<p>In the Bay Area, it is not uncommon for students to choose Cal/UCLA over Cornell. In fact, I don’t personally know any person that chose to go to Cornell over Cal/UCLA due to the high tuition of Cornell. The only circumstances in which people I know chose to go to Cornell over Cal/UCLA are 1. the person was rejected by Cal/UCLA and accepted by Cornell 2. Cornell gave an extreme amount of financial aid.<br>
I have also never heard of anyone choosing Cornell over Stanford and rarely heard of Cornell being picked over CalTech.<br>
The fact is that going to a UC costs significantly less than going to Cornell. This doesn’t mean Cornell is a bad school though (obviously).</p>
<p>the comparison between Berkeley or any other UC and Cornell or Penn or Dartmouth makes no sense. they are 3000 miles apart. the ivys applicants have stats that are way, way above schools like UCLA or Berkeley. check the common data. Cornell is amongst the most highly regarded in the world. comparing Berkeley or UCLA to Cornell makes no sense, on any level. Comparing University of Michigan to Dartmouth is similar. the schools are far, far apart and one has less than half the tuition for in state residents. If I lived in California it would be hard to pass up the UCs for almost any school, unless I was applying for and getting aid. Anyone accepted to an ivy on the east coast usually goes. If you are 3000 miles away and live in California and can go to school for real cheap, you would be hard pressed to pass up the UCs, even compared to Yale or Columbia. The comparison between Berkeley or UCLA and colleges like Cornell or COlumbia or Penn or Dartmouth are absurd. Cornell is a powerhouse name across the country. Compare a private school like Stanford or Caltech to a school like Cornell or Columbia or MIT and you have a valid comparison. still, the schools are 3000 miles apart! what about comparing UCLA to Oxford. If the applicant lived in California, of course they would go to UCLA. obviously it does not change the fact that Oxford is a way more prestigious school. Berkeley is amongst the best, state or otherwise. But it really can’t be practically compared to any of the ivys or Mit or Duke, etc when you are living 3000 miles away and can go to school real cheap. Even without the different tuition, it is hard to compare the ucs to any of the ivys, they are 3000 miles apart and the ivys are way, way more selective, in terms of admissions. it is a lot harder to get into the ivys or the east coast top schools. that itself does not make them “better” than the ucs. If I lived in California, I have to admit I would be considering the ucs (especially UCLA) over most any school on the east coast. the difference in tuition over 4 years is like a few hundred thousand - a lot of money. no matter what, in terms of reputation, I don’t think the UCS carry that national or international prestige that any of the ivys, mit, duke, etc have. again, my opinion</p>
<p>People on this thread are assuming that most applicants have a household income above $60,000, but a great deal of students don’t so a Cornell education is like solid gold because it’s free and it’s top-notch. In addition, A private education provides you with way more opportunities because of the resources available so CAL and UCLA are not even comparable to Cornell, because they are public schools where students might have to stay for 5 years in order to accumulate enough units to graduate, due to class restrictions…</p>
<p>Poolboy’s post must have been the most repetitive post I’ve ever read.</p>
<p>repetitive. but he or she is right as overachiever92 says right above. I don’t see how anyone compares the UCs to Cornell or Penn or Dartmouth type schools. It is apples and oranges for sure. If you live on the east coast and can afford it, Cornell is up there with the best. UCs are great for west coast people and even for those considering some more “highly” ranked schools out west. In terms of money and prestige, the UCs have both and if you live out west it makes sense, sometimes even over others. But the ivys and East Coast names like Georgetown, Duke, MIT, etc., are top notch, but expensive without aid.</p>
<p>rem, thanks for the study. I noticed that two colleges that we are looking at, cornell and UIUC, happen to have the same ranking place as they have in the USNR rankings - coincidentally , since usnr separates colleges into unis and LACs, and of course, uses an entirely different methodology.</p>
<p>Despite Berkeley’s relatively high rank as a top public school, many folks would never even consider attending the school. I would attend USC over Berkeley any day of the week. I and four of my friends visited the school our senior year high school, and we were all shocked at the fact that over 80% of the student body was either international or Asian. I felt a great culture shock, and could not see myself comfortably fitting into that place socially or culturally. I wondered if this school was indeed an American school, not some school in Asia. Besides, its classes were far crowded (not my type) and it was just way too huge. </p>
<p>Cornell, along with other top privates, should provide vastly superior undergraduate experience due to smaller classes, more individual attention, higher school budget, and a proper mix of racial (and geographical) diversity among its student body. Cornell’s student body is stronger than Berkeley’s. And, generous financial aid doesn’t hurt either.</p>
