<p>I left Cornell because it was too stressful. But that was because I had trouble understanding the material. The workload didn't feel too heavy most of the time. At my new school when it comes to problem sets we get the same amount of problems assigned per week as I did at Cornell but we move through the material at a slower pace. For example, thermo 1 and 2 at my current school was one course at Cornell. And the fact that there are no TA recitation sections means less time in class and more time to do work.</p>
<p>Overall the mood of the entire university is more relaxed than Cornell. I still have a brother at Cornell and he has a ton of work and he can't wait to graduate.</p>
<p>Cats: To be honest, my friends at other schools are just as stressed as I am. I have a feeling it's because they don't study as much or work as hard though. </p>
<p>Even though Cornell's tough, there is a plethora of ways to get help. I'm currently taking organic chemistry (a tough subject) but if you need help you can: 1) email the professor (very good at getting back to you) 2) drop by his office hours 3) drop by the OH of one of the many TA's 4) go to Chem 057 (which is the help course for this course) 5) one of the TA's have a review session every week 6) there is a review session before every prelim. </p>
<p>Some professors make themselves more available than others but between the professors and/or TA's I haven't had one class where I felt like there wasn't enough opportunities to get help.</p>
<p>I usually don't mention it since my identity is immediately revealed but it is Youngstown State University in Youngstown, OH. Definitely nowhere near the same level as Cornell but it is close to my home, offers a good engineering program despite not having as much research as Cornell, and most importantly the tuition is low, even compared to PA schools (I live in PA close to the OH border). The major difference between the student bodies is that most YSU students work to pay for their tuition so they don't have as much time as the average Cornell student to spend on studying. The unfortunate result is that college seems to be more a burden than it needs to be because going to class doesn't pay the bills (at least not in the short-term). Last year was just as expensive as Cornell for me because Cornell gave me lots of grant aid and YSU gave me none, so my loan amount wasn't much lower than what I had at Cornell. This year it is since I got some academic and research scholarships. And of course textbooks are still expensive but the used books at YSU look brand new. </p>
<p>YSU gets a bad rep among nearby high school students for being a crappy school and I even thought it was before I enrolled. It is a fine institution but the requirements for acceptance are not very high and that it is a reason for the bad rep. And the emphasis is on teaching and the profs that I have had are excellent teachers in addition to being professors.</p>
<p>This is a very general question but is it a high workload or just understanding all the concepts? Do you cover new topics fairly quickly? Are you expected to do a lot of independent work outside of class?</p>
<p>I have minimal workload because I simply don't do a lot of the suggested problems. I know other people who have to do a gazillion practice problems before each prelim in order to make themselves comfortable. I spend most of my time reading and understanding, rather than doing problems. Just my learning style.</p>
<p>Yea, there's a good amount of reading outside of class. It's simply impossible for the professors to cover everything. I've found in my math classes, the professor is just about able to cover everything in the textbook but in chem and bio, a majority of the topics cannot be covered in great detail (which means you will have to do a lot of reading oustide of class). The most reading I had to do was in intro bio last year. I think we covered around 10 chapters by the time we took our first prelim 5 weeks into the semster.</p>
<p>Maybe I can help with this question. I'm an alum and was a bio major at Cornell. The department was and still is one of the best in the country. There are amazing professors in every discipline of biology, and although you will have big lecture classes as a freshman, as you progress to upper level courses the classes can be very small and you definitely get to know the professors one on one. There is no question that there is a tremendous amount of work and that getting an A is very difficult, but I'm sure if you are thinking of going to Cornell, you are not afraid of a challenge. As far as the posts from the Engineering students, it really doesn't apply.. Engineering is a totally separate college at Cornell, and really different than A&S or CALS. You will graduate with not only a broad knowledge of different areas of biology, but some advanced knowledge in the area you choose to focus on. There is also opportunity to do research if you wish. I went on to get a Masters degree in biochemistry and then went to Medical School. I was very prepared because of the education I received. In addition I had a great time.. it's not all studying. Good luck and hope you get in!</p>
<p>I am a senior in arts and sciences double majoring . My field is not related to those you mention but I will give you my take on the work load at cornell. I came from a very competitive high school so I was prepared to not have very much free time and I expected a challenging environment. What I've found here is that while there are some instructors who engage the intellect of their students with well planned assignments and class discussions and lectures , far too many here seem to be giving work just for the sake of giving work. They give very little notice for time-consuming, pointless assignments and do not seem to want to be there. I'm sure that this is true to certain extent at many universities, but from talking to my friends at other ivies, as well as less well known universities, it is my impression that this type of attitude is more common here.I have found it preferable to be in classes with ta's because, for whatever reason (I choose not to speculate) they seem more connected to the students. If you are an intrinsically motivated individual you will probably be able to succeed almost anywhere, just be prepared for stressful situations because of lack of planning or interest on the part of some of the faculty. All in all, I 've enjoyed my experience here and I feel that I've received an adequate education to pursue my goals and this was not just achieved through classes. There are many extracurricular activities at my disposal, I feel I have been able to associate myself with people who have had apositive influence on me, and I have met a handful of absolutely wonderful professors who have helped me to shape my experience.
This university, like any other, relies heavily on what you make of it.
P.S. the two majors you are interested in both have lots of requirements, it seems like it would be very difficult, but I wouldn't say impossible.</p>
<p>To answer the question from Odysseus.. It took me 3 semesters to get a Masters. I did not get in to Med school the first time I applied (which was pretty common back then). A lot of people were going to Mexico but I was having no part of that. I then entered a PhD program in biochemistry, decided I really still wanted to study Medicine, applied again after a year of grad school, and got in. I finished my Masters and had a semester off before I started Med school. It took longer but it made no difference in the long run. In addition I placed out of Biochemistry in medical school and that made my first year a lot easier. There are a lot of ways to get to your final goal. You have to take it one step at a time.</p>