<p>I get a whole range of reactions here in Korea.</p>
<p>My school friends, most of whom are applying to US colleges, say 'Hey, well done, maybe I'll join you in RD.'</p>
<p>Some people who do know of Cornell say 'Holy cr@p! You must be effing smart!' Unfortuantely, they are a minority.</p>
<p>The vast majority of people say 'Well, to be honest, I haven't heard of the school, but if it's Ivy League like you say, then it must be good.' And because of my high school (generally reputed to be No. 1 in Korea), they assume wherever I go must be good.</p>
<p>In upstate NY no one cares if you are in one of the statutory schools, but if you are in Arts or Engineering they are impressed. Admissions are significantly easier for Ag, HumEc, and the others.</p>
<p>The thing is, wow-factor depends heavily upon region. bball, are you from the midwest? If so, then that probably explains your situation.</p>
<p>I can certainly tell you, though, that Cornell commands a lot more respect that Northwestern and is on par with, if not above, Chicago. A friend of mine, accepted ED to NU, complains that he has to tell people he's been accepted to 'a top-tier US school', because if he says Northwestern, like 1 in 2000 people knows. On the other hand, Cornell and Chicago are relatively well-known among the 'educated' population, though if you stated you were going to Chicago, they'd assume you're doing economics.</p>
<p>Wow factor for Northwestern? That's the first time I heard something like this. Cornell trashes Northwestern in getting the common admits. </p>
<p>Chicago is a different story. A school don't get 70 something Nobel winners for no reason. </p>
<p>Don't read too much into USNews. It's for layman. People in the academics definitely have more respect for Cornell or Chicago than Northwestern. </p>
<p>People in different regions usually have regional preference. It's not surprising to learn that New Orleans people think Tulane and Vandy are better. I have met plenty of New Yorkers think that NYU is as good as Cornell and Columbia just because it's just as famous.</p>
<p>in new york state (and NYC) as well as the majority of the northeast, Northwestern and Chicago aren't as good as Cornell (especially Northwestern). Here, Northwestern is looked at as a school that is trying to be as good as other ivy league members, but the students end up picking schools like Cornell anyways. No 'wow' factor at all. I know a handful of friends that got into chicago, but the general perception of the school is that it's where fun goes to die. I know it has some highly qualified and famous professors, but the general perception that it isn't a very fun school is reflected in its relatively high acceptance rate and low yield rate. None of my friends who were accepted enrolled there. </p>
<p>in upstate NY, the perception is if you're smart enough to get into Cornell, you've accomplished something incredible. If you've been accepted into one of the state-sided schools, you get the same quality of education but can screw with out-of-stater's who have to pay $12,000 or so more for the same thing. </p>
<p>Also, the acceptance rate for all the schools at cornell isn't an indication of their 'prestige.' The school with the highest average SAT score has the highest acceptance rate and vice versa. Though a school like ilr boasts an acceptance rate of a staggering 30%, it's also a very very narrow focused school and much of the class was self-selected (the yield rate for ilr is over 70%). Same for HumEc. Students looking for a specific major (like ilr, human development, AEM) often apply to the contract schools, while others who want a more general focus of education (basics like english, history, poly sci, economics) apply to arts and sciences. When it comes down to it, a person accepted to a school like arts and sciences really hasnt accomplished anything that a person who was accepted to ilr couldn't. </p>
<p>Also, students in the contract colleges can still take about 50% of their total classes in schools like arts and sciences. Same education, way cheaper price.</p>
<p>I think Penn and Brown have <em>by far</em> the lowest recognition factor across the country. Penn was always the Ivy doormat until just a few years ago when its aggressive marketing campaign has elevated its recognition. I would guess, based on general responses here in the Southwest, that over three-quarters of those with college degrees still either a. don't separate Penn from Penn State (they think they're the same school) or b. believe that U of Penn is kinda like U of Illinois or UConn (ergo, a pretty good state university, but not Michigan or Virginia or Texas). Brown is a color and that's about all. Cornell, on the other hand, gets pretty good recognition but I agree with poster that for most it's Harvard, Yale, good ol state U, and whatever college is close by.</p>
<p>yea..I'm from Ohio, the state which really can't identify with any region (i.e Cleveland = Northeast, Cincinnati = South, Northwest = Midwest, SE = West Virginia) However, people here are very impressed when I say I am going to Cornell, in fact they were so impressed they gave me an internship. As for Northwestern, it's a great school, but like 20 people from my school got in, and for U of Chicago no one from my school went, even though a lot got in. Also, Cornell's ivy league along with seven other schools (btw i would also take in Stanford, Duke and MIT as fellow prestige cohorts) as for everybody else i really don't give a ****, and neither does anybody else.</p>
<p>People who say it's "better" to be in A&S than in CALS can't know much about the schools or curriculum. As a NY state resident I'm saving a nice amount by being in CALS. The funny part is, I feel like whenever I say I'm an Animal Science major nobody takes it seriously--like we must be petting bunnies all day and cleaning cages for laboratory credit or something. The important thing is that educated people (such as grad schools and potential employers) know the truth--both about a particular major and the school itself. <em>shrug</em></p>
<p>that makes sense, because as a Cornell student you are allowed to take classes in any college even if you are not part of it. Also, CALS is part of what makes Cornell unique, I'm fine with it. Also, I doubt the Cornell administration would devote an entire college for petting bunnies. However, what is the most popular career path for graduates of CALS, is it business/law or what?</p>