<p>Excellent is the reputation Cornell has in California, along with all the other top east coast schools. my feeling is that if you live in California and could get into Stanford, it probably is the best choice.</p>
<p>great rep in California for sure</p>
<p>According to ib612: “Cornell wins in overall undergraduate studies and the fact its an Ivy, albeit the lowest one.”</p>
<p>According to the Times Higher Education Rankings for 2010, Cornell is ranked 14 among the top 200 universities of the world, surpassing the rankings of Brown, Dartmouth, UPENN as well as Columbia. ([Top</a> 200 - The Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2010-2011](<a href=“http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/world-university-rankings/2010-2011/top-200.html]Top”>World University Rankings 2010-11 | Times Higher Education (THE)))</p>
<p>It would be an inaccurate assumption that Cornell is ranked as the lowest ivy league. Not anymore. </p>
<p>Nonetheless that being said, it would be needless to argue over the rankings of an ivy league. If a school is within the ivy league then it should be understood that prestige, worldwide reputation and high academic standards are characteristics of that university, whether it be Cornell or Yale. And globally for the most part the Ivy league has a higher reputation than the UCs, eventhough the UCs comprise of great schools.</p>
<p>This is why I dislike undergrad rankings. I mean, while I do agree there’s some extent of how rankings play a role in your future career, if you just take full advantage of what your school has to offer (whether it’s Berkeley, Cornell, or another top-tier school), get fantastic letters of rec., do research, etc. you should show enough aptitude to do well in your later years. </p>
<p>Grad school rankings are a different story lol.</p>
<p>" If a school is within the ivy league then it should be understood that prestige, worldwide reputation and high academic standards are characteristics of that university, whether it be Cornell or Yale. "</p>
<p>How flattering, but mostly what it means is that we play Yale in football, etc.</p>
<p>When I was telling my peers where I am going to school, some of them had not heard of it. Some adults haven’t even heard of it. However, Californians in the educated community HAVE heard of Cornell, and I believe they regard it with esteem. Most Californians are more familiar with Berkeley and UCLA due to their geographical proximity.</p>
<p>And I agree with a former poster that if you are from California, you should try go to Stanford. The east coast has a completely different culture. The people are very different from Californians. It is incredibly diverse, and yes, there are students at Cornell from California, but it seems like most are from the east coast. Also, Cornell is in central New York, which has another feel than does New England, where a few of the other Ivies are. The weather here at Cornell is TERRIBLE. Seeing the sun has become a rarity and this winter never seems to end! </p>
<p>I have met some engineers here at Cornell who aren’t from California, but would have loved to go to Berkeley for engineering. They say the program is one of the best. They simply couldn’t pay the out-of-state tuition. So I argue that you have to look at individual programs within each university for some sort of rankings…</p>
<p>My classes may be smaller than those at Berkeley, but by no means are they small! Lecture halls of 300 or 400 are commonplace here. My friends at Cal also have these size classes. </p>
<p>Financial aid is not that generous for everyone, although it is for families with very very low incomes. I personally believe they gave me crappy financial aid considering my financial standing, so I reapplied and they denied it, saying they already “gave me a break.” They’re effed up. I was stuck with the SAME financial aid package from when my mom made TWICE as much as she does now. And Cornell is cheap–they charge me lots of money for everything…</p>
<p>I chose to go to Cornell over Cal and UCLA. I got into Cal and UCLA. I am paying more to go to Cornell than I would have for either of those UCs. It was not the smartest choice. I came to Cornell for its name, and I have been disappointed by Cornell. I am trying to transfer to Brown for fall 2011.</p>
<p>^</p>
<p>Yeah, it sounds like choosing Cornell over UCs paying much more money was a pretty dumb decision on your part. You should transfer out ASAP and save money.</p>
<p>And I agree with a former poster that if you are from California, you should try go to Stanford. The east coast has a completely different culture. The people are very different from Californians. It is incredibly diverse, and yes, there are students at Cornell from California, but it seems like most are from the east coast. Also, Cornell is in central New York, which has another feel than does New England, where a few of the other Ivies are. The weather here at Cornell is TERRIBLE. Seeing the sun has become a rarity and this winter never seems to end!</p>
<p>And this is why jackets exist. Compared to some other parts of New York and New England, the weather isn’t terrible as you say. The occasional snow can be a nuisance, but it’s nothing serious with proper attire.</p>
