Cornell ED Class of 2021 RESULTS

[Shrilkshire]

**Decision: Rejected **

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2220: 800M 720R
ACT (breakdown): None
SAT II: 790 Math 2 740 Physics
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.85
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): None
AP (place score in parenthesis): Physics 1, US History, Chem (all 4s)
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: AP BC, AP Physics C, AP Gov, AP Lit, AP Comp Sci, DE Field Biology, Honors Econ.
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Photography Award, International Math Modeling Award

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):
(Founding Member/Secretary) Fan Club 9th
(VP 11, Pres 12) Chess 9th-12th
(Secretary 11) ACS Chem club (10th-12th)
(Founding member 10th, Captain 11th/12th) Physics and Engineering Club
Academic Team 11th-12th
Programming Team 11th
Robotics 9th-11th
Virginia Space Coast Scholars (NASA run program) 10th
Job/Work Experience: none
Volunteer/Community service: about 300 hours
Summer Activities: did stuff at NASA before junior year and did community service annually
Essays (rating 1-10, details): common app 7 I struggled with it, but ended up writing about NASA.
Cornell supplement 9, it was really good imo and had only good reviews
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

Teacher Rec #1:9/10 chem teacher who loved me and had him for two years and did research with him
Teacher Rec #2:8/10 physics teacher who liked me
Counselor Rec: don’t know
Additional Rec: no
Interview:Great, went for over an hour and a half and only ended bc she had to let her dog out.

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: materials science and engineering
State (if domestic applicant): VA
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: public magnet
Ethnicity: white
Gender: male
Income Bracket: ~100k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):

Reflection

Strengths:
Weaknesses: Not sure, probably greatest was freshman year GPA
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: Freshman GPA
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: this was first school

General Comments : am cri, after the decision I ate way too much food and am now bloated :’)

[randomdare]

**Decision: Deferred **

Objective: AAP

Why you think you were deferred: My GPA from earlier years and portfolio was not amazing but I will be submitting supplementals again soon with better results
Where else were you accepted: University of South Carolina

General Comments : I am a little skeptical to leave up stats right now so I am hoping for an acceptance in the spring and am trying to remain positive (:

[Fightakins]

[asize=4][acolor=#008000]Decision: Accepted [/color][/size]

College of Engineering

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): Did not take
ACT (breakdown): 34 Superscore (34E, 33M, 33R, 34 S) 2 sittings
SAT II: Math II 740, Chemistry 680, Physics 660 (I took in November, may not have been used in decision process, may have been good for me since they were bad)
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.93
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 14/150
AP (place score in parenthesis): Taking 5 at end of senior year
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/a
Senior Year Course Load: AP Biology, English 110 (dual credit), Spanish III, AP Government, AP Calc BC (online), AP Physics 2 (online), Biochemistry (online dual credit), College Astronomy (online dual credit)
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): No major awards.

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Quiz Bowl 9,12 ; Math Club 9,10,11,12 (Captain) ; Robotics 9,10, 12 ; DECA 12 | Placed in almost all math tournaments, Qualified for nationals senior year in quiz bowl and DECA but I didnt include this because we did not know at the time. Honestly I had really weak extra-curriculars.
Job/Work Experience: Same job for over 2 years. Showed leadership at job working with people and training team members.
Volunteer/Community service: 2 hours every week at humane society.
Summer Activities: Worked 40 hour weeks
Essays (rating 1-10, details): Common app was about my father’s military service and how it has affect my and my family’s life. Supplement for engineering college was about my passion for learning and how I dream of sparking innovation in the world. I went over these papers and my English teacher loved them. I’m very modest about my writing, but for those who are looking for some tips, they were very good. Most important aspect is the topic. Choose good ones that apply to YOU.
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):
Note: I did not read any of my recommendations, and I still have not. I can read them (dont know about counselor though) and report back if wanted.
Teacher Rec #1: English teacher said she has never wanted to write a better recommendation for someone plus she’s an English teacher : probably a 10 or close to.
Teacher Rec #2: Science teacher : I was the only Junior in her college chem class. She also is my go to person for help in my online physics class. Probably an 8-10 depending on how well it was written.
Counselor Rec: Her writing style is very loose. She cranked out my recommendation in like 15 minutes probably. The fact that it was so personal may have helped. Probably not very formal.
Additional Rec: My boss at work. I just thought it would not hurt for me to send another. No idea about this one. I do not directly work with her except during summers.
Interview: N/a

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes, but I think I will receive it later because they needed more information.
Intended Major: Undecided
State (if domestic applicant): Wisconsin
Country (if international applicant): USA
School Type: Public (500 students total)
Ethnicity: White/Native American
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: <100,000
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): First generation, Native American, Father is military, Not very wealthy, and school is not very strong

Reflection

Strengths: GPA, Hooks, writing, ACT I think I was accepted because of essays and recommendations. They show who you are.
Weaknesses: SAT II tests and extracurriculars
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: I had a lot of hooks that very few people will have. I would like to know how much of an impact me putting down that I was Native American had. I am in between like 1/4 and 1/8 Native American so I am not full. I put down that I was white so they know I am not full. Top 25% ACT score, extensive hooks, and writing combined made up for my extracurriculars is what I am thinking.
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected:

General Comments : I am proof that you don’t need extensive extracurriculars to get accepted to the school you love. Nor do you need to have a perfect GPA and class rank. My advice is to take pride in your writing and do well. I believe it has the most impact (as long as test scores are at least average). I wrote my essays less than a weak before they were due, but I made sure they were proofread. I don’t advise this unless it’s your style.

