faculty and staff—that help them achieve at the highest scholarly levels and prepare them for positions of leadership and lives of service in many fields of human endeavor.

Through the scholarship and teaching of its faculty, and the many contributions to society of its alumni, Princeton seeks to fulfill its informal motto: “Princeton in the Nation’s Service and in the Service of All Nations."