Improve your chances of getting into college,

There are two stereotypes that seem most common: the one based on Love Story, etc., that we're full of sweater-wearing WASPy men whose parents will disown them if they so much as think about marrying a Jew. That one's obviously not true. The second is that we're type A and likely to be successful, which is true for a majority of students.

I couldn't be happier anywhere else. It's not the perfect school for everyone, since no school can be that, and applicants shouldn't idealize it as the be-all end-all of education. I think it's a difficult place for people who can flourish beautifully given nurturing conditions, but are sensitive to anything that falls short of that. Harvard's better for cactuses than orchids. However, as I said, it's as close to perfect for me as a school could get. I'm extremely happy that I've made close friends with some of the brightest and most interesting people I've ever met, which was always a problem for me in high school. (I didn't make a lot of lasting friendships in high school.) I'm also really happy with the quality of the education and the attention I've seen from professors. My best friend and I are both on let's-go-get-coffee terms (although hers prefers Burdick's for hot chocolate) with two of the most famous professors in our respective fields, and we're only first-semester sophomores. The extracurriculars are beyond amazing, as well. I think that's what happens when you stuff this many former national champions into one campus. The number and professionalism of the events hosted by the charity clubs is beyond belief. I myself belong to a publication which owns its own building, which is ridiculous and wonderful.