<p>I'm an Asian male. I was #1 (class size of 532) with a 2340, ten APs (all-time school record), and solid rec letters. I was Governor of a Rotary Interact district and founded an international council. I was an Eagle Scout an Co-Captain of the academic decathlon team.</p>
<p>I was rejected from the whole Ivy League (except Cornell) + Duke/NorthWestern, and waitlisted at Chicago. I was even rejected by NYU Stern.</p>
<p>So I only got into Cornell CAS, and UC Berkeley, UCLA, and UC San Diego in the end. I feel like such a loser. It feels like Cornell has the stigma of being the worst Ivy, and this just confirms it. Logically, if I couldn't get into any of those schools but got into Cornell, then Cornell must be significantly worse.</p>
<p>Just venting, because I don't have much of a choice. It's Cornell or Berkeley. I just feel so mediocre.</p>
<p>I don’t know the point of your post, do you think anyone honestly cares about your opinion, saying Cornell is the worst ivy league? Are you looking for pity in the Cornell forum about how your only choice is to go to Cornell? You are really the worst kind of person.</p>
<p>Saugus, I’ve seen some of your posts and I share many aspects of your app (asian male, #1, 2370 sat, 9 ap tests taken which is a school record). my major EC’s (swimming, coauthored a research paper, a lot of extra stuff) I just got rejected/waitlisted from all ivies (didn’t apply cornell), waitlist at chicago/NU, pomona, reject MIT, only got into UCLA and CAL. I feel like a loser as well. Prob gona choose UCLA because Cal is too close. Come to UCLA with me!</p>
<p>Maybe Cornell saw something in you that the other schools didn’t. </p>
<p>Not getting into all of the schools you applied to sucks, but you have to deal with the hand you were dealt. Complaining about it and bashing the schools that actually did offer you admission won’t change anything.</p>
<p>I go to Cornell and I love it. In fact, it was my first choice. If that makes me mediocre, so be it. </p>
<p>Anyway, good luck with your decision. You’re obviously intelligent and I’m sure you’ll succeed wherever you choose to go.</p>
<p>Well one option is to go to Berkeley and just be another Asian in an endless pool. </p>
<p>On a serious note, Berkeley and Cornell are great schools, but I understand your disappointment. If I were you, I would choose Cornell, but different people fit in better at different schools. In reality, you should probably lean towards the one that has a stronger program in your major and opens the most opportunities for you in the future. </p>
<p>Your criticism of Cornell is wrong on so many levels that I don’t know where to start. But let’s try this. For the sake of argument, let’s say Cornell is the worst Ivy (… of course 6 of the 7 undergraduate colleges are probably the best in their field in the Ivies … but never mind). Let’s also say that USNWR rankings are correct (I personally find them to be silly, but forget that too).</p>
<p>So, now you’re saying that you got into the 15th best university in the US – in what world does that qualify you as a loser. No matter how you look at it, you’ve been admitted to an elite-world class university. I can assure you that the vast majority of the approximately 84% of applicants that were turned down are envious of your failure.</p>
<p>Ouch, 7 Ivy rejections with those stats…I would be upset as well.</p>
<p>The fact is, you’re just too typical. I mean come on, Rotary club? Academic decathalon? That kind of stuff just isnt interesting and the 7 other Ivy league schools probably just didnt have room for you. The only reason you were accepted to Cornell is because it’s a fairly large school and they have the space to accomodate students with exceptional stats, no matter how generic the rest of their application may be.</p>
<p>Your results certainly show a lot of implications about yourself, not about Cornell. Please choose UCB if you will bring that kind of attitude on campus…</p>
<p>It’s at least nice to know I’m not the only one. I feel like I had a huge streak of bad luck… Surely I had to get in at least one of those schools I was rejected from. Just one.</p>
<p>Sorry guys, I’m not trying to bash on Cornell. Really just trying to get some second opinions or something. I want to be an investment banker and want to major in political science/economics.</p>
<p>Stop complaining. My friend who got into MIT and UChicago was rejected by Cornell; I got into CMU’s SCS (which is about as selective as Caltech) and was waitlisted by Cornell. You’re probably not a statistical anomaly, but you are one data point, and you can’t conclude that Cornell is significantly worse based just on your own experience.</p>
<p>^
I’m probably going to sound like an elitist jerk here, but…</p>
<p>I honestly wanted HYP +Wharton. I was a Princeton SCEA deferee. I mean… I know Cornell is, relatively, still one of the greatest schools in the world… But it just feels like such a huge step down from HYP + Wharton, and even from Duke/UChicago…</p>
<p>I wouldn’t feel so bad if I at least had a Duke or NorthWestern to pair with Cornell. Now it just feels like I’ve been thrown into a dumping ground… I know that’s going to sound offensive, but you get what I mean.</p>
<p>I’ve seen you around here for a while because I recognize your name because I remember your school from marching comps. Anyway, I am pretty much in the same situation with similar stats even. Accepted at Cornell + JHU + UCs. Waitlist at Columbia + Chicago. Rejects from HYMC. These things are pretty random and it’s not a big deal to get rejected by better or similar caliber schools. Last year, my friend got into NW, but not UCLA or UCB. I feel kind of the same as you, with the same choices (UC + Cornell + (for me)JHU ) Just visit and see which you like best.</p>
<p>Cornell is definitely not the worst Ivy, if you can even call one the worst. It has the best engineering and I feel this reputation is only said by people jealous they couldn’t get in to anywhere or because of large enrollment.</p>
<p>You do have the choice of not going to the schools that accepted you. It seems that you would have been happier rejected - well all the other schools did that favor for you. Sorry to hear the news about Cornell. You must be so sad, not getting what would make you happier.</p>
<p>And by the way I wasn’t surprised at all that you got rejected from most of the schools. Maybe it has something to do with your attitude.</p>
<p>Well, my older daughter didn’t want to to go to Cornell, but ended up there. She had the best 4 years of her life there (“a little bit of heaven on earth”). She is half Asian, got 4 offers from IB, and is working very hard at one right now. </p>
<p>My younger daughter with stats for “higher ivies” decided to ED at Cornell because of her sister and many of her sister’s friends. She is over the moon about going to Cornell this fall. Maybe you will meet her, she is quite attractive - 5’9", with large brown eyes. But she has never dated an Asian guy yet.</p>
<p>My newphew from CA is also at Cornell, he is very happy there. His younger brother will most likely apply there next year because their father went there, and their dad is an hedge fund manager.</p>
<p>You got into some great schools. If you could go to one with 20K discount, that’s the choice I would make.</p>
<p>Hey, my friend got into Harvard but not Amherst. What’s that say about Harvard? Plenty of posts right now about the quirkiness of admissions. Don’t be like the Groucho Marx joke: “I wouldn’t want to belong to any club that would accept me as a member.”</p>