What grades do you need to get into Cornell?

I was assuming high 90s but someone in my grade who has average 80s & not a very high SAT score got in (she has a lot of ECs, so I’m assuming that must have helped, but I figured you would need good grades too?)

Depends, Cornell has a college specific application process, so your experience applying to CALS (especially New Yorkers as many seats are reserved for NYS residents) may be vastly different than applying to the College of Engineering. Typically, decent grades with an enticing uniqueness seems to be the key, or super high grades and having a life (conclusion reached from perusing the accepted student boards, don’t quote me here). Typically, if you’re above a certain threshold for grades, they really don’t matter that much, it’s much more about fit and you as a person. Good luck if you plan to apply!

@teabiscuit , you need to research the college, see stats for freshman profile and know that any super selective college is going to look beyond just grades. You should also talk to your college counselor.

There is no grade cut off or certain grades they are looking for, or certain test scores. At least that is what they say in the info sessions. They are looking at your whole application holistically. Having said that, most incoming freshman do have very high grades. Check out the current student profile to see where you fit in.

Approximately 90% of incoming freshman will have been in the top 10% of their class. You can always find the outlier who got in with an average in the 80s or someone with an 1100 SAT, but you can bet that they had a strong hook.