<p>My top 2 school choices are Cornell and NYU Stern. I am deadset on going to either of the two. I would only want to go to NYU if it was Stern, however, and I am applying to Cornell's ILR school, possibly transferring to Cornell AEM or CAS later on. I've visited both schools and they are both in NY which is where I live, and both schools are high ranked academically with tons of opportunities for me at either one. I was set on applying ED to Cornell and ED II to NYU Stern, but I've came to realize a couple things. First, I'm a city boy, not a rural cat, so the environment at Cornell might not be the right one for me. Yes, I've visited Ithaca and I've actually been there numerous times but who knows how I'll fare living there as opposed to just visiting. But the prestige that comes with Cornell is needless to say enticing, and Cornell overall is the better school than NYU. However, Cornell is also 4.5 hours away from home meanwhile NYU is in NYC which is where I live, and NYC is NYC after all. </p>
<p>Then comes the issue that neither Cornell nor Stern are locks for me. Hence why I am applying ED. If I apply ED to Cornell and I get in, I might regret doing so, but if I do not apply ED to Cornell and apply RD instead and ED to Stern, then there's the possibility that I could be rejected by both Stern ED and Cornell RD but I might have gotten in to Cornell if I applied ED. And plus, it could be foolish to do so anyways since I'm not 100% sure I would want to go to Stern over Cornell. And there's also the factor that I would only want to go to NYU if it was Stern, unless I am rejected by Cornell and could not get into Stern, in which case I would go to my secondary school of choice at NYU. Neither Cornell nor NYU offer EA, and Cornell does not offer ED II. If they did, that would help me out a lot.</p>
<p>So yes, what my decision in this affair all comes down to is environment/campus setting and my actual chances of getting in to either programs. What should I do here?</p>
<p>@theanaconda Check out my second paragraph “Then comes the issue that neither Cornell nor Stern are locks for me. Hence why I am applying ED.” Both are reaches if I apply RD, but could be lower reaches or maybe even high match if I apply ED</p>
<p>There’s also the chance that I could be rejected from Stern but be placed into CAS or Gallatin which is what I put as my alternate schools of choice</p>
<p>You need to calm down and find yourself at least one solid safety option in case neither of these work out.</p>
<p>If you aren’t dead certain that you like ILR and CU, well then wait and apply RD. Also, take a long hard look at what is offered in HumEc. There may be a business-related program that is as appealing as ILR.</p>
<p>@happymomof1 The rest of the colleges I’m applying to are safety options (Binghamton, Rutgers, Stony Brook, Villanova) as well as some other match colleges (UMich, BC and CMU) but Cornell and NYU are the two I’m set on going. I do like Cornell and ILR but I might not find the rural setting to be of my liking or I might prefer the NYU setting and I might prefer living close to home. And the only really semi-business-related program in Human Ec is PAM which I’m not too interested in.</p>
<p>That is a nice selection of safeties and matches. Since you only mentioned your top 2, I was a concerned that your list might only be 2. To be perfectly honest, I don’t think you have a true first choice that is worth the ED application. Unless your HS guidance counselor has seen many many students just like you get into one or the other of these ED, and many many students like you fail to get in RD, maybe you should just apply everywhere RD and see what happens.</p>
<p>I spent 7 years in Ithaca (grad school in CALS and then waiting for Happydad to finish up grad school in HumEc) so I do understand that people from NYC often are concerned that it is too rural. However it sure looked to me like there always was something to do!</p>
<p>If you are not sure where you want to go, don’t apply ED. You don’t want to have any regrets. But to me it sounds like you prefer to be in/near a city so I wonder if BC or even Villanova might be better matches for you than Cornell. Don’t’ go to a school just because the prestige is enticing (as you say)-- go because it is the right fit. And if you want business why not consider applying to Dyson? </p>
<p>How do you consider NYU Stern a reach but then in the same breath, call UMich and Carnegie Mellon your “matches”? That doesn’t make sense. Have you looked at UMich and CMU’s admit stats?? Do you live in Michigan?</p>
<p>@T26E4 First off, “reaches” and “matches” are ballpark terms… there are no real designations I give to any colleges by “reach” or “match” unless its a clear safety or a clear reach. By no means are CMU and UMich significantly easier than NYU Stern to where I can call them matches. However, Stern is said to be of near-Ivy difficulty admissions wise, if not of Ivy difficulty. I consider CMU and UMich to be high matches/low reaches, while Stern is a low/mid reach. If I’m wrong in that regard, by all means correct me, else stop with that nonsense.</p>
<p>whoa. You’re sensing something I’m not emitting. Just wanted to be sure you understood how difficult Carnegie and OOS UMich applications really are. My sense is people underestimate how choosy they can be. I don’t know anything about you . All I’m saying is that I’d say that those two and NYU Stern may be equally difficult. </p>