Need help choosing between Cornell, Wesleyan, and Colgate

College Search & Selection
1

<p>I am so confused right now! Because I am an international student, and do not have the chance to visit them, I am heavily relying on CC.</p>

<p>My major is CS, and I do want to get the best possible education. I can be smart and competitive enough. But that doesn't mean I want unfriendly, cut-throat competitiveness. I might have a hard time trying to keep up with other geniuses, and end up giving up or something. </p>

<p>Financial aid is okay for me, so it should not be a factor. And location doesn't matter to me. It could be either urban or suburban.</p>

<p>I want classmates who will be my all-life friends, not enemies. I crave for the environment in which students work together.</p>

<p>If ranked in prestige and CS curricula, Cornell will be the first one without question. And I am kind of leaning towards Cornell. But people are telling me the environment there is harsh and unfriendly. And that there is a lot of pressure. </p>

<p>If the fact above is untrue, I will definitely go to Cornell. </p>

<p>So help me and tell me your opinions! Thanks!</p>

2

<p>neither Cornell nor Colgate can be described as suburban. They are rural.</p>

3

<p>Cornell is located on a hill overlooking a small city, Ithaca, NY.
CS at Cornell is demanding but students are not cutthroat. You have to work hard. There is not a lot of hand-holding. I think this is the nature of CS study. It is not a warm and fuzzy discipline. Students are friendly, Standards are high. I am not sure CS is different anywhere else. </p>

<p>I would give CS at Cornell a try. If you don't like it, you can transfer.</p>

4

<p>I wouldn't pick Wesleyan without going to visit, you could easily end up hating it. It has a very... unique atmosphere. I didn't apply to Cornell but I'm choosing Colgate over Wesleyan because it seems like a better fit for me. When I revisited I met a couple of kids who were CS majors and said they were having a good experience. It's tough to pass up Cornell though especially when you can't visit anything. It's tough because each of these 3 schools have there own different atmospheres. Cornell is reputed as the easiest ivy to get into but the most rigorous academically. If all you care about is reputation and not having fun then without a doubt go there.</p>

5

<p>IMHO, Wesleyan is, as Adree2000 said, unique. The students are very liberal, activist politically, and gay-friendly. I agree that if you haven't seen it and experienced it, it would be risky to pick it.</p>

<p>Cornell has a broader reputation -- i.e., it's better known, both in the US and overseas. It's also much, much bigger. That can be advantageous -- if, for example, you decide you don't want to do CS, there are lots of other excellent majors. I have heard that "Cornell is the easiest Ivy to get into but the hardest to get out of" -- meaning that it requires a lot of work and is very rigorous. That said, I doubt it would require of you anymore intensity than what you've already handled.</p>

<p>I know many people at both schools, and I've never know anyone to not be happy at either school. The D of a good friend, who goes to Cornell, said to me: "You can create a small environment at a large school, but you can't create a big environment at a small school." In other words, don't let Cornell's size or alleged rigor deter you.</p>

6

<p>Andre2000--I disagree with your statement about Cornell being about reputation and not fun. The kids I know at Cornell are extremely happy--they enjoy their classes and also have a very good social life. Some of them don't like the weather, but that would be the same at Colgate.</p>

7

<p>
[quote]
The D of a good friend, who goes to Cornell, said to me: "You can create a small environment at a large school, but you can't create a big environment at a small school."

[/quote]
</p>

<p>I like this quote. Cornell is divided into 7 colleges with different disciplines, with most of the colleges having just a few hundred kids. It is not very hard to create a small environment.</p>

8

<p>wow, great inputs! these are really helping me decide. i think i'd better choose Cornell then.</p>

<p>but this thread is still open for more opinions</p>

9

<p>I think norcalguy put it succinctly: at Cornell you will get stuck in one school, in one discipline, in one corner of the campus, consisting of "a few hundred kids". At Wesleyan, you will be an integral part of a complex and interesting mosaic. If you can't visit both campuses, spend some time on their student-run blogs. This is Wesleyan's (called, <em>Wesleying</em>):
[url=<a href="http://wesleying.blogspot.com/%5DWesleying%5B/url"&gt;http://wesleying.blogspot.com/]Wesleying[/url&lt;/a&gt;]
If lolcats, boy bands, debates about food, politics, life in a small, blue collar town and other scary topics really turn you off, then, by all means, you should choose Cornell. (But, in all fairness, you should probably ask, where is Cornell's blog?)</p>

10

<p>I do know kids unhappy at Cornell who wanted to transfer. I also know kids very very happy.</p>