<p>I have met some engineers here at Cornell who aren’t from California, but would have loved to go to Berkeley for engineering. They say the program is one of the best. They simply couldn’t pay the out-of-state tuition. So I argue that you have to look at individual programs within each university for some sort of rankings…</p>
<p>Engineering programs at Cornell are some of the best in the country…</p>
<p>My classes may be smaller than those at Berkeley, but by no means are they small! Lecture halls of 300 or 400 are commonplace here. My friends at Cal also have these size classes.</p>
<p>Not every class is going to be small seminars or sections. In fact, class sizes are usually determined by subjects and course level. Introductory courses tend to have more people, although there are exceptions (languages for example).</p>
<p>Financial aid is not that generous for everyone, although it is for families with very very low incomes. I personally believe they gave me crappy financial aid considering my financial standing, so I reapplied and they denied it, saying they already “gave me a break.” They’re effed up. I was stuck with the SAME financial aid package from when my mom made TWICE as much as she does now. And Cornell is cheap–they charge me lots of money for everything…</p>
<p>I’d say it’s very generous for a lot of other folks, too. My family earns approximately $100,000 each year and I still received a very generous amount of aid. Cornell is known for offering very fair financial aid to whoever applies for it. As for Cornell being cheap, that is totally unjustified. I do agree that the costs of things on and off campus can be a bit pricey, but for a first-year student it’s not as bad. Also, you are heading to college, you should’ve expected to at least spend some degree of money since you’re essentially living on your own.</p>
<p>I’m not trying to lead you into bankruptcy, but as a student who currently attends Cornell, and has wanted to be here for a long time, I’m encouraging you to think hard about transferring. There are a few bad things about the school, but there are far more good things that outweigh those.</p>
<p>I chose to go to Cornell over Cal and UCLA. I got into Cal and UCLA. I am paying more to go to Cornell than I would have for either of those UCs. It was not the smartest choice. I came to Cornell for its name, and I have been disappointed by Cornell. I am trying to transfer to Brown for fall 2011.</p>
<p>Islander4 , I think you forgot to quote your last papragraph, it was nlm2993s, not yours. (Unless you’re transferring too…)</p>
<p>“I’m encouraging you to think hard about transferring.”</p>
<p>Everyone’s situation is different.</p>
<p>nlm2993 has already posted that her boyfiend goes to Brown.
She posted she attends one of the contract colleges, and I read elsewhere that the contract colleges can be less generous with financial aid to the non-very poor (don’t know if it’s true). For someone from SoCal the winters certainly can reasonably be considered severe (Brown, though a little milder, does not = florida exactly either, BTW), and individuals undoubtedly do vary in how they react to that. Social connectedness, or lack thereof, can also be an important factor in satisfaction with one’s environment; maybe that is not an issue here but I can imagine having a boyfriend elsewhere can inhibit one’s initiatives. And, if I understood, she is unhappy about contending with premeds in intro bio & chem classes when she is not premed.</p>
<p>She probably already is thinking hard about transferring, if Brown is her only application, since Brown is no automatic transfer hence there is a good chance it won’t happen.</p>
<p>Every university has their respective features, and whether one likes it or not depends on how they perceive these features and weigh the good and bad points individually, vs. their alternatives. Everyone doesn’t have to arrive at the same answer. People can have perfectly legitimate reasons for not preferring Cornell.</p>
<p>It’s kind of a shame to leave after only experiencing the worst of it, because for most people it gets better. Particularly once one gets into one’s major in an excellent department. But not all such decisions are wrong, or misguided. Some people really don’t like it, and won’t next year either, don’t want to put down roots there. Legitimately, based on their own criteria and circumstances. In that situation they should probably leave.</p>
<p>If someone chooses Cornell over Berkeley simply because of the name, then that would be a mistake.</p>
<p>There were a ton of things I liked about Cornell and things I didn’t like about Berkeley. I ended up loving my 4 years at Cornell and paid only slightly more than I would have at Berkeley while enjoying a whole other section of the country (yes, life exists outside of California). However, you should choose your college for the right reasons.</p>
<p>As a girl who lives in orange county I’ve always seen Cornell as remote and cold. But I would say it’s a little above Berkekey.</p>
<p>West Coast Logic:</p>
<p>Stanford
[entire Ivy League]
Berkeley</p>
<p>Granted, Stanford accepts some real douch</p>
<p>I’m not sure how others around me view Cornell, but I know it has one of the best pre-veterinary programs in the U.S. I would’ve originally applied there, but my grades in high school were below par, lol.</p>