Quote:
Originally Posted by frankcw
It seems that Princeton has the least students and I think it is good news.
|
I don't see why having a smaller (or larger) cohort than another school is necessarily good
The optimal class size depends on the school's resources (number of professors, office space, funding, etc.) and style of advising, among other things. What is just right at one school might be too small at another. Also, over some range, there are increasing returns to more students -- more students might mean having someone else in your field to work with, for example. And more really good students helps attract really good faculty.
Also, schools can't perfectly control class size because they can't control yield. A small cohort could be what the school intended, or it could mean that the school failed to attract the students it hoped for. Similarly, a small number of students offered admission in a given year could theoretically mean that the quality of the applicant pool was disappointing and the entering cohort is of below-average quality
I'm not saying any of these things are true for Princeton or any other school this year, but that they are possible.
I don't see any reason to assume that a smaller cohort is better, either across or within schools. And I certainly don't see any reason to think that having 20 vs. 21 entering students will make any difference at all!! I know everyone is curious about what the coming year will hold, but there's no reason to make assumptions about whose cohort is better or whose year looks more promising based on trivia...