<p>So I was recently accepted to both Cornell's and Duke's engineering schools, but I can't decide which to go to. I've been told that no matter what either school will give me great opportunities, but I want to be sure that I'm making the best choice. I believe I want to study mechanical engineering, but I definitely want flexibility in courses in case I change my mind. I'm posting this in both the Cornell and Duke forums to get opinions from both sides. I'm probably going to go to grad school. Here are the pros and cons I have for each school, and I'd love some comments on what I have</p>
<p>Cornell Pros
[ul]
[<em>] Better engineering program/better sciences overall
[</em>] Ivy League
[<em>] Closer to home (~4 hrs, I live in NJ)\
[</em>] Larger school with more room for flexibility in education/major choice
[<em>] Location (I love snowboarding and don't mind the cold)
[</em>] Top rated college town
[<em>] Absolutely beautiful surroundings
[</em>] Great food
[/ul] Cornell Cons
[ul]
[<em>] Least selective ivy
[</em>] Lower test scores than duke
[<em>] Lower ranked overall than Duke
[</em>] I've heard its very liberal and I lean slightly conservatively
[<em>] Large/state school feel
[</em>] Class sizes
[<em>] Less financial aid than duke (30k+loans, but sending in appeal to get them to try to match Duke, will probably give me even less when my sister graduates from college next year)
[</em>] Heard it is hard to get a high GPA (bad for grad school)
[<em>] High stress/difficult work
[/ul] Duke Pros
[ul]
[</em>] More exclusive/smaller school
[<em>] More opportunities to study abroad
[</em>] Heard it is lower stress than Cornell, more laid back
[<em>] Higher test scores
[</em>] Slightly more prestigious/higher ranked
[<em>] Beautiful NC weather
[</em>] Basketball
[<em>] Better if I decide to go into business/IB from what I've heard/better represented in top MBA programs
[</em>] Grade inflation looks good for grad school
[<em>] 4 year double major engineering/economics that takes 5 at Cornell
[</em>] Gave me great financial aid (40k+loans first year)
[<em>] First person from my school to ever get accepted and was told I'd be "a legend" if I went
[</em>] Most people/family I've talked to want me to choose this one
[/ul] Duke Cons
[ul]
[<em>] I've heard some pretty bad things about Durham
[</em>] Far from home
[<em>] Not much variety in engineering department (only 4 types of engineering)
[</em>] Not as highly regarded in the North (plan to live in the North after graduating)
[li] Engineering department not well known outside of Biomedical (not interested in biomedical at the moment)[/li][/ul]</p>
<p>I'm going to visit both and see how I like the campuses, but right now I really can't decide at all and I'm just trying to get some opinions/clear up any misconceptions that I might have. Overall it seems like Cornell has a significantly better engineering program, but Duke is better overall especially for grad school placement.</p>
<p>Yours cons about Cornell are very naive. The supposed prestige of a university is no where near as important as the quality of your field of study. Also, why does it matter that Cornell is the least selective ivy; it has by far the best engineering program. Additionally, you can find people from all political backgrounds at Cornell. I would say a majority of students are liberal, but that doesnāt mean that people are going to judge you for your views. </p>
<p>I laughed so hard when you said large/state school feel. What does that even mean? For me, Cornell is the perfect size. 14,000 undergrads in over 80 majors in 7 different colleges. Before you know it, it seems like you know almost everyone on campus. To be honest, I couldnāt imagine going to a smaller school; I think I would be bored.</p>
<p>Rankings are meaningless to a certain extent, and the average test scores in the engineering school are certainly higher than the average for Cornell as a whole. Not sure who said it was āvery liberal,ā but itās not any more liberal than the next school. (For reference, I also lean slightly conservatively). I donāt think thereās a āstate schoolā feel. Itās a midsize university, not ālargeā with 20k+ students. Class sizes get smaller as you go on, and really thereās no difference between a 40 person lecture or a 1000 person lecture - the only value in smaller classes is when theyāre actually small, and you donāt really need that as much for the lower-level courses. The high stress/difficult work is a widely propagated myth; engineering is generally hard, but it wonāt be significantly harder here than at Duke.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>There are a ton of study abroad opportunities at both schools. Also, the engineering/economics double major at Cornell can take 4 years if you accelerate it, which several people do.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>The first of those is spurious. As to the second, choose the school you want to go to, not what other people want (assuming your family is willing to pay for it).</p>
<p>Your Duke Pros/Cons are pretty accurate. But the one that surprised me was Duke not being as highly regarded in the North. So many kids come from the North and end up working there that itās hard to believe that.</p>
<p>Iām studying ME at Duke so feel free to PM me if you have any specific questions.</p>
<p>I have no idea how to compare duke vs cornell since I never went and know very little about what they offer but Businessweek:</p>
<p>Universities Sending the Most Grads to Elite MBA Programs</p>
<ol>
<li> University of Michigan 67 grads</li>
<li> University of Pennsylvania 64 grads</li>
<li> Harvard University 62 grads</li>
<li> Cornell University 61 grads</li>
<li> University of Virginia 54 grads</li>
<li> Duke University 52 grads</li>
<li> UC Berkeley 49 grads</li>
<li> Stanford University 46 grads</li>
<li> Princeton University 42 grads</li>
<li>Northwestern University 40 grads</li>
</ol>
<p>It should be noted that Cornell is more than twice Dukeās size, so it is sending students to top B-schools at a significantly lower rate than Duke is.</p>
<p>Least selective ivy - Not an important factor.