Sorry if I made spelling mistakes or did something wrong; I’m not proofreading. Good luck and congratulations everyone!

[drakonus]

**Decision: Rejected **
Don’t want to post stats right now because other schools, but I was really sad. I worked really hard and really wanted to get in Congrats to all that got in, and those deferred- hang in there!

[cotopaxi]

I feel like I’m rubbing it in by posting this, but I really got a lot of help by reading this same thread for the class of 2020. Good luck to all RD applicants this year!

**Decision: Accepted **

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 1450 (690 M, 760 R)
ACT (breakdown): 34 (35 E, 35 R, 35 S, 30 M)
SAT II: 690 Physics, 740 Math II
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.9 UW (4.5 W out of 5.0)
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Top 10%
AP (place score in parenthesis): US History (3), English Comp (4) - I have 5 more this year
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: AP Physics, AP Calculus, AP US Gov, AP MacroEcon, AP English, Hon German, Hon Art
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Not much. Three German language awards, plus the Gold award for the National German Exam twice (99 percentile)

Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):
Competitive dancer for 10 years - competed in 7 southeastern regional championships and 4 national championships
Varsity Ladies Golf team 2 years (captain second year)
German Club 4 years (secretary Jr, year, President Sr. year)
Designed, built, flew and recovered my own reusable space craft

Job/Work Experience: Dance Instructor for ages 4 - 11 (leadership)

Volunteer/Community service: Founded a grassroots organization that bring awareness and financial aid to homebound senior citizens through the Meals on Wheels program. My organization climbs really tall mountains. My first climb I recruited and trained a group of 5. Google my screen name and you’ll see what I climb :-).

I also deliver meals every Saturday to homebound seniors and disabled veterans. Been doing it for 4 years. Important to stick with something and not just do it for a year or two.

Summer Activities: Immersive language travel to Germany; Competed in Irish Dance National Championships; Paid summer internship with the American Foundation for the Blind.

Essays (rating 1-10, details): Both essays were 9/10. I have degenerative joint disease and my competitive dancing for 10 years has made it much worse. My essays clearly connected my disease with my desire to find a cure through Biomedical Engineering. It also helped I spent a couple hours with the head of the biomed undergrad program, Dr. Butcher. I learned a lot from him and dropped his name in the supplemental essay to demonstrate I was there, was passionate about my major, and ready to get to work. I also connected how I would take advantage of other colleges at Cornell through collaboration, like when I get there and engineer a synthetic soft tissue sample I want to test it on subjects at the College of Veterinary Medicine. You have to be very specific and make them imagine your journey through your own words. Don’t try to sound smart. You will fail. Be yourself.

Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

Teacher Rec #1: 8/10 - Hon. Precalculus - She likes me a lot but I only had her for one year.
Teacher Rec #2: 7/10 - AP Physics - She loves me but she’s a horrible writer. I saw a sample and yikes.
Counselor Rec: 8/10 - She likes me and got to know me well so I think she could really speak well of my future goals. But she has 50 students so I don’t know how thorough she was.

Additional Rec: None. During the info session Cornell practically begged us not to submit more than two. I did what they said. I cringe when I read people sent in 4 or more recommendations.

Interview: The info session with the alum went very well. Did it by phone but it was thorough and he said “you sound like an intelligent young woman who would be perfect for Cornell,” so hopefully he wrote that in his notes.

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Biomedical Engineering
State (if domestic applicant): North Carolina
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Private Catholic
Ethnicity: Caucasian
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: Upper middle class
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): None

Reflection

Strengths: My very real story of joint disease that connected perfectly with my intended major. I thank my dad for making me go talk to the professor. I think that extra effort paid off.
Weaknesses: SAT II scores and the fact I had no research or technical experience to show why I would be a good engineer
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: I think my personal story showed a good “fit”, I also think our ability to pay (at least most of it) had an impact.
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: I still have outstanding applications to 10 other schools including Duke, Johns Hopkins, and Northwestern.

General Comments : Don’t half-ass it if you really want to get in. I hated prepping for my ACT but I studied my butt off. I know the application process sucks and we’re all busy, but take the time to visit, and while you’re there go talk to professors, departments heads, etc. What else proves you’re a serious candidate than when you can name-drop and write about specific labs you walked through and people you saw? Take notes on room numbers, building names, heck, even the game the football team had the weekend you were there. Make it clear you belong in your essays.

[canyoubelieveit]

**Decision: Rejected from Engineering **

Will repost after hearing back from other early schools.

