opportunity costs
Today, in my macroeconomics precept, my preceptor, a grad student from Brazil, explained a nuance of the rather elementary concept of opportunity cost. She said that while opportunity costs and prices were often related, they were not always the same. The example she gave was of her colleagues from Brazil who, instead of going to graduate school, had gone into the financial market and reaped large sums of money. My preceptor came to Princeton on a full scholarship, but while the price of her coming here is $0, the opportunity costs are far from it.
Princeton was not at the top of my list of colleges I wished to attend. Nor was it on the top of my list of colleges that accepted me. I came here for two primary reasons - the first being financial aid, and the second being parental pressure. This discussion of opportunity costs touched a sensitive spot and reminded me of a what-if question that I have grappled with since coming here.
MIT was the first school that I heard back from in the admissions process, and it did not take long for me to fall in love with it. In high school, math and sciences were my strong points, and I would not contest the fact that I was, and still am, a nerd. Everything about the school, from its numerical nomenclature of departments to its “IHTFP” culture made me want to go there. Hell, people thought Simmons Hall was ugly as fuck, but I wanted to live there so bad. I’m a design junkie, and the aesthetic that the MIT website and admissions documents bolstered was much more modern and appealing.
There was one problem: they offered $0 financial aid.
Princeton, on the other hand, with its disproportionately large endowment, put a fat wad of money on the table. I’d offer a relative comparison to MIT, but dividing by zero = fail.
The schools are polar opposites. MIT is around 25% Asian and exudes an inquisitive, cutting-edge feel that I find so appealing. MIT is right next to Boston, so the city is right there. Princeton is 15% Asian, but the difference is bigger than you think because 1/3 of them never leave the library and another 1/3 are internationals who cling to each other for safety like refugees. Princeton is all about tradition and has a stuffy, conservative feel to it. The architecture reaffirms this fact. Also, Princeton is its own town. With nothing interesting within a 50 mile radius. The only commonality between the two schools is the cold weather.
My first semester at Princeton was not a happy one. In coming here, I thought that I would be saving a shitload of money and that I would be getting a much more balanced education. But I’m not sure what I was thinking in that respect - MIT is ranked much higher in all of the majors I’m considering (isn’t ironic that after I come here, I realize that I might actually want to be an engineer?).
The fact is, I don’t really know for certain how happy I’d be somewhere else. But I do know that despite the low price of attending this school, there was, indeed, a large opportunity cost.
I’m not really the type to dwell on being unhappy, and I have to admit that things have definitely gotten better over time. I keep telling myself that I ended up here for a reason, and I’m determined to find it.
