How to Write the Cornell University Admissions Essay

 Cornell University Excerpt

 by Sarah O'Neill, Coatesville, Supreme Editing

According to Cornell University admissions (via the website):

Cornell’s mission is to discover, preserve, and disseminate knowledge, to educate the next generation of global citizens, and to promote a culture of broad inquiry throughout and beyond the Cornell community. Cornell also aims, through public service, to enhance the lives and livelihoods of students, the people of New York, and others around the world.

 

"I would found an institution where any person can find instruction in any study."

- EZRA CORNELL, 1868

 

Purposeful discovery, free and open inquiry and expression, a community of belonging, exploration across boundaries, and changing lives through engagement and respect for the natural environment constitute Cornell’s core values.

Essays

Students also frequently ask us what we are looking for in the application essays they submit. Here are tips to consider:

Tip #1: Carefully consider the questions asked, but don’t try to write the answers that you think we want to hear; give us the answers that tell us about you.

Tip #2: In your essay, help us understand your thoughts and feelings about something that is important to you. We are interested in the topic you choose, how you develop your idea, and how well you express yourself.

 

In history, students shared their stories in vivid detail and with fresh language.  They showed admissions that they thought carefully about their decision to pursue Cornell. Students used real, concrete reasons and practical experiences to back up their chosen course of study.  Students showed admissions that they could enrich, engage with, and positively impact the Cornell community.  Part of being a dynamic candidate for a university is excelling in academics and having the desire or ability to solve a societal ill. They showcased clear expressions of interest, pithy personal connections, and pertinent social declarations.

 

Cornell Supplemental Excerpt: Why are you drawn to studying the major you have selected? Please discuss how your interests and related experiences have influenced your choice. How will an education from the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS) at Cornell University specifically serve to support your learning, growth, and the pursuit of your goals? (650-word limit)

 

I deeply believe Cornell’s College of Arts and Sciences is for me. Cornell is known for its diversity and its worldly contributions. This school will provide explorers like me the opportunity to discover something of interest and to which I can devote my life authentically. Cornell’s motto professes diversity as a virtue and this resonates with me as I have a spectrum intellectual passions. The three most valued are potentially connected fields with the power to change the world: computer science, mathematics, and information science.

My unwavering curiosity for computer science has deep roots. My father has been employed by IT companies for thirty years. It surprised me when he programed our family’s old desktop with lines of abracadabra and a new program appeared which could spit all prime numbers less than 1000 in one second. For eighteen years, he showed me that, if well designed, the power of software is unlimited and I’m convinced that computing is not just crunching numbers but that humanity is transformed by it.

Similarly, my love for mathematics has been long. I simply enjoy numbers! It is the most concise and beautiful language, conveying complicated messages in precise ways. The first time I understood the power of math in our future data-based world was when I created a predictive model using logistic regression for diabetes. Amazedly, my two-hundred- hour work using mathematics is used by clinical experts today. Hearteningly, hundreds of patients have benefitted.

It is exciting to apply math to new areas which is where information science makes an appearance. From its study, I can utilize my broad interests to contribute to the world. These days, society needs management of large amounts of statistical data and social underpinnings. Therefore, processing large amounts of data coming from a plethora of fields and analyzing them across disciplines is integral.

Pioneering technology promotes a future of problem-solving. I’d like to dedicate to medicine, engineering, marketing, and finance by operating within these three areas symbiotically. A cross-discipline background will help me effectively deal with complex, global problems. I know this school will provide everything necessary to fulfill my goals. It has spearheaded integration and the CIS mission is forward thinking, making computing intrinsic. I welcome learning that is novel, weighty, collaborative and dynamic.

Importantly, my intellectual endeavors are limitless and this school includes thousands of courses, from economics to springboard diving. In the first two years, I’ll explore without declaring a major. Minors encourage students to connect with others from other disciplines, which fosters a sense of connectedness. Moreover, a liberal arts education will liberate my imagination to embrace unconventionality and the course combinations foster critical thinking skills. Fortunately, Cornell’s founders, a mechanically minded engineer and a classically educated scholar, blended practicality and classicism; it was genius! To consider both aspects equally and to provide courses such as CS2048 and CS4840 will promote creativity。

Cultural diversity there is strong, too. To work alongside those holding different backgrounds is conducive to my well-roundedness. I’m keen on variety which makes me a frequenter of Institution Cervantes in Beijing. Ithaca’s campus provides everything I need including courses about culture; it’s a meaningful international experience. There are opportunities to study abroad, not spending days in London perusing museums, but leaving our comfort zones.

Essentially, there are no walls between departments. There are office hours to engage with professors about life and academics. Accompanying this open culture, are the engineers perfecting their projects, programmers coding indefatigably, and pre-med students caring for the sick. I believe Cornellians are the primary movers of social progress. If given the chance, I’ll roll up my sleeves and dig into the global issues that we face. “Elite and egalitarian” equals Cornell’s distinctiveness. Finally, the ultimate goal is not just become wealthy or to win the Nobel Prize, but to be a better person, by improving oneself and serving the world. Cornell is the prime place to begin!

by Sarah O'Neill, Coatesville, Supreme Editing