[Crohexalg]

**Decision: Accepted **
Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 1460 (800 M 660 CR)
ACT (breakdown): 33 (36 M 32 E 33 S 30 R)
SAT II: 800 Math II 700 Physics
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0 uw
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 20/265
AP (place score in parenthesis): Calc AB (5) Physics 1 (4); Calc BC, Physics C EnM and mechanics, Comp Sci A
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: Linear Algebra, Differential Equations, Calc BC, Physics C EnM and mechanics, Comp Sci A, English, Religion Honors
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): n/a

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):
Job/Work Experience: n/a
Volunteer/Community service: 100+ hours
Summer Activities:n/a
Essays (rating 1-10, details):
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

Teacher Rec #1: 10, both teachers were total bros
Teacher Rec #2: ^
Counselor Rec:
Additional Rec:
Interview:

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: nope
Intended Major: ECE
State (if domestic applicant): NJ
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Private Catholic
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: Upper middle class
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): n/a

Reflection

Strengths: math and science courses and marks
Weaknesses:
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected:
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected:

General Comments :

[jordyng99]

Decision: Accepted

CAS
SAT I (breakdown): n/a
ACT (breakdown): 34C (35 Math, 33 English, 36 Reading, 31 Science)
SAT II: 800 Math II, 750 Chem
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.78
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): top 10%
AP (place score in parenthesis): AP Chem (5), AP Stat (5), APUSH (3)
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: AP BC Calc, AP Physics I, AP Computer Science A, AP Literature and Composition, AP Macro/Micro, AP Environmental Science
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): St. Michaels Book Award

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Research Internship at a hospital, Lacrosse, Field Hockey, Photography Club (vice president)
Job/Work Experience: Tutoring
Volunteer/Community service: Worked with special needs children for six years, started my own charity
Summer Activities: CIT, Volunteered at a hospital
Essays (rating 1-10, details):
Common App: I wrote my common app essay on chicken nuggets because I like to consider myself a funny person and I really wanted to get that across to the admissions officers, which I guess worked out pretty well
Supplement: Also for my supplement I wanted to show my sense of humor while at the same time discussing my academic interests.
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

Teacher Rec #1:
Teacher Rec #2:
Counselor Rec:
Additional Rec:
Interview:

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Computer Science
State (if domestic applicant): NJ
Country (if international applicant): USA
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Female
Income Bracket:
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):

Reflection

Strengths: For me, I think the main reason I got in was because of my essay. I knew it was a risk to go with such and immature topic, but if you are funny, I would highly recommend going with humor in your essay!!
Weaknesses:
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected:
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected:

General Comments :

[jz1483]

**Decision: Accepted to CoE!! **

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2280 (740CR/750M/790W)
ACT (breakdown): none
SAT II: 800 Math 2, 800 Physics
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 7/533
AP (place score in parenthesis): Human Geography (5), Stats (5), Physics 1 (4), World History (5), US History (5), Lang (5), Physics 2 (5), Chemistry (5), Calc AB (5)
IB (place score in parenthesis): n/a
Senior Year Course Load: AP Calc BC, AP Bio, AP Literature, AP Physics C, AP Gov/Econ (each one semester)
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): none (typical AP scholar + NMSF but nothing huge)

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): generic asian stuff that doesn’t make me stand out that much haha (don’t wanna get too specific for privacy)-- orchestra, STEM clubs, volunteering clubs (2 “official” leadership positions), science statewide competition
Job/Work Experience: n/a
Volunteer/Community service: around 100 hours at random places throughout school and city
Summer Activities: library & nursing home volunteering, research internship
Essays (rating 1-10, details): 8/10- both common app & engineering were generic but genuine (a bit dramatic too) so I guess that works
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

Teacher Rec #1:
Teacher Rec #2:
Counselor Rec:
Additional Rec:
Interview:

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: yes
Intended Major: electrical engineering
State (if domestic applicant):
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: public
Ethnicity: Asian
Gender: F
Income Bracket: around 100k ish
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): nope

Reflection

Strengths: solid stats, genuine essays
Weaknesses: nothing really “special” that made me stand out
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: my stats + female in engineering
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: cornell was my first college notification!!!

General Comments : (I sound like a grandma, sorry) Congratulations to those that made it and for those that didn’t, there’s so much to the world out there and you’ll be sure to do great things. For those of you in the future snooping through this thread as I used to w/ past decisions–please please please try not to be so overwhelmed/caught up in the process, don’t underestimate yourself, and try to make the most out of senior year before it’s over. Cornell Class of 2021!!!

[Euler21]

**Decision: Accepted **

Objective:
ACT: 35

SAT 2s: 800s on Math II, Physics, Chemistry

GPA (out of 4.0): 3.87 UW, 4.33 W

APs: Calculus BC (5), Computer Science (5), Physics B (5), Microeconomics (5), Physics C (5, 5), World History (5), U.S. History (4), Chemistry (5), Psychology (5), Statistics (5), English Lang (5)
Senior Year Course Load: AP English Lit, Independent study in Real and Complex Analysis, AP Art History, AP Biology, AP Gov/Macroeconomics

Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): US Computing Olympiad Gold Division, AIME, Rensselaer Medalist, National AP Scholar

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Model UN, Science Bowl (team captain), Math Club (president), Computer Science Club (president, started annual coding competition), Physics Club (founder, president)

Job/Work Experience: Math and Comp Sci Tutor

Volunteer/Community service: Student volunteer at city website, designed site and marketed it

