Harvard University Top Questions

I enjoy it a lot here. Not just the prestige, but the history. I just wish I had a spare moment to enjoy it sometimes.

“Mother Harvard does not coddle.” --what I was warned in San Jose, CA, as a high school senior decided upon coming here Former Harvard President Lawrence Summers: “’Year after year we seem to deny the laws of mathematics. Here’s how we do it. We survey the freshmen, and we ask them, do you think you’re in the top half of the class or in the bottom half of the class? About 60 percent say that they’re in the bottom half of the class. We also survey seniors. Are you in the top half of the class or are you in the bottom half of the class? And almost two-thirds say that they are in the top half of the class. It’s really quite remarkable what we are able to do for you.’ Perhaps at first it will be hard and you will be discouraged, Summers seemed to say from his perch. But by the end of four years you’ll be one of us: the confident, the elite, the educated.” --Liz Goodwin ’08, Harvard Magazine Harvard, journey that it has been, is a true college adventure. Never before in my life (and never afterward, I suspect) have I been so intimidated yet empowered, surrounded by resources yet shut up by work. I am amazed by my professors and classmates, amazed by the opportunities that the brand name (and its money) brings, amazed by the obsession some outsiders accord to this place. Being a student here means you are a success; it also means there is a formidable amount of pressure on you to constantly keep succeeding. Studying here often means being inundated with work, but it’s the life lessons I’ve picked up and the things I’ve learned about myself that are far more memorable than anything I’ve been taught in class. I’ve loved being here, I’ve wished to God I weren’t here, I’ve tried to escape, I’ve realized there’s nowhere else I want to be (and a lot of people share this love-hate relationship!). Ultimately, I couldn’t be happier anywhere else, and I wouldn’t be the same person anywhere else. Yet Harvard is like those AP textbooks that condition you to the material by testing tougher than the exam itself: whatever my apprehensions about the future and the real world, I think to myself, “it can’t be much more difficult than this.”

The best thing about Harvard is that it is extremely well-endowed. You can get funding for anything; up until this semester, there were grants given out by the undergraduate council for parties. There are financial aid ready for internships, research, anything you can imagine. Wealth provides endless opportunities. Oh yeah, I took this painting class, and all the materials are subsidized. I really wish that Harvard has a better art department. One thing I would change about Harvard is the horrible schedule - we have winterbreak before finals, come back for 2 weeks reading period, and then 2 more for exams, and then a short 1 week break. I always feel that I never get rested enough for the 2nd semester. But that will change in the 09-10 school year. I feel that my school is pretty large, there are always people that you will never know. But it is never a bad thing, because you're meeting different people everyday. Harvard is also great because it is right next to Boston. Symphony Hall and art museum and shopping malls are very convenient by bus or train. Harvard is a funny school because it is very liberal. There is "Primal Scream" every semester, at 12:00 AM of the start of exam period, and people (only those who wants to) run around Harvard Yard stark naked. It's not an urban tale.

Harvard's beautiful -- it takes a while to realize that. One thing you have to know when coming to Harvard is not to set overly high expectations because you'll be let down sooner or later. When I first came to Harvard, I felt disoriented -- I expected life to be perfect and the school to accommodate to my every needs. But, after having dashes of realism slapped to my face, I realized that would never happen and that Harvard is great as it is. If you go to Harvard, you're going to have to deal with the uncomfortable situation of people asking you where you go and then being shocked to hear the answer. It's a bit awkward because they usually react by believing you to be a brilliant person destined for greatness, to which you have to respond with a combination of modesty and agreement. I spend most of my time in my dorm room. I do frequent the dining halls, libraries, other people's rooms regularly though. On the weekends, when I feel overloaded, I like to go to the various shopping malls we have (3 big ones: Downtown Boston, Cambridgeside Galleria, Prudential). Boston's a great town and I'm excited to exploring it more. The complaints I have about Harvard's administration are I feel they could really do more in terms of school food and school-wide events. The food isn't great -- with that much money, shouldn't we have better food? Comparatively, though, I feel it's equivalent or a little better than most college campuses, so maybe I'm just a bit spoiled. As for school-wide events, Harvard seems to pool a lot of money into individual club events and such. There aren't many school-wide events for people to attend without club affiliation. Of course, club events are usually open to everyone, but still, it'd be nice to have more "Harvard" events to increase school pride. There is of course a lot of school pride about Harvard. Most everyone is happy that they go here and the "prestige" it lends to their self-esteem. For the most part, Harvard school pride isn't verbalized however. There is more overt "house" pride (upperclassmen are separated into Houses, where they stay from sophomore to senior year).