Trying to Get Rescinded

I am not sure if you are trolling us... I haven't read all the responses carefully. But wanted to share my $0.02, as the father of a Brown freshman (APMA/CS). First of all, it sounds like you have pretty serious issues with depression, you really need to get therapy for that. It is a sad fact that mental health issues among teens today is alarmingly high - the stresses of college admissions and prestige, perceived competition and social media don't help. There is no shame in seeking help.

Now to Brown, my son has a stellar high school and academic record - extremely competitive high school, took all the STEM APs offered, all the college math local community colleges offered (Multivariable, Linear Algebra, Diffy Equations, Discrete Math), 2 research papers, perfect ACT/SAT Subject scores/AP scores etc. He could have been accepted at the colleges you mention and very likely Stanford (judging from his other classmates who got accepted at HYPSM). Yet, he chose to ED to Brown (after a visit there), because he loved the vibe. He is on campus now (after taking 1 class online in the fall). He could not be happier ! I can only speak for APMA/CS, because that is what my son is majoring in.

All the things they say about Brown, about the undergraduate focus, about students helping each other, about academic resources to seek help are true. Professors are happy to talk to students who want to do research in their labs and extremely encouraging. Graduate students actively mentor undergrads, and spend many hours helping and guiding them, there is no dearth of TA sessions, office hours to get help for classes. The classes themselves (he has only taken CS/APMA/Engineering classes so far) are a great mix of theory and practice. Students are very smart and driven but collaborative, they are happy to help their classmates. You mention prestige a lot, Brown CS grads are highly sought after in Silicon Valley, most prominently among the FAANG names. I have worked in more than one FAANG company (as a SW Engineer), I have worked with, interviewed dozens of Brown grads. Brown CS grads are highly successful in the valley - they do very well, because the CS curriculum at Brown is rigorous and a great mix of theory and practice. There is no difference between Brown grads and MIT/Stanford/Berkeley CS grads. I am very happy for my son - that he ended up at such an excellent place - where he can get a world class education in a relatively less stressful environment.

Finally, college is what you make of it. I went to a run of the mill state school, that is all I could afford, and I wasn't a very engaged student in high school. It really has not mattered. I took advantage of the opportunities college had to offer. In my experience, after my first job, no one really cared where I went to college.

Good luck to you and take care of yourself.

/r/BrownU Thread