Hey potential class of 2020! I’m currently a freshman in the College of Engineering who went through the whole daunting application process not long ago, and want to help you out by answering your questions related to the application process or Cornell in general. Leave a question and I’ll answer ASAP!! 
MODERATOR’S NOTE: Anyone is free to ask or answer questions in this thread.
Is the food really bad lol? I remember visiting but only having like 1 or 2 options to eat.
@Gatortristan It really depends on where you go lol. The North Campus dining at Appel is not bad for an all you can eat dining hall. Nasties is an order out place at RPCC that makes typical fast food stuff, and as you can tell by the nickname, it’s meh at best. I’ve heard West Campus dining is better than North, but I’ve never ventured down there for food. The best are Trillium, Mac’s, Terrace, and Synapsis, which suck since they’re all BRB based. BRBs are like dining dollars where they only give you a certain amount per month, and aren’t the same as regular meal swipes, which renew weekly. Overall, the food isn’t bad, but every once in a while it’s nice to get away from campus food.
How soon did you get an email with ApplicationID assigned to you after you submit? Admissions Office told me it took about a week. How did you make sure your application was complete? Thanks.
@TigerBeach it took me maybe two weeks to get it, and once I got it I think there was an email with a link to the application status page, if not you can certainly Google “Cornell Application Status” and it will be the first link.
How is the workload?
@crossovercuber workload really depends on the major and your interest/investment in the course. For engineering, which I’m in, there are weekly problem sets that can consume a lot of time and be very difficult. However, I like all the classes, so the work isn’t something I dread doing; some of it can be really interesting/fun as weird as it sounds. For writing seminars, there’s usually weekly reading and writing assignments that vary in time commitment and difficulty depending on what department it’s through. During prelims, there’s a lot more studying by reading and doing supplemental problems, which require a lot of time commitment of you want to do well. Overall, the workload is what you would expect from a top university, but the key is to do something you like so the work is bearable. Also learn to manage your time well. Not having daily homework can seem like a good excuse not to study a little extra or start the homework early, making procrastination and stress likely to occur. The last thing is that doing the work in groups and with TAs or professors can really make the stuff less difficult if your not strong in a particular class.
okay thanks for your in-depth info
Does anyone know how long it takes admissions to update your status once college board sends scores? My
OCT SAT was sent yesterday, but my status still says they have not received. Should I be concerned?
No, they’ll receive it. Stop worrying, check back in a week. Cornell will contact you if it’s missing any essential documents.
@crossovercuber I’m a current freshman premed and I’m dying, I like the courses though and the school though… my Chem professor just really sucks
@takudan premed major? I thought theres no such thing as a premed major
no, he probably meant premed track @crossovercuber
@Gatortristan that’s what I assumed @takudan what major?
I’m biology & society major but I’m taking only pre med reqs right now @crossovercuber
Is the premed track as cutthroat as people say? @takudan
I’m applying for Engineering and I have a question about subject tests. So let’s say I took the Bio and Math 2 subject tests one day and Chem and Math 2 the other day. I want to submit Chem and Math 2. Do I have to send both Math 2 scores along with Chem?
If it is relevant, my highest math score was when I took it the second time. Thank you!
@RunningOutofRoom I was in the same situation as you. I scored a 710 on Chem my first try and a 790 my second try. I ended up sending both since it was required, but they’ll consider mainly the highest score.
@crossovercuber I know a lot of pre-med kids, and it seems really competitive, but I don’t know about cutthroat at least not in the extreme sense. It’s competitive because intro level classes required for med school pretty much have all people wanting to go to med school, and getting into med school is contingent on GPA among other things. Since intro level classes are curved lower than 3000+ level classes, it’s harder to earn a good grade since everything is curved to a normal distribution around a B-/B (2.7/3.0) mean, hence the competition to do well. Overall, I feel the general environment fosters collaboration.
@IndoorCloud25 Thanks… so in this case, would I have to submit my bio score as well? I don’t want it to be considered for admissions, but Cornell says they require all test scores, so I’m not 100% sure…