<p>So I got into Cornell engineering as well as Harvey Mudd college. I love Mudd but I'm on the east coast and would actually like to stay here. However, I am being scared off from Cornell by being told that I will be stressed out of my mind all four years, people around me will be drunk, slutty, and unfriendly, and I will be overall miserable in the middle of no where that is Ithaca. I am not a frat party type... don't smoke don't drink and such.. would that be someone that would keep me from being happy with the social life? Is everyone cold-hearted and competitive? It seems hard to believe to me that in a school that big one couldn't find ones niche and someway to be happy and get a great education... am I wrong? One of my friends who goes there said "i'm in a cold place among cold people, being a warm person wanting to be in a warm place." Is that just her personal experience (about the people, not the weather) or is that really what most of it is like? Someone else told me that is it just "not a happy place. People are just not happy there." Is that true? In any shape or form?
I would really appreciate some genuine replies because I was quite set on Cornell and now don't know what to do.
Also, for anyone who goes to Cornell and loves it dearly, I'm not trying to bash Cornell here.. just trying to figure out how much merit those rumors have.</p>
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will you be? That is totally up to you. Some people are (I’ve noticed a high correlation to the people who also stress about proper printing margin size), while most are busy but absolutely fine and actually very happy about their education.
This sounds like a positive. Sighhh. Now surely you can see how this description doesn’t quite jive with people that are “stressed out of their minds all four years”
I live in the greatest city in the world, but do I ever miss Ithaca. At 100,000 people and an magnificently vibrant college town, Ithaca is hardly in the middle of nowhere.<br>
me neither. And I stayed that way. I like wine, but I didn’t really drink in college.
No. God no, that would be terrible!
You are absolutely right. You’ll find your scene, just like everybody does, and with an open mind to new experiences, it’s a brilliant place to grow as a student and as a person.
If you’re having that much trouble finding warm and friendly people in a campus of 20,000 I can’t wonder if the individual rather than the university is to blame.
In my multi-year first hand experience, no. If you would like to be miserable, there are plenty of options for you to explore to enhance this. This can be difficult, however, as there are far more options that are meant to enhance your experience as a student.
You seem smart enough to understand that rumors are just rumors. Cornell is a magnificent place to be, but you do have to put a little bit of effort into making the most of it. But do this, and you will have nothing short of a magnificent 4 years. And what I would do just to have one more year back on The Hill.</p>
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<p>There are cold people at Cornell. But there are also very warm people. If you find yourself surrounded by cold people, the solution is easy – go out and join clubs and activities that by their very nature are surrounded by warm people – religious groups, charitable organizations, club sports teams, mentoring activities and the like.</p>
<p>I had a situation my freshman year where I was less than enthused by some of the behavior of my freshman dorm mates. The solution? I got involved in the dorm hall council, a student programming board, outdoor education, and habitat for humanity where I met a lot of people who had the same values as me – and we’re best of friends to this day, emailing back and forth multiple times throughout the day.</p>
<p>If you’re worried about engineers. Don’t be. There are plenty of warm engineers. Warm female engineers. Just look at SWE.</p>
<p>I’m not going to lie to you and say that Cornell is just as happy and as a collaborative place as Harvey Mudd. It’s not. No place with engineers and architects, philosophy majors and hotel management students can be. But will you be able to carve out a Harvey Mudd-esque experience with a low-key social life and close friends for yourself at Cornell? Most likely, yes.</p>
<p>As a parent (I am sure you would prefer to hear from students) I can tell you that my sons have found the niche that you are talking about. They are very active in their low key fraternities and many community service organizations. They also work in labs and have jobs on campus. They love Fridays and Saturdays because they spend their days skiing in the winter, and enjoying some of the most beautiful natural surroundings a person could ask for. The early evenings are spent at one of the many great restaurants in either college town or the commons and then they usually attend low key parties. Neither of my two sons are into very large parties and they have always expressed their happiness with the social opportunities. As far as slutty drunken crazy parties…I’m a parent so I really wouldn’t know but my kids are pretty open about the things they do. They are not into that type of scene either and they seem to have a great social life.</p>
<p>The wonderful thing about Cornell is that everyone could be happy there. It will be up to you to enjoy your time at Cornell and to take advantage of the world class academics, amazing beauty, clubs and organizations of all kinds, and the high intellectual level of the students. </p>
<p>I have four children, and the two that attend Cornell are so appreciative of their time there. I have a son who attends MIT and is looking forward to attending Cornell for his graduate work. There is just something about Cornell that you just can’t find anywhere else.</p>
<p>If you’re worried about Cornell’s rigor, you should be more worried about Mudd in this regard. Here’s some quotes of a Mudd mom, from a prior thread…</p>
<p>“Mudd is all about hard work, with little social life. It’s the price you pay. It’s not for everyone,…”</p>
<p>“It was a very tough four years with little sleep,…” </p>
<p>There was another thread, I can’t find it now, where IIRC someone was debating Cornell vs. Mudd specifically because they concluded Cornell was easier !!! BTW Cornell can be made harder, to a degree, if you want that, but perhaps it’s more discretionary.</p>
<p>All those years ago, I found engineeering tough but doable. There was a feeling like you’re all in it together, which sort of helped. The social aspect is at least as important an influence on overall happiness as your work is, and that side all depends how things work out for you. My D2 is doing great there socially, not in engineering but that’s not the point.Great group of kids shes found to hang out with.</p>