I’m having trouble choosing between applying ED to Cornell or Vassar. Originally, my goal was Vassar but then I found out that my sister has connections with Cornell.
I’m really into singing and theater as well as neuroscience, chemistry, and psychology.
I know it may be a shock to some people that I’m even asking this, but I want to do premed and the grade deflation at Cornell is a little threatening. I also really like the smaller class sizes that Vassar has.
Vassar also has an medical school acceptance rate of 88% and has less competition for research opportunities as well as no grade deflation.
I also know that Cornell doesn’t have the strongest theater but great a Capella groups (so does Vassar).
But, should I jump on the opportunity to go to Cornell?
Like what kind of connections? Did she donate money to fund building a building there? Does the person she has connections with know anything about you? This “connection” might not benefit you…at all.
And what happened to Wesleyan which you were considering for ED?
For the sister’s connections to move the needle as @thumper says, she’d have to have donated something like $20 million, or she’d have to be Dean of Admissions (and then I’d hope the sister would recuse herself). I think either scenario is implausible. (And if there’s that level of wealth, Vassar knows, and it probably would help with admissions there too).
It seems you have been attracted to LACs from the start and it sounds like Vassar is an excellent fit.
Unless your sister’s boss donated a building, endowed a major scholarship, or something along those lines it is unlikely to make a meaningful difference in terms of admissions. Plus IMO the more important thing is finding the right fit and Cornell with it’s large size, big classes (particularly at the intro levels), etc. doesn’t sound like the environment you have been looking for.
I agree that is not worth changing your mind over.
This is four degrees of separation (1: you know your sister; 2: your sister knows her boss; 3: your sister’s boss knows the chairman; 4: the chairman presumably knows people in admissions). That number of degrees of separation would include an enormous field of people (remember, six gets you to like the whole world). As a courtesy, it is entirely possible this chain could result in an interview, but . . . so what? If admissions says, “She was fine, but not quite for us,” will any of those relationships be in jeopardy? If not, it likely has no particular weight.
Now, there are cases where something actually gets you on a Dean’s List (or equivalent). But these are way more limited in scope, not to anyone with such a remote relationship. Like, not just donors, but super-donors. That sort of thing.
So yeah, feel free to take up the offer, but I would not change my ED plans in the hope that this will somehow be a significant advantage.
As a final thought, I think the real key for you is to have a great set of colleges less selective than Vassar but that will still be great for you. Then you don’t need to worry about Cornell, which isn’t even a great fit for you it would seem. If you don’t get into Vassar, you will get into somewhere else that is actually a good fit for you.
And then you will soon forget all about the colleges where you either didn’t apply or didn’t get admitted. You will just be loving your actual college.
Your first message is a Vassar love fest and not all that appealing about Cornell
So why would you spend four years at a school that doesn’t seem to fit you ?
Btw too many think an ED rejection is criminal. It’s not. You take your best shot. If it’s not meant to be - well you tried.
If the contact is so impactful (which I doubt - you know how many high level people in organizations get resumes and usually send back a polite non impactful note), apply RD as well as other schools that you might prefer. And Cornell doesn’t utilize interviews for admission.
You are pre med. I believe these schools have high med school success not because their advising is better. It may be but mainly because they have higher achieving students to begin with.
You can probably go anywhere and get to med school - if you are med school worthy and can get the off campus requirements in.
Please take premed out of your college choice equation. You can apply to medical schools having taking the required courses for applicants at just about every college in this country…arts conservatories excluded.
Fact is…less than 20% of students who enroll with a premed intention actually complete that.
So…look at you college choice through the lens of where you want to be for the four years you are in college.
Your sister’s boss is not going to get you into Cornell. Go Vassar and tell your sister thanks but your heart is set on Vassar. Honestly it’s none of her business as she won’t be the one who suffers the consequences, whether it works or not.
So why does this possibility make you prefer Cornell? Because everything you said you like about Vassar sounds a lot better than the things you don’t like about Cornell. Don’t base your decision on “an offer to send your resume,” which will have zero effect on improving your chances.
In the context of your post, the above is logical only if you have reason to believe you would be rejected by Vassar as an ED applicant and that Cornell would represent an acceptable alternative. Otherwise, the second part of the sentence presents a non sequitur.
Right. It’s not an “opportunity to go to Cornell”. It’s an opportunity for a distant connection to send a letter to Cornell on her behalf which may or may not (more likely) move the needle on her chances for acceptance.