Lower test scores than duke - Same as above. The community of the campus is much more important than the campusās test scores.
Lower ranked overall than Duke - Not an important factor.
Iāve heard its very liberal and I lean slightly conservatively - Donāt worry, youāll be fine.
Large/state school feel - This is a much more important consideration factor. The advantage is that there will be an ENORMOUS amount of opportunities and events going on at Cornell. The disadvantage is that you will be required to take more initiative to find them, and also that there is less of a ācommunityā feel here.
Class sizes - The intro classes are 100-200 students per class. The advanced classes are usually 10-40 students per class.
Less financial aid than duke (30k+loans, but sending in appeal to get them to try to match Duke, will probably give me even less when my sister graduates from college next year) - Definitely an important consideration.
Heard it is hard to get a high GPA (bad for grad school) - I canāt compare Cornell to Duke. However, it is definitely challenging to maintain a high GPA (3.7+) at Cornell, especially in engineering. However, it is extremely doable if you work hard and learn how to play your cards right. See this thread for more details: <a href=āhttp://talk.collegeconfidential.com/cornell-university/1478721-pre-med-cornell.html[/url]ā>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/cornell-university/1478721-pre-med-cornell.html</a>
High stress/difficult work - Wherever you go, engineering is going to be a demanding major, and Cornell is no exception.</p>
<p>I recently finished interviewing / applying for graduate school, and I was able to get into several top-notch programs in my field. While Cornellās somewhat harsher grading-policy was a disadvantage, it is perfectly conquerable if you are hardworking and learn to play your cards right. Moreover, Cornell offers so many extracurricular and research opportunities, which will certainly be a plus for graduate admissions. </p>
<p>I have a question. I am planning on applying to Cornell when I finish my IBās in 2 years time, and I am thinking about studying architecture. I was wondering, which maths level would I need to take, Higher level or standard level? Iāve written to the admissions office and they simply donāt answerā¦</p>
<p>Cornell Engineering is probably more selective than engineering at Duke. 96 per cent of Cornell Engineers in the class of 2016 were in the top 10 per cent of their HS class. Mid-50 per cent math SATS were 740-800, verbal 670-760.</p>
<p>Duke-Pratt School of Engineering:
SAT Math: 760-800
SAT Verbal/Critcal Reading: 700-780
SAT Writing: 710-790</p>
<h2>ACT: 33-35</h2>
<p>Cornell School of Engineering:
SAT Math: 740-800</p>
<h2>SAT Verbal: 670-760</h2>
<p>I would go with Duke, but I could be slightly biased.
Good luck!
**(Choose the school that YOU like best, not the school that people on CC recommend-your college success is what you make it!)</p>
<p>We visited both school last week, and finally my daughter chose Cornell engineering. It is difficult to make choice, finally we focusrf on the rank of the major.</p>
<p>Kalbany: wanted to pipe in about the āliberalā comment regarding Cornell. ALL universities are mostly liberal. The professors are just bent in that direction for the most part at every institution of higher learning.</p>
<p>Howeverā¦Cornell has a very active College Republicans Club - they have hosted Santorum/Dean debate, Herman Cain, Rand Paul, S.E. Cupp, etc. Engineers tend to be more conservative as a group. Iāve heard the more analytical, mathematical people who can evaluate facts and trends lean mostly right. My son is a sophomore engineer and is very economically conservative. Heās found many like-minded friends in his classes and in his fraternity. I think the conservative voice is strong, but maybe not as vocal.</p>
<p>Cornell and Duke have similar reputations. As you state, Cornell is part of the Ivy League, which holds a certain cachet for some (especially on the east coast and in some investment banking circles) However, no one looks down on Duke.</p>
<p>Duke is higher ranked as a University by USNWR, but Cornellās engineering school (which you would attend) is ranked higher than Dukeās. </p>
<p>Overall, Cornell has the highest acceptance rate in the Ivies, but Cornellās engineering school is generally regarded as the best within this group.</p>
<p>So, hereās the point you wonāt really go wrong with either school. Iām a Cornell Alum and proud of it. Given the choice between Cornell and Duke, Iād choose Cornell in a minute, but Iām secure enough in my feelings about Cornell that I wouldnāt say a single bad thing about Duke. Honestly, itās a great school.</p>
<p>So, let me ask you a question ā is there a school you that makes you feel more at home? Put reputation aside (which is a pretty fair thing to do in this case). Where do you want to go. With schools as close in reputation as these two, itās probably the best way to make your decision.</p>
<p>I donāt know much about Duke but Iāve lived in Ithaca for most of my life so I know a bit about the Cornell campus and things like that. The city is very liberal, I have heard that it is one of the most liberal places in the country. I mean, donāt get me wrong, there are obviously conservatives too, but a majority are not. Itās a very nice little city, although it is pretty much in the middle of nowhere. The campus is soo beautiful though, I pass through it about twice a week and it amazes me every time I do. I know that the engineering program there is fantastic. Itās the best engineering program of the ivies (I thinkā¦) and Iāve heard great things about the professors there. Cornell is one of my dream schools and I also want to go into engineering (chemical engineering) so congrats on getting in! If you have any questions about the campus or anything like that, feel free to ask!
Oh, and if you do choose to go to Cornell, youād better be prepared for the freezing weather. :)</p>