What does the College of Engineering look for in its applicants? (as opposed to CAS))

Peppino · 10-05-2012, 01:26 AM

I know this question might be difficult to answer, but does the College of Engineering look for certain qualities in its applicants that the other colleges do not? Or do they all revolve around the same basic principles?

For example, does CoE look only for achievement in science and mathematics? Or do they respect academic well-roundedness as well? (I imagine CAS would look for the latter)

Also, does the CoE respect, or possibly look for, imagination/creativity of its applicants?

rhyxus · 10-10-2012, 01:16 AM

1) i think they love both the well rounded students as well as the pure math students. Remember that Cornell is not a small, engineering school; it's a well rounded university.

2) imagination? no we hate it here, we like our students to be robots /sarcasm

3) dont worry so much. Apply to engineering if that is what you think you want to do. Your essays will better reflect it.

mikeyc765 · 10-10-2012, 10:09 AM

I would say overall, CAS and CoE are looking for similar calibur students and well-roundedness. That said, I do think there is a relative emphasis on math/science for CoE, which makes sense. Also, I'm sure engineering EC's like a robotics team weigh more in CoE admissions than they might in CAS.

My general sense is that in CAS, they are looking for people who were roughly straight A students across the board in all subjects, and whose ECs highlight dedicated passions. In CAS, even most English majors were getting A's in their high school math classes. CoE is also looking for students who were strong in all subject areas, and exceptional in math/science. I'd say Engineering students were strong in most/all subjects, but were among the best in their respective classes in math/science. The math SAT subscore probably matters a bit more in CoE. That said, I'm pretty sure most CAS students who applied to Engineering could be accepted and vice versa.

What really matters in terms of academic qualifications for both colleges is demonstrated success in critical thinking skills across different types of thinking.

cortana431 · 10-10-2012, 01:17 PM

CoE probably places more interest in evaluating the math/science strengths of students as well as demonstrated and the potential for imagination and creativity.