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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]DS was accepted two years ago for CS. Originally applied ED, was deferred and got in during regular decision. DS ended up going elsewhere.

While I’m sure he would have been happy there, he is really thriving where he ended up. Ultimately it was the Cornell admitted student’s day (April) that turned him off and made him reconsider. Things that made him rethink Cornell were class sizes (especially for intro classes) and lack of freshmen with summer internships. It also seemed the college of engineering did nothing for admitted students day - opened up buildings for touring in your own and a few tables in a lobby with a handful of students to answer questions. It was pretty lame. The weather was horrible that weekend too.

They couldn’t throw together a presentation on why Cornell CS or Engineering is so great. They couldn’t bother to have a few professors there. We did our best to ask our questions to the student reps. Their responses were probably the most honest we would get but did not put Cornell in a great light - eg classes could be 1000+.[/quote]

This raises an important point about Cornell re 'fit'. Cornell, especially STEM but really across the board, is a research-focused university, and perhaps on the opposite end of a SLAC in terms of undergraduate attention. The Professors are great and do interact with undergrads, but their prime focus is on their research programs and (grad/postdoc) research groups. It is a good fit for an undergrad that is very self-directed and independent academically, but not as much for students who want more from the faculty than solid and rigorous courses and exposure to academic research. One exception to this is that Cornell has extremely strong professional networks across the board and these are excellent for undergrads aiming to find alumni mentors and professional peer groups. But in general I don't think it's the kind of place where departments and faculty are going to put on a big tap dance for undergrads about how great their department/program is. [/quote]

Agree with this. I was able to work on two cool research projects but only because I took the time to establish a relationship with those professors and expressed interest.

There are many cool opportunities, but you need to seek them out yourself. 
[/quote]

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