Cornell University Reviews

"Cornell is an extremely rigorous academic school where students take their studies seriously. You are surrounded by one of the most gorgeous campuses in the country."

"The pros of the program are its great value in diversity, reputation, and support in your career and academia. The professors are experts in the field with years of experience to help describe scenarios you might face in the future. The cons of the program are its pricey location in Ithaca, NY and the high expectations it places on its students. However, the workload is worthwhile and challenges you to be better in every aspect of Human Resources."

"Pros: - challenging courses. - Professors always available. Cons: -little support for Muslims community (no Halal food in the university dining rooms, prayer room is so small,....etc)"

"I think the best of my program is its diversity of concentration/majors within the departments and a very good integration with other department. One can easily design his research focus and also gets the opportunity to collaborate with any other areas he/she is interested in. The only challenge I faced here is cultural differences."

"Cornell is an excellent place for graduate studies, Ithaca itself is a very safe place and people are nice. Staff at Cornell are very supportive and always available. As of research and education quality, we work on the state of the art projects funded by industrial or governmental organizations. It is challenging and rewarding at the same time. The social life aspect varies from one student to another depending on their interest and how social active they are; but definitely Cornell provides adequate number of events and opportunities to us to have an excellent social life."

"Hard working, diverse student body. Something for everyone and all interests. Beautiful campus"

"100% lived up to the billing - wonderful academic environment, brilliant professors, zero problems finding work at graduation."

"The Archaeology program has the benefits of being a smaller, interdisciplinary program housed between larger departments. This allows for students to participate in a number of different courses and tracks, and contact an incredibly diverse group of faculty. Additionally, the research facilities at Cornell are some of the finest in the country, with extensive libraries and anthropology collections. Though the program is generally not funded, the faculty and research opportunities make this program one of the most unique archaeology MA programs in the United States."

"Cornell is a top tier school. Engineering is a hard program. I had a maybe-slightly-above average GPA with a handful of sleepless nights, but I would have done significantly better if I'd devoted more time to studying and less time to other activities. Cornell has a ton of student activities for you to be involved in, and it's pretty easy to make a new student group if there's something you're passionate which doesn't already have an official following at the school. The Diversity Programs in Engineering office is fantastic. I high recommend you look into their programs if you're even slightly considering engineering as a major. The Materials Science & Engineering department is relatively small, and the professors are great at helping you if you ask for help. Learn to ask for help."

"Fantastic professors who are almost all very available to students. Course material is challenging and workloads are heavy, which means students need to work very hard to get through the program, but by the end they will have truly mastered their chosen fields. Broad selection of courses allows students to sub-specialize in almost anythings they want. Ithaca itself is a fantastic place to be a graduate student. The Cornell community is very welcoming and supportive, and campus always feels safe. Rent is higher than some college towns, but not absurdly so. Quality of restaurants and shops in the area is also high. Biggest complaints are probably lack of financial support for graduate engineering degrees. However, most students would probably agree that the investment is worth it."

"The professors and researchers are very enthusiastic about their work and teaching others. However, the department is relatively small and disconnected from other engineering disciplines on campus."

"Excellent experience. Big school but community feels small. Academically rigorous but lots of fun as well."

"Well, I'm still here, so it's great. It has its ups and downs like anywhere else (no guaranteed housing after sophomore year, *really*?) but it has so many wonderful people and dedicated professors that you can't help but overlook them. The old buildings really give off the feel of the authentic college experience. You quickly grow close to the people in your classes and in your major. The advisors truly want you to succeed, and since they come from all walks of life, their ideas about success are not constricted OR a one-size-fits-all. Also, please know that from about January to late March it is so cold in Ithaca that you will cry tears of bitter despair, but if you think you can handle it, come on up. The ride is worth it."

"Cornell's graduate program in psychology is exceptional in its mission to create independent researchers capable of contributing scientific knowledge to their respective fields, as well as beyond. The program provides generous academic, career, and financial support, while instilling a sense of independence and freedom in the structure of the program as well as the trajectory of the student's research aims. The faculty are the best in their fields, and open to collaborations across topics in biology, ecology, development, behavior, cognition, and more. Students who thrive when working independently would be hard-pressed to find a better institution to hone their skills, as Cornell's facilities and knowledgeable faculty and student body compose an ideal learning environment. On the other hand, the freeform structure may be intimidating to those students who may learn best under more intensive structured guidance. That being said, support is easily accessible when sought, making Cornell an overall welcoming and productive graduate experience."

"The quality of the instruction was very high. The school was large enough for me to find a social niche. The course offerings were diverse."

"Enjoyed my time there, and the campus and student life were pretty good."

"College is a big change that can be either great or awful. Make sure you push yourself outside your normal boundaries to make the best of it. Take classes you never thought you'd like, give people you usually wouldn't a chance, and join a club that you would never have in high school. Doing these things will make college the most fun and memorable. Stick it all out, because it's worth it."

"Great school. The faculty are all very dedicated. The campus is beautiful and located in a small town surrounded by nature. Some of the students are there because they have to be, but many of them still enjoy learning. The classes can be stressful, but if you enjoy what you're learning then the stress doesn't account for much, the ones you hear complaining the most are the ones who don't want to be there."

"Great for those who want to experience a non urban college campus setting. May not be as prestigious as other ivy leagues but still great name on resume and offers same opportunities as other schools"

"It really does try to live up to it's motto of "Where anyone can find instruction in any study." You work, live, and socialize with people who come from different walks of life and have interests in just about anything. That being said, it IS an Ivy League school, so "different walks of life" generally means 50% upper to upper-middle class white kids, and 50% everyone else. However, of the Ivies, it definitely has the biggest breadth of academic diversity (7 different colleges, half public, half private) and the large size means that you'll be able to find your group of friends (and avoid anyone you can't stand). Greek life is big (about 1/3 of students when I was there), but there's no real pressure to join up. There really isn't a single "Cornell experience" - it's a choose-your-own-adventure book where you can have both frat bro electrical engineers and hardcore academic art students playing beer pong at the same party as B.N.."