Summer Activities: UC Berkeley Summer Sessions
Rising Junior: Linear Algebra and Differential Equations (A), Data Structures (A)
Rising Senior: Computer Architecture (A-) [this is considered one of the hardest classes at Berkeley EECS)

Essays (rating 1-10, details): 9-10 on both, they were well-written and showed a lot of intellectual depth and knowledge about Cornell

Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):
Teacher Rec #1: 9-10 English teacher for both soph and senior years, well known for writing very good recommendations, said she “would be honored” to write mine
Teacher Rec #2: 9-10 Math teacher I’ve known since freshman year, very strong relationship discussing math problems, he once asked me to teach the class when he was gone
Counselor Rec: 7-8 may have talked about pushing beyond school course availability, but she is new to this and in a large public school so not stellar
Additional Rec: none
Interview: 8, he and I talked over the time he had allotted, said he liked how I knew a lot about the school, but nothing super extraordinary

Intended Major: Computer Science

State (if domestic applicant): CA

Country (if international applicant): US

School Type: Large public Ethnicity: Biracial (white/indian)

Gender: M

Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Biracial? Neither side was URM, idk how much this helped.

Reflection

Strengths: Strong extracurriculars, essays, and letters of rec
Weaknesses: GPA (especially junior year - I got 3 B’s my first semester)
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: Strong and focused extracurriculars, essays, and recommendations overcame a slight weakness in GPA. Being the president/captain of 4 STEM clubs at school, 3 UC Berkeley undergrad classes, and competitions success showed intense passion for math and CS while essays and English teacher’s recommendation showed well-roundedness and an appreciation for the humanities.
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: First school to hear back from.

General Comments : My GPA was my biggest weakness, but I was able to overcome this by demonstrating intellectual depth and passion in extracurriculars, essays, and recommendations. One piece of advice I would give is to concentrate your extracurriculars around what you want to do in college. There are others who did more extracurriculars than me and had higher GPAs who didn’t get in, but my extracurriculars were more focused. I think a school like Cornell which cares a lot about fit liked this. Good luck to anyone reading this who is applying in the future!

[roboticsnerd33]

Decision: Rejected

Objective: CAS
SAT I (breakdown): 2280 (720 CR, 780 M, 780 W, 11E), new sat 1550 (800 M 750 English)
ACT (breakdown): 34 (don’t remember the individual parts)
SAT II: 800 Math 2, 760 Physics
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.65
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): not sure, maybe top 10%
AP (place score in parenthesis): 5 on AP Calculus AB, Physics C Mechanics, Statistics, 4 on AP Calculus BC, Physics C Electricity and Magnetism, Computer Science A
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: AP English Lang, AP Econ (Macro and Micro), Diff Eq’s and CA, Computer Science 3 (after AP CS), Gym, Honors Bio, Orchestra (highest group in district)
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Hella awards from robotics (20+), Stock market game top 10%,

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):

-Captain of FRC Robotics Team (9,10,11,12). Won awards and went to Worlds 2 times. Led a large group of kids and wrote business proposal to gain a lot of money for funding for my team. I am currently trying to coordinate a tutoring project using robotics to teach underprivileged kids about STEM and programming and such. This is a big part of my life and I really became great at helping others learn and attacking situations analytically.
-President of FBLA (10, VP in 11th, P in 12th). Won regional awards, in charge of the club. Lots of duties and too many to list here, but generally, I enjoy it a lot. I lead a special stock-education part of our chapter, where I teach my classmates about stocks, because I really enjoy discussing them and reading about them. All in all, I really enjoy being in this club
-Science Education Club where I became in charge of a tutoring project that works with our local elementary schools, as well as helping a lot to coordinate science fairs and school related events.
-Violin Player since 6th grade (6-12). In top orchestra of school/district (1st Violin), in top local orchestra in the region. Performed at Carnegie Hall with orchestra. Won 3rd place in a quartet competition Private lessons from grades 6-10.

Job/Work Experience:
Volunteer/Community service:
Summer Activities:
-Pre calc course (at the same tutoring center where I volunteered lol) which allowed me to take calc AB as a sophomore.
-Volunteering at church summer camp and robotics summer class to get into honors societies.
-Summer internship at Financial Services company this summer where I worked with statistics and back-tested their databases. I also worked with customers and tried to sell financial products to them, which required a lot of research (you can’t sell something if you don’t know everything about it!). Lots of fun, learned a lot, and I think I’m going to write about it in a supplement at the very least.
Volunteering:
-Local hospital for 84 hours as a patient escort.
-Local tutoring center as a teaching assistant for 100 hours. Grades and taught kids math concepts, worked with the database and actually learned how to use Excel extensively here.
-Robotics Summer Class at local STEM center for 50 hours. Taught kids about robotics and helped them out when they were making their robots (programming, mechanical problems). Did inventory and cleaned up too.
-Church’s summer camp for 75 hours. In charge of kids and taught important lessons through fun activities. Volunteered at 5ks and other fundraisers for this organization too.

