I thought Cornell has the strongest engineering/applied science program out of all other ivies, and they do look quite solid in engineering, particularly for ECE (which is what I’m applying to).
But I looked at some world university rankings and apparently Cornell isn’t ranked very well for engineering, and was ranked way below Princeton which means Cornell isn’t the best engineering ivy school. (but that list had MIT below Oxford so I’m thinking maybe it isn’t the most reliable)
Are these “ranks” reliable? Can someone give an answer to how good Cornell engineering is based on experience?
I’m applying ED so this binding agreement makes me a bit anxious…I’m a little worried that it might not be as good as I thought especially in relation to other schools. (I was surprised to see U Michigan ranked higher in some of them because Michigan is less competitive than Cornell)
Basically, all rankings are very biased, even sometimes depending on how popular a uni is or how well it advertises itself. Think for yourself: Is Cornell a top school? Yes, it is, it’s an ivy, it’ll give you endless possibilities, and it’s just up to you to decide what you do with them. Does it have a good engineering program? Yes, it has awesome facilities, grads earn much more than average, like, much more. In some rankings it may be a little lower, a little higher, which doesn’t matter: you have to understand for yourself that it’s a top school and people from there do top things, so if you’re ready and willing to reach for the stars, Cornell certainly wouldn’t be in your way, and will give you the possibilities.
Don’t have experience with their engineering yet, but know many people there and been there, also applying ED, hope to see you there). And i know lots about rankings cus i’m from UK, and in UK all this rankings game is very dirty and everyone has them in their heads (Like Manchester for physics, for example, in some rankings it’s top in UK and Europe, while in some it’s like 10 in UK, while it’s an awesome department for those who are willing to take the opportunity). So, use your head, rather than rankings. And definitely don’t worry, you’re EDing, so, already, it’s time to start loving Cornell.
Cornell engineering has an excellent reputation. Is it the top ranked school for ECE? Nope. IMO, no one should be making a college ED decision based on rankings. You will get an amazing education at any number of T20, T50 and even T100 schools. What do you want out of your undergraduate experience? Larger campus feel? Liberal arts requirements? Competitive environment? Rural setting? Great job placement resources? If you answered yes to the last five questions, than Cornell would be a solid fit.
@momofsenior1 Yep I did answer yes to all those…just wanted some third opinion to confirm that my decision to apply ED to Cornell was not a bad idea.
Does the rural environment have any downsides in terms of internships? I don’t like big cities personally so I really like where it’s located but it’d be nice if I could get some internship opportunities during college 
also I think I’m expected to work somewhere for self-help anyway so I hope there are some internships around…
I never struggled finding academic related work experiences but I wasn’t in the college of engineering. My husband did his engineering internships over the summer off campus. Never had trouble getting positions. During the school year he worked as a TA/tutor. I worked as a research assistant. This is was all many moons ago so hopefully a current student will chime in.
Rankings are not reliable criteria at all, and you should never use that as your criteria for selecting a college. All they amount to are subjective opinions from people with subjective opinions. Why should I listen to them instead of my next door neighbor? Well, that’s subjective, isn’t it. You choose the right college that you can afford based on money and personality.
I’m not a big fan of ED. They tend to be more trouble than they’re worth. Students usually jump on them without shopping around for the right colleges…because it’s “HARVARD!” Yeah…SO? The ED “contract” is not really a contract. It’s designed to scare you. A college can’t seize your money and force you to attend. You can lose your deposit, but that’s a small price to pay if I find that this is the wrong school to go to. I’ve seen private schools take advantage of ED students by lowballing their financial aid. These kids still somehow think they have to attend anyway. Don’t be intimidated by them. Choose the right school that fits you and don’t be afraid to walk away from an ED if you find that Cornell isn’t the right fit.
I assume by this you mean to decline the ED offer if the financial aid isn’t sufficient…?
@geekgurl That’s correct. But also, don’t be intimidated by “commitment.” It’s an honor agreement, not a legally binding contract. It has no enforcement in any court of law. You might be blacklisted by a few snooty schools in the area…maybe, but they usually have 100 other excuses to turn you down anyway.
That’s usually why I recommend against ED. Students need time to shop around, tour schools, and find the right vibe that fits them. If you choose one school because it’s an ED offer, chances are, it’ll be the wrong fit.
