Enrollment: 13846
Most Popular Majors: Agribusiness/Agricultural Business Operations,Biology/Biological Sciences, General,Labor and Industrial Relations,
Regular Application Deadline: 01/02
Student Faculty Ratio: 9:1

Undergraduate Receiving Need-Based Financial Aid: 171
Average Freshman Total Need-Based Gift Aid: $26,649.00

Best Campus Food
Best Career Services
Best College Library

Students Say - Academics
A large, diverse university offering a huge variety of courses and majors, Cornell University seems intent on putting the "universe" in "university." Students tell us that "all the academic programs are strong, so no matter what you want to study, Cornell has the resources." But just in case Cornell's standout undergraduate departments in engineering, business, biology, industrial and labor relations, hotel administration, food science, animal science, and natural resources don't get you going, "You can [always] design your own major." Cornell offers "a mix of anything and everything, with more opportunities than you could ever want." Undergrads point out that "Cornell is a great place for people who know what they want to do in life and want to get things done sooner rather than later, because each major program is very focused and concentrated right from the beginning." Academics here "are hard, extremely tough." "We don't all have 4.0s, but we work harder than students at the other Ivy League schools. Cornell is the easiest Ivy to get into, and the hardest to graduate from. Grade inflation doesn't exist here." The school does its best to help students navigate the academic challenges, offering "enough help so that even the most lost student can find his/her way to a good, deserving grade." Professors "are available anytime you need them and are more than happy to lend you a helping hand," while both your "peer advisor and faculty advisor" are "easily accessible." The administration does a great job "running the school smoothly" and "makes the effort to keep lines of communication open." Students tell us that "undergraduates are offered unbelievable research opportunities and instruction from those who are at the top of their respective fields." And when it's time to find a job, "Cornell has a really good alumni network" and a "helpful Career Services" Office.

Students Say - Campus Life
Cornell is located in remote Ithaca, "on the top of a hill in the middle of a beautiful and cold nowhere." "Beautiful gorges" and "unrivaled" outdoor activities-"everything from kayaking to pumpkin picking is just a small trip away either by foot or by bus." "There really isn't anything you can't do when it comes to nature at Cornell," but there is not much in the way of urban diversion. As a result, many "students exist strictly within the Cornell bubble." They "have no escape from the stress of school and everything they do revolves around school." For many, weekend options consist of "bars in Collegetown and house parties," along with some on-campus "concerts, activities, and student-led initiatives." Lots of students "participate in intramural sports or one of the many clubs." One student observes, "being in a small town like Ithaca means that most people do one thing for fun: drink. At the same time, some of the dorms-i.e. the ones with fewer drinkers-are still up on the weekends playing poker or something like that. Nevertheless, the lack of a big city around you means that sometimes you can get pretty bored"-but then, there is always schoolwork to attend to.

Students Say - Student Body
Cornell's student body "is diverse, and not just in the racial or ethnic sense. There are so many different courses of study at Cornell that a wide range of personalities and interests are represented. Every day, architects, engineers, hotel school students, and dairy farm majors sit down to lunch together." Furthermore, "because Cornell is half private and half public, the students come from diverse economic backgrounds." Pressed to provide a general description of their peers, students tell us that "the student body is divided into about three groups: the well-off, stylish-if-conservatively dressed 'practical majors' (most frat members, premeds, pre-laws, sorority girls, hotelies, aggies); the study-a-holics (engineers, applied sciences, some of the premeds); and the Euro-acting, blazer-and-hoodie wearing, always-thin hipsters (English, comparative literature, philosophy, film, theater, etc.)."

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