Hello! I was just accepted to Cornell as a Design and Environmental Analysis major at the School of Human Ecology. Could anyone talk about their overall experience at Cornell, no matter what major, and give some advice/pros and cons? That would be so helpful! Thank you
Congrats on your acceptance! Rather than write a novel on my experience here (which I could), I’ll try to give a few of my main tips, but feel free to follow up if you have any specific questions!
- Time management is key. Cornell is a lot of work, regardless of major, but it's all doable if you develop good time management skills early. Don't overwhelm yourself with extra credits right off the bat, and instead try to figure out the best time management techniques that work for you. I personally use a calendar white board hung up by my bed to track due dates/exams/other important things and then map out what work I need to get done each day to get everything in on time and be prepared.
- Don't compare yourself to others. This is easier said than done. It can be really easy to focus on what everyone else is doing (taking 21 credits, pulling all-nighters, staying in all weekend, working in multiple labs, applying to internships/jobs, etc.). Ultimately, none of that matters. If you're doing well and you feel like you're where you need to be, then you are. Cornell can feel like a competition as to who's working the hardest, but that doesn't matter (you'll still get a good GPA and a good job at the end even if you never pulled an all-nighter your entire Cornell career).
- Don't let the little things get to you. Again, easier said than done, and you will have mental breakdowns during your time here (sorry), and sometimes the little things will feel like huge things. But you'll get through all of it because everyone struggles at points and everyone makes it through in the end. Don't work yourself to death, don't beat yourself up over a bad grade (because you will get a bad grade), don't stress too much over friends/relationships. You'll be okay :-)
Again, these are just a few tips. Please don’t hesitate to reach out/message me with any other questions you have!
@Ranza123 are you in the Design and Environmental Analysis major, or speaking to the Cornell Experience in general? My child was accepted to D&EA and is asking friends of friends to try and find a current student to speak with or meet up with. I have not come across any comments from students in this major - I’m guessing it is a small major.
@Ranza123 thanks for the great tips! could you tell me a little bit about your experience at Cornell? like what kind of stuff you do for fun and what the environment is like?
@Ranza123 I understand Cornell is a difficult school, but are you able to get good grades? Are you able to pursue other activities such as club sports, etc?
@mom2022 No, I’m not a DEA major unfortunately. It is a fairly small major so it may be difficult to find anyone in it! I’m a senior government major in Arts and Sciences (minoring in PAM in Human Ecology).
@chairkloi I’ve participated in a few clubs during my time here that range the spectrum from music to honors clubs. I was also an editor for the Cornell Daily Sun, which took up quite a bit of my time, so that was a huge focus for me as well.
When I’m relaxing I’ll go out to brunch/dinner/drinks with friends, hang out downtown (on the commons), do work in a coffee shop, watch Netflix, etc. There are also plenty of outdoorsy things to do if you’re into that sort of thing, like hiking or skiing or biking. There are also events happening on campus fairly frequently. There’s almost always something to do if you’re looking for it!
The environment is extremely diverse; you’ll find people of all backgrounds with all sorts of interests here. It’s a relatively large school, so it could take some time to meet a group of people who you really connect with (or you could meet them on day one of orientation!) but guaranteed there is a perfect group of friends for everyone on campus. The environment also isn’t cutthroat or competitive; people will push themselves pretty hard, but never at anyone else’s expense.
Hope this is helpful; let me know if you have more questions!
@SuperGymnast_04 Just saw your comment after I posted my last one! Cornell is hard, and unless you are my friend who graduated with a 4.1 GPA, you will get bad grades sometimes. But you learn from your mistakes and get better, and you don’t stress about a bad exam or even a bad final course grade. It’s completely possible to get good grades; I had my fair share of struggles but I’m still graduating with a pretty good GPA. I know two people who graduated with a 4.1 while taking pre-med classes. And I know plenty of engineers who had closer to a 3.0 but still got amazing jobs after graduation. So I guess this is a roundabout way of saying yes, you can get good grades, but even if they aren’t perfect, you’ll still turn out okay.
