<p>I have a D at Cornell who enjoys a good political discussion. She has friends across the spectrum there. She feels like there are more conservative kids there than at other northeastern schools, but that opinions can be shared and discussed in a friendly way. She is in the College of Engineering but has lots of interactions with kids in her dorm who are in the other colleges. In fact, she has more friends out of engineering than in it, just because CAS is bigger.</p>
<p>I agree w a previous poster who said that at Cornell there are lots of every viewpoint. That has been my daughter’s experience. She loves everything about it and has never felt like she needs to censor her opinons to students or faculty.</p>
<p>I think one would find a lot of conservative undergrads also at Vanderbilt and Duke too although my D found other admitted female undergrads at Duke to be a bit off putting at times. She heard a lot of commentary about outfits, shoes, purses, etc that she found to be rather ridiculous. I remember her saying that she felt like she would have to get dressed up to go to class a Duke.</p>
<p>My D has friends across the political spectrum and enjoys her interactions with those who have different opinions. She never feels like an island. </p>
<p>As a mom from visiting there, I see a lot of really great “wholesome” kids who are smart, funny, and interesting. There is a lot of diversity of every type at Cornell due to its sheer size.</p>
<p>A few things I want to add: it’s silly to take advice from high school students who seem to think they have an accurate perception of every college in the country (or, for that matter, anyone else who claims to have this amazing insight) and it’s silly to make generalizations about 20,000 people with different backgrounds from all over the country. I’m conservative, very politically active, and I love it here–and I’m certainty not alone in sharing those sentiments.
I took a writing seminar specifically about President Obama’s election, wrote every paper from my conservative point of view, and got an A. The professor loved having a different viewpoint in the class (just as I enjoyed studying the President with people who supported him, people who didn’t support him because he is too liberal, people who didn’t support him because he isn’t liberal enough, people who weren’t normally very political–it’s a great experience if you go into it with the right attitude) and the other students were nothing but respectful. From what I hear from upperclassmen, this is the norm here.</p>
<p>Malan,
That perfectly captures my daughter’s experience too! The point I was trying to make as well was that my daughter felt like different viewpoints were encouraged and often resulted in engaging discussions, not scorn from fellow students and/or faculty. I don’t think that is always the case at some universities. Its one more wonderful thing about Cornell.</p>
<p>Here’s the thing about Cornell: its programs run broad and deep. I had friends who fit this “hippie” stereotype and I had friends who were devout, rural conservative Christians. You can find whatever you’re looking for at Cornell.</p>
<p>Ithaca is one of the most liberal (and wonderful) cities in the country, but being on campus won’t be like living in town, so it won’t impact much. It’s liberal in the way all college towns tend to be - an exposed, enlightened population that sees a need to progress society beyond its current shortcomings. It’s not liberal in the union sort of way.</p>
<p>All different perspectives are represented. I had liberal professors, conservative professors, and most professors who never let you know what they believed. In my experience, they were all looking for critical thinking and analysis, not a specific view.</p>
<p>Heck, Keith Olbermann, Ann Coulter, and Gabbie Giffords all went there. Spectrum covered.</p>
<p>Plenty of hippies and other interesting people. Diverse interests, well-educated, idealistic. The classic college town, with natural beauty to boot.</p>