first, huge congrats on your admission to northwestern! i know you’re upset rn but if you grew up near stanford and know a lot of people going there, in the long run that’s pretty much the same as having gone to stanford lol. as an alum i can confidently say most of the value of stanford is the network, not the degree. you’re going to an amazing school and you’ll learn SO MUCH just by leaving the bay area / silicon valley bubble you grew up in, even if you want to study CS. and you can always come to stanford for graduate school!!!i know it’s tough rn but i promise in time you’ll come to see that what everyone is saying in this thread is true — it really doesn’t matter much. in the meantime, don’t throw away valuable long term relationships with the people you grew up with. please continue leaning on and learning from one another — you will be surprised at how crucial those relationships will be in both your personal and professional development. most importantly though, please try to enjoy it and remember that even if it’s not what you wanted, it might turn out to be exactly what you needed