<p>I just got offered a place for Brown 2013 off the waitlist. I was just wondering how you guys would compare Cornell and Brown, especially in terms of pre-med preparation. I was starting to get pumped about Cornell, but when i got my offer i started thinking about my previous worries about Cornell (aka big frat scene, hyper competive pre-med program, no city near-by). I would really appreciate any input you guys had. thanks a lot</p>
<p>You means class of 2012?</p>
<p>Brown is ranked higher in pre-med, but if you consider the overall quality involving engineering (including bio-engineering), humanities, the arts, etc, Cornell is better off for you. </p>
<p>I am interested in biology (although not med), and I did some research on Cornell biology and found that many, many students head to graduate schools or med schools (in the 70%+). Cornell is my favorite, of course.</p>
<p>When picking a college, you should look at it holistically. Rankings matter little in undergrad. You're looking for well-roundedness in your undergraduate education.</p>
<p>If you are premed, go to Brown. This is coming from a Cornell (but engineering) student. Having many friends in the premed field here, I know that being premed here sucks. The general classes are curved really low and getting a high GPA in order to get into an elite medical school is an extremely difficult task. I believe that it is much easier to get good grades at Brown, which should help you greatly in your med school application. My friend at Brown tells me that there is some grade inflation, with the pass fail options, being able to choose any course you want to, etc. When you graduate, you'll have a good GPA from an Ivy, and you can't top that.</p>
<p>I'd say cornell is a better place to be pre-med only if you're interested in PHd Med track...</p>
<p>if you're just gonna be an MD then go to brown...</p>
<p>Without comparing the two universities' rigor and academic strengths and weaknesses (you are on a Cornell board afterall), that Cornell does not satisfy your need for a city (Thayer Street is really "groovy" and reminds me of Greenwich Village), and a school without a large focus on the Greek scene. I would take Brown for those reasons because it seems to "fit" you better. If you do choose Brown - this is my advice - take it or leave it. (1) Do not take advantage of their S/NC (pass/fail) option for any of your classes and (2) I would also model your 4 years along the lines of a traditional liberal arts college including all of the pre-med requirements so it doesn't look like you are trying to take the "easy track" to med school. Another option would be to immerse yourself in upper-level science and math - biomed, etc. In other words, I would not use their New Curriculum to make an easy schedule for yourself. The caveat here is that you won't find Brown any easier or the grades any more generous than Cornell if you choose challenging courses and a traditional grading system. </p>
<p>As an employer - I look very carefully at transcripts of Brown students.</p>
<p>Also, if you plan on taking the gap year, since you were offered a place in their 2013 class - do something productive with that year that will help round out your med school application. Norcalguy could probably give you advice on that one.</p>
<p>In your gap year I'd recommend you get a head start on clinical experience and/or meaningful volunteer hours.</p>
<p>How come they offered you 2013 - didn't you apply for 2012?</p>
<p>i got in off the waitlist. they said they didn't have enough room</p>
<p>Having spent a lot of time at both schools, there is no way I would wait a year for Brown. Then again I don't think I could wait a year for a full ride at Harvard.</p>
<p>A gap year with no real plan isn't worth it. Come to Cornell. You can have a quasi-Brown experience at Cornell, but not vice-versa. Plenty of students never set foot in a fraternity, become a College Scholar, and engage in all of the intellectualism that Brown offers without any of the haughty elitism.</p>
<p>And Ithaca offers all the amenities that Providence does, plus all the benefits of the great outdoors. Sure, Boston is an hour and a half away, but at the end of the day you are going to college to be on a campus, not to be close to a big city.</p>
<p>Penn sucks so does Brown, semen pools in collegetown...</p>
<p>WE DIDNT GO TO HARVARD!!</p>
<p>^ uh..semen pools?</p>
<p>lol thats what it sounds like to me XD</p>
<p>^ I think they're saying "steaming pools in collegetown" ..... you have quite an imagination there ResurgamBell</p>
<p>^ steaming pools? </p>
<p>i still don't get it lol, but semen pools was funny yet....highly disturbing if you had a mental image ><</p>
<p>eww, i imagined passing by a "semen pool" and someone pushing me in it...gross.....</p>
<p>bump
cornell pre-med is what I'm interested in... is it really that cut-throat?</p>
<p>Premed is cut-throat anywhere you go. By cut-throat, I don't mean people are going to sabotage each other's work, etc. but good grades are very hard to come by- you will need to work extremely hard to be a pre-med anywhere (except MAYBE at a school that has lots of grade inflation).</p>
<p>Cornell does a good job of placing its premeds into med school- about 70% of all Cornell premeds get accepted into med school and 88% of Cornell premed applicants with a 3.4 GPA or higher get into med school.</p>
<p>When comparing Cornell's acceptance numbers to those of other schools, be careful. Cornell releases truthful data, whereas other schools like Duke try to game and distort their numbers by reporting only the % of applicants who get into med school applying through their particular advising center, etc. I can assure you that Cornell places into med schools at least as well as almost any school in the country.</p>
<p>So if I do reasonably well at Cornell Human Ecology with a Human Health Biology and Society Major/Spanish Minor, med school (even Weill) will be very probable?
Also answer the HumEc thread I started!! lol ";P</p>
<p>Cornell premed is not cutthroat. Some of my best friends were former lab partners/classmates. I found most people to be very collaborative.</p>
<p>Weill is a very small med school and Cornell produces a lot of good applicants. Don't be offended if you don't get in. I had a 3.9/37 and didn't even get an interview from Weill.</p>