<p>So I really want to go to Cornell, and i've heard that legacies help a lot. Here's the thing: my grandfather went there for MEDICAL school during WW2. He was a pretty famous doctor (he wrote a book and came up with "community medicine"). Will that help me? Or, does it not count since he went to the medical school?</p>
<p>Yep, that's legacy. And it might help you.</p>
<p>it will help you, but legacies only get you so much</p>
<p>that might help you but i think you need more members of your family to have attended to be considered a full on "legacy"</p>
<p>be sure to mention him somewhere...talk about how he influenced you to go to cornell or something corny like that.</p>
<p>yea, the common app cornell supplement asks specifically for parents, grandparents, and great grandparents ect that have attended cornell, so it is a legacy, how much it helps is up to the adcom</p>
<p>will a cousin or sibling attending the college you're applying help?</p>
<p>When I visited Cornell, the admissions officer said that they only take legacy status into consideration for early decision applicants.</p>
<p>I've always thought that, in general, it only counted if relatives attended for undergraduate, but I could be mistaken.</p>
<p>Evispe, a cousin is a bit of a stretch, but a sibling would probably help a little, provided that they're doing well. A few colleges I visited said they check up on your sibling to see if they've adjusted well and are succeeding.</p>
<p>Will a grandfather who was chair of a dept at Columbia help with a Barnard admission?</p>
<p>^ @ queen's mom: No.</p>
<p>I agree with doodle - I don't think a cousin will help at all, but at some schools having a sibling as a current student does help a little bit.</p>
<p>bump......</p>
<p>NO that is not a legacy. Legacies are PARENTS only. However, you might be able to tie in your family history into a college app essay where you relate that to your desire to attend that school.</p>
<p>Having a current sibling only helps in terms of they know the school better, NOT in terms of increasing admissions chances.</p>
<p>Siblings do get advantage at being a legacy. At D school there have been multiple cases of sibling getting into Harvard/MIT because of their siblings (Same parent) not cousins.</p>
<p>Eaglian, you are right and wrong. Many schools only consider parents, but THE CORNELL COMMON APP SUPPLEMENT SPECIFICALLY ASKS FOR GRAND AND GREAT GRAND PARENTS WHO ATTENDED. Do some research next time.</p>
<p>yeah, but if they ask doesn't mean they weigh it very heavily</p>
<p>Most schools only consider relatives (most of the time it's only parents) that have gone to their undergraduate schools. Legacy status is most useful for ED or EA - use it or lose it. The reason is if you want special consideration for being a legacy then they want certain commitment from you too.</p>
<p>what about a genius cousin who got accepted into all ivies and did all APs? she's in Harvard now.</p>