ED is a commitment signed by you, your parents, and your guidance counselor. It is a commitment to take seriously. IMO an applicant should only use ED if both of these are true: 1) the college is the student’s absolute top choice and 2) the family has no need to compare financial offers between schools.
If you need aid and want to apply to Cornell ED I strongly suggest you first run the net price calculator and see if it looks like the cost will be feasible. Yes, you can decline and offer of admissions in the ED round if the financial aid is insufficient, but you must do so immediately-- before you get admissions decisions/financial aid offers from RD schools.
You have tons of posts asking where you should ED/EA. At some point you have to trust your own judgement and decide if ED is the way to go and which school is the best fit for YOU.
@coolguy40 So if I decline the ED offer because of insufficient FA (I can’t think of any other reasons that will allow you to get out of the binding agreement), will they contact my other schools about it? What do you mean by “you might be blacklisted by a few snooty schools in the area”?
I did some research on Cornell and I visited them once, it was also the only college I visited so I can’t make a comparison to others but it seemed like a cool place and I liked the profs.
I would imagine that your HS will be contacted if you decline an ED acceptance due to finances. After all your guidance counselor would have signed the ED agreement.
If you decline the ED offer, it may not hurt you but it could negatively impact future ED applicants from your HS. I believe Cornell commits to meeting full need so the odds of insufficient aid are much lower than it would be at many other colleges. It is expected that you do basic “homework” such as running the net price calculator before you apply ED – if you run the net price calculator and the numbers don’t work then I strongly suggest that you don’t apply ED.
It would be considered unethical not only on your part but also on the part of your parents and guidance counselor who also sign the ED agreement to turn down an ED offer for any reason other than the finances not working.
Again, ED is something to be taken seriously. If you are not ready to fully commit to Cornell, do not apply ED. You can always apply elsewhere under non-binding programs.
Chiming in to second @happy1’s advice above. Please take the ED agreement seriously. The NPC is quite accurate except in a few scenarios (parents own a business, as an example).
I mean I’d be happy to attend Cornell, but to be honest my first choice is MIT (applied EA) and I’m just thinking about the most unlikely situation where I get an offer from both but I can’t attend MIT because of the binding Cornell offer. But this is really unlikely so I was going to apply ED but at the last minute I’m having second thoughts…
@geekgurl That’s usually why I recommend against ED. That’s, of course, my profoundly awesome, yet completely subjective opinion. My advice, it’s better to sacrifice one school so you can shop around for the school that is the right fit for you, even if Cornell is the sacrificial lamb. What if Cornell is the right fit? How would you know that unless you had something to compare it to? It’s like buying clothes. There are hundreds of stores that have styles and fashions that are the right fit. Choosing the one that you like the best is completely subjective, but choices are plentiful.
If MIT is your top choice I would strongly recommend you do not apply to Cornell ED.
@happy1 I was debating for the past few weeks whether my regret for applying Cornell ED and being unable to attend MIT bc of the binding admission OR the regret for not applying Cornell ED and not even get in MIT EA would be greater. I really want to get into MIT but I feel like the chances that I’ll get into Cornell ED would be very high if I get into MIT, but if I don’t get into MIT I might be like “what if I applied Cornell ED I might have gotten in”. But again Cornell isn’t my definite top choice like MIT is for me.
I’ll still get my application ready just in case, but I’m gonna give this some more thought, I have time until tomorrow midnight.
Yes, take ED seriously. Do not do it if your dream school is MIT, and have a shot at it.
There is an earlier discussion about this. An user - Krypton - asked about his decision to ED Cornell or EA Caltech/ MIT. And I definitely suggest you to EA MIT since people usually regret the think that they didn’t do. If you apply Cornell ED, you will never know your chance at MIT. And base on what you said, I believe you love MIT much more.
@Lightdark05 What do you think about submitting the ED application and asking to switch to RD later?
MIT is one of the few colleges where applying early truly offers no advantage. Assuming you’re highly qualified, the most likely outcome is deferral (unless, of course, you have a hook). If you apply to Cornell ED at the same time and is accepted (while deferred by MIT), you’ll have a very difficult decision to make if MIT is still your first choice, even if you can back out your ED commitment for financial reasons. You should apply to Cornell ED only if you’ll be happy if accepted.
Cornell Engineering is as good as, if not better than, any engineering school in the Ivies including Princeton (unless financial engineering is your objective).