Essays (rating 1-10, details):
Common App (7/10), thought it was alright, but not that amazing
Supplement (9.5-10), I wrote it really, really well. I wrote about music and math and how i wanted to combine my talents to study similar fields in college

Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

Teacher Rec #1: 7/10 physics teacher. idk if he likes or hates me, so it may or may not have bene good
Teacher Rec #2: 8.5/10 11th grade social studies teacher (we have a different class at our school than most). i talked a lot, became good friends with him, and made a great impression. the rec was probably very generic as he writes one for a lot of students
Counselor Rec: idk didn’t know her b/c my old counselor left this past summer. probably generic
Additional Rec: 10/10 from boss at internship
Interview: None

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Statistical Science and Music
State (if domestic applicant): Tri-State Area
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Big (700+ students), public school, academically strong at the top of the class
Ethnicity: Asian
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: 250k+
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Sibling there rn? idk if this counts; clearly it didn’t help me

Reflection

Strengths: EC’s, Tests were aight, Supplement was pretty good
Weaknesses: GPA (oh boy), Common app sorta boring
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: GPA GPA GPA
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: As of now, nothing. Applied to my local state school (not gonna specify which), Umich, GT. For RD I’m doing a whole other slew (Dartmouth, Northwestern, NYU, Carnegie Mellon, Columbia, RPI, etc.).

General Comments : Make sure you don’t screw up your grades. That hurt me the most and is the reason I got rejected during the ED process. Hopefully something else works out, but as of now I’m really bummed out that I didn’t get into Cornell. I had so much hype coming up to it, and I really wanted to head to campus with my sister and be a Cornellian. Oh well, I guess not everything in life goes your way.

[kinddestiny]

Hi, I’m going to try and be thorough to maybe help out future applicants. I went through the entire nervous/scared/anxious stage so I know exactly how you guys feel.

**Decision: Accepted **

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2230 (690CR, 740M, 800W)
ACT (breakdown):
SAT II: 800 Math II, 800 Bio M
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.97
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Top 5%
AP (place score in parenthesis): World History (5), US History (4), Biology (5), Chinese (5), Computer Science (5), Macroeconomics(), Microeconomics(), American Government(), Calc BC(), English Literature()
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: AP Economics, AP Government, AP Calculus BC, AP Literature, Environmental Science, Physics I
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Honor Society, National AP Scholar with Distinction, Technovation #3 in state, Technovation National Finalist (to be honest, I have nothing big at all)

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):
Science Club for Girls Tech Team (Head of Technology 11, 12)
Key Club (External Liaison 9, 10, 11, 12)
Liberty in North Korea (President 9, 10, 11, 12)
Girls Who Code (Teacher’s Assistant, 11, 12)
Science Club for Girls (Junior Mentor 11, 12)
School Newspaper (Layout Associate 9, 10, 11, 12)

Job/Work Experience:
Local Library Aid (Homework Helper 10)

Volunteer/Community service: (don’t think they ask about this anywhere in the college application)

Summer Activities:
Girls Who Code (11)
MIT MOSTEC (12) - selective national program, I took a course in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
Another MIT program (12) - exclusive national program, we programmed the artificial intelligence for race cars

Essays (rating 1-10, details): In my opinion they were both ~8/10. My common app essay had a good story (I wrote about salmon soup and weaved in metaphors and flashbacks for my life) but I accidentally submitted my draft instead of my final essay so there were a few pretty obvious grammar mistakes here and there. My engineering supplement wasn’t the strongest either.

Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):
Teacher Rec #1: Computer Science teacher (probably the strongest one out of the bunch just because he really knows me and liked me a lot. he wrote all of my recommendations for my summer programs in junior year and nominated me for a lot of awards and programs)
Teacher Rec #2: Junior year English teacher (I think he’s probably a great writer although I have no clue what he wrote about me. I wasn’t a stellar student in his class although we were on good enough terms. The only thing I have to say about this teacher is that he gave me an interview where I cried as I talked about myself and my life. I think it might have helped with the sincerity factor)
Counselor Rec: Good enough? (I think she definitely likes me but I can’t tell if she wrote a spectacular recommendation or not…)
Additional Rec:
Interview: It went okay. It lasted about 45 minutes and I definitely got across my desire to go to Cornell. I talked a lot about “life at Cornell” though and not so much about the “academics of Cornell”. I left the interview thinking I did pretty bad but looking back now, that might have been an overreaction.

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Computer Science
State (if domestic applicant): MA
Country (if international applicant): USA
School Type: College of Engineering
Ethnicity: Asian
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: low income ~41k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): first generation (both parents dropped out of elementary school), low income, and female in engineering+computer science

Reflection

Strengths: grades, summer programs, coding and female focus
Weaknesses: SAT (pretty low for engineering school), typos on my essay, I also have a whole slew of terrible SAT 2’s from freshman and sophomore year that Cornell saw cause there is no score choice [610 Biology (9), 700 World History (10), 690 Latin (10)], I have a really weak STEM curriculum (most of my classes are very humanities based, which isn’t the best for Engineering school)
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: I honestly can’t say. I think in the end it really is a matter of holistic evaluation.
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected:

General Comments : So I know most of you are probably filled with angst as you look through this thread. But don’t worry too much I guess. I know I definitely did worry a lot for no good reason. In the end, things are what they are. Try to get good scores and grades but in the end those aren’t the only things that matter. Focus on developing what you like and are good at. And then the most important thing is to TELL YOUR STORY. Like dig deep into who you are and try to convey that through your essays.