And yes, there’s still time to pursue other things! Last semester I worked two jobs, an internship, served as an editor for the Daily Sun, did research with a professor, and flew across the country interviewing for post-graduate jobs. And I survived. It’s perfectly normal (and I would encourage it!) to sign up for a ton of clubs your first semester freshman year and then decide which ones you want to pursue later. Go to clubfest, sign up for the email lists, maybe go to the first meeting of a couple, and then feel free to drop/continue on with whichever ones you want. Don’t do a million things, but there is definitely time to do a couple fun clubs/activities in addition to academics!
@Ranza123 Did you ever have any friends who did not like their major to the extent that they actually had to switch into a different college at Cornell? Is that easy enough to do?
@pvcamom None of my friends ever switched colleges, but it is possible to do. If you Google “internal transfer” for the college you want to switch into, you should find the requirements for transferring.
You shouldn’t rely on this option when applying to Cornell (some people try to game the system by applying to what they feel is an “easier” college with the plan of transferring to a different college later on), but some students realize after they start at Cornell that they want to study something else than what they initially anticipated, and that major might be located in a different college. Plans can also change obviously between when you first apply and when you get to campus. But I wouldn’t go into it anticipating hating your major, because that could end up being a self-fulfilling prophecy. Some colleges leave a lot of room to experiment with different courses and departments, and you can take courses outside your college. so don’t be afraid to explore during your first semester.
@Ranza123 Thanks. Definitely not gaming it … he is already accepted to Cornell Engineering and is excited by the idea of engineering. Just curious more than anything else because you haven’t really tried your hand at any of these majors and it would be a bummer if you couldn’t switch if you wanted to. We live in California … some of the UC schools have very strict limits regarding changes – and many changes are simply out of the question. Is there anything in particular that you think prospective students should do when they are there for Cornell Days? He kind of has the full lineup of sitting in on info sessions, taking a class, etc. but I am wondering if there are certain things that are not-to-be-missed. It is the last look at the school before he decides! Also visited last Spring Break and he really liked it. It is very far from home, though (that is me talking, not him).
@pvcamom I agree; 18-year-olds shouldn’t be expected to know what they want to do, especially since they’ve never tried most things. But it is definitely possible (although not guaranteed) to switch colleges! Engineering is nice also because you don’t have to actually declare your major until sophomore year I believe, so you can try out courses from different departments.
I sat in on two classes during Cornell Days and still remember both of them so clearly (linguistics and astronomy). It was my first time ever sitting in a college classroom and it got me so excited to attend in the fall. I even ended up enrolling in the astronomy class I sat in on.
Other than that, I would recommend taking time to just explore the campus on his own, away from tour groups, to really get the sense of what it would be like to be on your own there as a student. Any building on campus can be found on Google Maps, but he can ask anyone for directions and they’ll be more than happy to help. Get coffee at Cafe Jennie (in the Cornell Store) or Libe Cafe (in Olin Library), walk to North Campus to see where the freshmen live, get lunch at Trillium (the burrito station is the best), sit on top of the slope, check out the inside of academic buildings, walk into collegetown and explore what’s there. Honestly, other than sitting in on classes to get a sense of the academic environment, I think just taking an hour or two to explore on his own will be the best way to make a decision if he can see himself there.
Hope this is sort of helpful, and I’d be glad to provide more specific things to see/do if you (or anyone else) have more questions!
@Ranza123 Thanks we are on the Campus To Campus bus right now and when we get up there he is going to meet a Mech E student for lunch at Collegetown Bagels (friend of a friend) … will have him walk down on his own … he has a few other meetings
Set up too one with a young lady who lives around the corner from us in California but is at Cornell and another with someone from one of the clubs that he is particularly interest in. Thanks for the suggestions.
@chairkoli Cornell has an excellent vibe of people and professors. I visited the campus with my cousin and she absolutely loved everything about the campus. The older architect really sets apart the image of other college campuses!
I just applied ED for DEA. I’m trying to find out how many people apply each year and how many people are accepted into each graduating class. What specialization are you in? I applied for Health & Wellbeing.