Princeton, Harvard and Yale have some important advice for new students
Top universities Princeton, Harvard and Yale have welcomed their new students with an important piece of advice: think for yourself.
From the rise of social media to the rise of Donald Trump, student life has changed unrecognizably in recent years. A group of teachers and professors at Ivy League universities have written an open letter to new students, in which they warn against groupthink and conformism.
“In today’s climate, it’s all-too-easy to allow your views and outlook to be shaped by dominant opinion on your campus or in the broader academic culture”, the letter reads. “Our advice can be distilled to three words: think for yourself.”
The letter is not just meant as a lesson for new students at the universities of Princeton, Harvard and Yale; it’s addressed to ‘all students’ headed off to university. So if you’re new to Tilburg University and you’re coping with the challenges of being plunged into an unfamiliar world of studying, budgeting, and partying, beware of the lingering danger of conforming to fashionable opinions and blindly following authority figures. Cliché or not, thinking critically seems like the best advice for any student starting university. More power to you if you don’t agree.