[ac6803]

due to identity/paranoia concerns… some of the following questions will be left blank… sorry!

**Decision: Deferred **

SAT I (breakdown): 1970 (R: 590 W: 670: M: 710)
ACT (breakdown): 30 (english: 33 math: 30 reading: 29 science: 26 writing: 9)
SAT II: math (710)
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.85
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): barely missed top ten
AP (place score in parenthesis): Language & Composition (4), Calculus AB (5)
IB (place score in parenthesis): NA
Senior Year Course Load: AP biology, AP calc 2, intro to business, (insert language) 4 honors, study hall, world cultures honors, AP literature
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): (insert local organization name) youth fellowship award

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): student council (secretary), community service club (vice president), (insert sport name) team (varsity), school newspaper, NHS, (insert language) NHS, tutoring club, (insert language) club (officer)
Job/Work Experience: swim instructor (6 months)
Volunteer/Community service: habitat for humanity, local township, local library, brightview senior living center, etc
Summer Activities: working part time, (insert sport name) tournaments
Essays (rating 1-10, details): 7, i loved my supplement essay however it seems choppy after rereading it a few days ago. My CommonApp essay was very personal and scholarly but it seemed super serious and over-the-top.

Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):
Teacher Rec #1: 8.9, pretty good, i gave her kids swim lessons over the summer (she did pay me after insisting on it) and she included that. I had her for 4 years so she knows me well
Teacher Rec #2: 7, he said very nice things about me, but I heard he is a “mad-libs” type writer (fill in the blanks)
Counselor Rec: 5, I never liked her and she didn’t seem to like me so i doubt it was any good
Additional Rec: 6, my coach, he wrote it last minute but he’s one of my favorite teachers (even though I never had him in a class)
Interview: not a interview, but a one-on-one ‘informational session’ which was pleasant. We had a lot in common and I enjoyed talking to her. I felt a little more confident with my application after this, but I was told informational sessions typically mean nothing.

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: yes
Intended Major:
State (if domestic applicant):
Country (if international applicant): USA
School Type: public
Ethnicity: asian
Gender: female
Income Bracket:
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):

Reflection

Strengths: possibly my informational session that went smooth, my supplement essay possibly? my distant relative goes here and I included that
Weaknesses: test scores, GPA, leadership positions, awards
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: honestly, super surprised I wasn’t rejected. I feel like my scores were at the 25th percentile and nothing stood out. I do partake in a lot of extracurriculars, but nothing extraordinary. I have a couple of ‘leadership’ position, but nothing mind-boggling.
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected:

General Comments :
I am surprisingly happy with my decision and plan on retaking my ACTs and working as hard as possible! I think this was the best outcome for me–it restricts me from falling into senioritis and grinding till the end. This is possibly the hardest out of the 3 outcomes to accept, but either way, I know it will be worth it. I’m sort of glad I will be retaking my ACTs because I took them last minute and I liked them much better than SATs and regretted not studying harder for it. Plus, I really don’t think I deserved an honest acceptance. We’ll see how it goes!

[skieurope]

MODERATOR’S NOTE:
Per the very first post in this thread, only results are allowed here. Any other question/comment, no matter how insightful, will be deleted. 9 deleted already.

[DotComCrash]

**Decision: Accepted **
Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2310
ACT (breakdown): None
SAT II:
770 Lit
770 US History
790 World History

Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.77
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 19/650
AP (place score in parenthesis):
Six 5s and five 4s.
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load:
6 AP.
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):
None. Got into regionals in writing and literary criticism teams but never beyond that.

Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):
Uhh, not much.
Job/Work Experience:
No paid work experience.
Volunteer/Community service:
~600 hours of community service, with ~90% of it being for teaching and tutoring.
Founded a teaching organization for my church. Operates on a scale of thousands of dollars.
I’m serving as an advisor within a large scale charity that operates on a scale of tens of thousands of dollars. Whatever happens in that charity is reviewed and greenlit by me. I also help plan things.
Restarted the college prep center at my school and also re-instituted and manage the SAT/PSAT prep courses that my school had dropped a few years back.

Summer Activities:
Mission trips every summer to teach disadvantaged children.
Essays (rating 1-10, details):
I’d rate my essay a 9.
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):
Definitely 10 recommendations. For the two required I used my English and History teachers, both of whom I am on extremely good terms with. I had another recommendation from my school’s principal, who has become a close friend of mine.
Counselor Rec: 7 (Super generic counselor rec)
Interview:
Did an informational interview but I hear that doesn’t factor into your admissions chances.

Other
Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: English
Country (if international applicant): South Korea
School Type:
Ethnicity: Asian
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: ~40,000
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):
Pretty much none tbh

Reflection
Strengths: Community service I guess.
Weaknesses: No big recognitions.
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: Community service and test scores probably.
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: Not sure yet.