<p>Cornell has a large frat scene and Colgate does too.</p>

<p>This is something to consider.</p>

<p>Cornell has the greatest course selection. I would look at the catalogues of the schools on-line. You may discover Cornell is the only school whose course offerings give you enough breadth and depth or you may be pleasantly surprised that the others do too.</p>

<p>And there are all sorts of kids at Wesleyan. Not everyone is "out there." The school with the most homogenous student body is Colgate. D's close friend adores it there. On the whole the student body is preppy and pre-professional. My S and D would not be happy there though I think they would be at either Cornell or Wesleyan.</p>

11

<p>I am much concerned about the CS courses rigor. While I want to get the highest possible education, I also want to have a great social life and have fun!</p>

<p>I am planning to change a lot. Here I am not that open, social person. On the boards, it seems like those who are somehow related to Cornell are positive about Cornell, and those related to Wes positive about Wes, and same for Colgate. I want to know true opinion.</p>

<p>My parents and friends of parents are urging me to attend Cornell because of its prestige. Because other two are not well-known internationally. Though I myself am thinking of giving a shot at Cornell.</p>

<p>SO EVERYONE PLEASE!!!</p>

12

<p>CORNELL is a beautiful campus. You can see this yourself online. I happen to think its town, Ithaca, is very appealing. </p>

<p>Positives: Prestige, campus, reputation, breadth of selection of courses.
Negatives: Size (for some), segregation into separate schools, frat scene (for some).</p>

<p>Cornell has an active social life, but a more fragmented student body.</p>

<p>COLGATE has a beautiful campus that is much smaller than Cornell's. It does not have access to a substantial town in the same way Cornell does.</p>

<p>Positives: Well rounded kids. Seems like a happy campus. Close-knit community. Well known emphasis on fun.
Negatives: Frat scene (for some, positive for some), small, isolated, less courses.</p>

<p>WESLEYAN: Funkier campus that many students adore. Shiny, new student center. It is slightly larger than Colgate and has a small group of grad students. It is more diverse than Colgate with a more intellectual, more alternative feeling. (Alternative means less main stream.) It has access to a small working class city.</p>

<p>Positives: Very liberal, accepting environment. Very political student body. (for some.) Also a close student body.
Negatives: Very political (negative for some), less beautiful campus. More PC (politically correct) atmosphere.</p>

<p>Fun at Wes might not involve the drinking that happens at Colgate.</p>

<p>Cornell, being larger and more diverse, may provide more choices, though it too, has a large frat/drinking scene.</p>

<p>Cornell will have more international students, if that is important to you.</p>

<p>All three are wonderful schools. I've done my best at outlining the differences as I see them. I hope I have done justice to the schools.</p>

<p>This is just a decision you will have to make. Study the websites. You can learn a lot. You really can.</p>

13

<p>Interesting to see Colgate & Wesleyan on the same student's list as they are complete opposites. You could be very uncomfortable at either Colgate or Wesleyan. Cornell University is the only reasonable recommendation based on your limited posted information. "You can make a big school small, but you cannot make a small school big," is of particular relevance when the schools involved are Cornell, Colgate & Wesleyan. In conclusion, your top three choices, in order, should be : Cornell University, Cornell University & Cornell University. P.S. When seeking opinions, you might want to consider modifying your location.</p>

14

<p>as an International, you also need to think of college reputation, and Cornell is much more well known internationally.</p>

15

<p>
[quote]
I think norcalguy put it succinctly: at Cornell you will get stuck in one school, in one discipline, in one corner of the campus, consisting of "a few hundred kids".

[/quote]
</p>

<p>Do you actually know anything about Cornell? You can take courses in any college from any college. The idea is that your education is full-customizable. If you want to take all of your courses in CAS as a CAS student you can. If you want to branch out and take art classes in the Architecture School or a class on wines at the Hotel School, you can. Hence, if you want the diversity and variety of a big school, you can have that. If you want the feel of a small community, you can stay within your specific college at Cornell and only take courses there.</p>

<p>Due to its size, Cornell's student population is very balanced. You can literally find any kind of student here so you never feel isolated. You want liberal or gay-friendly, you can find that. But, there are people on the opposite end of the spectrum as well. Due to its reputation, there are also a ton of international students at Cornell as well.</p>

16

<p>tsenguun - with the financial aid packages you've already received from Cornell and Wesleyan, you are unlikely to have to worry about graduating with much debt from either school. With that in mind, you're probably going to go to grad school. A good, solid LAC (liberal arts college) now and a sprawling research university later, after you've had more experience as a young adult in a strange country, is a perfectly rational approach, IMO.</p>