[quietdesperation]

[color=green]Decision: Accepted[/color=green]

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): n/a
ACT (breakdown): super: c34 m33 e36 r36 w33 single: c33 m33 e36 r36 w33
SAT II: 790 Bio-M (only sent this one)
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): n/a probably top 10
AP (place score in parenthesis): World (5), US (5), Bio (4), Lang (4)
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: Chinese 5, AP Spanish, AP Calc AB, AP CoGo, AP Physics 1, English 12
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): mount Holyoke book award, NHS

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): varsity tennis (4 years, captain, all-league), Destination Imagination (8 years, global finalist several times), stage crew (4 years), in BBQ competitions
Job/Work Experience: baker at bed and breakfast, Spanish tutor
Volunteer/Community service: created organization to give girls in developing countries an education + raised awareness about girls education, volunteered for community tennis organization
Summer Activities: went to pre-vet program at tufts (competitive admission), went to bio/interdisciplinary program at college of the Atlantic + did a little research
Essays (rating 1-10, details): common app- 7 (wrote about the organization for girls education but linked it back to a funny story, basically about problem solving)… Cornell supp - 9, tried to emphasize fit w wanting to do research + wanting to join drs without borders and how it supported cals mission of knowledge w public purpose
Recommendations (rating 1-10)
9, apparently very good

Teacher Rec #1: AP bio teacher, she loves me but idk why
Teacher Rec #2: APUSH teacher, really close w him
Counselor Rec: I have no idea, she’s pretty smart though
Additional Rec:
Interview: was basically all me asking questions but it went fine

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?:no
Intended Major: biology
State (if domestic applicant): NY
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: CALS
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Female
Income Bracket:
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): nothing

Reflection

Strengths: gpa, community service, reccomendations, maybe fit
Weaknesses: pretty obvious downward trend
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: i guess fit, my recommendations were also apparently very good
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: first acceptance/only acceptance but I applied to Michigan, Virginia, Wisconsin and mcgill EA

General Comments : surprised i got in, kid in my grade applied w a little lower stats but w a legacy (also to same college and major)

[amgeer]

[asize=4][acolor=#008000]Decision: Accepted [/color][/size]
College of Engineering!

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): (old) 2220 (720 M, 750 CR, 750 Writing)
ACT (breakdown): N/A
SAT II: Math 2 - 700, Physics - 710
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.00
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 16/397
AP (place score in parenthesis): AP Calc BC -5, AP Language & Composition - 4
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: Multivariable Calculus, AP Physics, AP Stat, English, painting, Link Crew, etc.
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National PSAT Commended Scholar

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Student Council Treasurer, Link Crew (peer mentoring), Key Club, NHS, National Thespian Society, French Club, Winter Track, etc.

Job/Work Experience: Worked at Giant Food Stores as a cashier for a summer

Volunteer/Community service: 200+ hours from various clubs listed above.

Summer Activities: Norwegian Travel experience summer before senior year, US Naval Academy Summer Seminar

Essays (rating 1-10, details):
Common App - Probably a 9/10, wrote about my love of Netflix and how it was a catalyst for my thinking about making my own life extraordinary!
Supplement – 9.5/10-- connected my mother’s multiple sclerosis to love of engineering (since I’m undecided, I tried to connect it to all forms of engineering as well as Cornell’s engineering theme “Breaking the Rules”).

Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):
No idea, actually but I think they were probably good!

Interview:
It was pretty good, unexpectedly over the phone but I displayed my interest well I think!

Applied for Financial Aid?: yep!
Intended Major: Undecided engineering
State (if domestic applicant): PA
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: White/Middle Eastern
Gender: F
Income Bracket: <200000
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Female in engineering

Reflection
Strengths: Female in engineering, writing supplement!
Weaknesses: Maybe not outstanding subject test scores!

Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: I tried

Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: University of Pittsburgh accepted! I did a ton of other applications too but haven’t heard back from any and now I guess I don’t need to haha

General Comments :NO MATTER WHAT, DO NOT GIVE UP HOPE. And don’t become impatient (I know it’s super super hard but do your best because chances are, if you’re applying to Cornell, you’re gonna be happy and successful wherever you go )

[mochi122]

[asize=4][acolor=#008000]Decision: Accepted [/color][/size]

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2280 (770 M, 710 CR, 800 WR)
ACT (breakdown): didn’t take
SAT II: BioM 720, Math II 690, Chem 660
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): don’t know UW but 3.97 W
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): school doesn’t rank but about top 20%
AP (place score in parenthesis): Studio Art 4
IB (place score in parenthesis): n/a
Senior Year Course Load: AP Lit, AP Psych, AP Chinese, Physics honors, Calc honors, Art (dual enrollment)
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): none

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):
-Environmental Club (VP), Key Club (Webmaster), Lit Mag (Art coeditor-in-chief), Girls in STEM Club (Webmaster), Art Club, Spring Track

Job/Work Experience:
-cashier at family owned dollar store all throughout high school
-hostess at a restaurant over summer before senior year

Volunteer/Community service:
-Key Club (about 70 hours)
-volunteered at environmental center & bird sanctuary (about 150 hours)

Summer Activities:
-took chem at a community college
-worked and volunteered at nature center

Essays (rating 1-10, details): teachers who read it said it was a “great story”; maybe 8-9; wrote about working and family obligations and really put my all into it

Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):
Teacher Rec #1: junior yr. English teacher (7-8, didn’t really participate in class but have a good relationship outside of class because of 4 yrs in Lit Mag)
Teacher Rec #2: math teacher (7, did well in class but didn’t really talk to her outside of that)
Counselor Rec: 7-8, never really talk to him but I gave a lot of details on a school survey thing we have to give to the GC’s
Additional Rec:
-art teacher (10, loves me lol and have known her for 3 years)
-nature center volunteer supervisor (9-10, I volunteer there all the time; supervisor knows me very very well)
Interview: -OK; very casual but interviewer said she would submit a good write-up; emphasized art work (showed her my portfolio!) and first-generation college student struggles

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Design & Environmental Analysis
State (if domestic applicant):
Country (if international applicant): US
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: Asian
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: 50,000
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): first generation college

Reflection

Strengths: passion, relevant classes and extracurriculars, essays and supplements
Weaknesses: gpa, courseload rigor
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: I showed a really strong passion for the school and major I was applying to and made sure to take advantage of the portfolio and supplement. Throughout high school, I also just followed my passions; it sounds corny but if you do what you love (not what you think the adcoms will!) it will really pay off in your essay and resume.
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected:

General Comments : I’M SO HAPPY. I go to a really competitive school and my gpa and scores were way low for the average so I was really surprised. Just goes to show that you don’t need a million APs and clubs to get into a school you love!!

[hleeigh]

Decision: Accepted

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2190 super score (750 r 690 m 750 w)
ACT (breakdown): 34 c (36 e 34 m 33 r 31 s)
SAT II: Lit-750, Math ii-730
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.84, 4.55 weighted
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): n/a
AP (place score in parenthesis): World history (4), Art History (4), NSL (4), Lang (5), Calc AB (5), Stat (5)
IB (place score in parenthesis): n/a
Senior Year Course Load: AP Calc BC, AP Human Geo, AP Lit, AP Econ, AP Bio
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): local award for agriculture-related project, AP Scholar with Distinction, i think that’s all

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Model UN (Secretary-General), Mock Trial (captain), varsity cheerleading, NHS, FHS, NSHS, so lots of tutoring, school representative for nutrition advocacy group
Job/Work Experience: Farmer’s market, babysitting, pet sitting, some work at my moms company
Volunteer/Community service: Girl Scouts, tree planting, volunteered every day throughout middle school at an elementary school
Summer Activities: Working at the farmer’s market and baby/pet/house sitting
Essays (rating 1-10, details): Common app-8/10, talked about learning how to ride a bike at age 16
Supplement-9/10 talked about working at a farmers market and my senior project about nutrition, as well as the strong sense of community at Cornell
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):
Teacher Rec #1: 9/10 She offered to write my letters before I even asked
Teacher Rec #2: 9/10 She’s taught me since freshman year, also my MUN advisor, she’s a great writer too
Counselor Rec: 7.5/10? I don’t really know him
Additional Rec: n/a
Interview: Good, not great, but I was able to talk more about one of my nutrition-related ECs and talk about interest in double majoring in biometry and statistics (didn’t mention in app); she definitely could tell how much I loved Cornell, since I talked about how I’d reached out to people who graduated from my major, and mentioned multiple visits

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Nutritional Sciences
State (if domestic applicant): MD
Country (if international applicant): n/a
School Type: small whole school magnet, #1 public school in state
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: > $150,000
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): worked for a farm? idk if that counts

Reflection

Strengths: farm experience, act scores, rigorous course load
Weaknesses: GPA, could have done more academic ECs (like an internship), essays weren’t perfect
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: FIT for the major AND the school, strong essays
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: n/a

General Comments : I’m so happy!!! I really went into this so unsure of what would happen, but it’s great to finally have all of my hard work rewarded!

[kyunghee]

**Decision: Accepted **

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 1540 (New SAT - Reading 800, Writing 780, Math 760)
ACT (breakdown):
SAT II: Math II 800, Physics 780
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0):
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable):
AP (place score in parenthesis): Statistics (5), French (5)
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load:
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): robotics city championships, minor school awards

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): A few clubs in school, piano, robotics
Job/Work Experience: Newspaper delivery
Volunteer/Community service: 200+ hours at hospital and summer camps
Summer Activities:
Essays (rating 1-10, details): Common App - 10/10. Wrote about a mundane experience that I’ve always (unexpectedly) remembered. I think I managed to describe the significance of the event well Also, having my friend (english major) look over it definitely helped haha
Supplementary - 6/10. Decent, but definitely flawed and a little cringey. I don’t like to think about this essay much LOL
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details): waived FERPA, but I know my teachers & counselors well and they are amazing people

Teacher Rec #1:
Teacher Rec #2:
Counselor Rec:
Additional Rec:
Interview:

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major:
State (if domestic applicant):
Country (if international applicant): Canada (but US citizen)
School Type: Public (nobody applies to top US universities)
Ethnicity: Asian
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: Very, very low (I hope I get enough fin aid)
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Female in engineering

Reflection

Strengths:
Weaknesses:
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected:
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected:

General Comments: Overall, I feel very lucky and humbled to have been accepted. I don’t think that I was an extraordinary applicant, but rather, my sincerity and dedication showed. Although cliche, my advice to prospective applicants would be to work and study hard, and do things they love. Good luck to everybody on this forum, and I hope you will all be successful no matter what university accepts you!