So few days ago, I heard that my transfer application to Cornell was unsuccessful.
Can you guys give me feedbacks?
My application was as below:
My current college = Within top 100 university [English speaking]
High School GPA = 4.5 on a scale of 5
College GPA = 3.95 on a scale of 4. (In my uni, above 70 is sumacum lauda and I got 80)
SAT = Not submitted as they stated that they don’t require one. => I checked this fact multiple times.
Nationality = South Korea
Ethnicity = Asian
Fee waiver = Requested
Financial Aid = Requested
Experiences
- Local politician internship
- Participated in a political campaign for the Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage
- Work [paid] with FDA
- Final stage National Engineers Without Borders [EWB] participant
- Founder and president of Korean Young Volunteer Society [sponsored by the Korean Society]
- Research with a professor
- Field trip with another professor
- Experiential entrepreneurship program - Regular meetups with startup business experts
- Critical thinking and Innovation program
- So can you guys suggest why my application wasn’t successful?
- I heard that Ivy League universities aren’t fond of Asian students as they tend to get a lot of scholarships. Could it be one of the reasons?
- Was applying to the financial aid and the fee waiver not a good idea?
Thank you for your feedback 
International transfers are very competitive, even for very well qualified applicants. Which college did you apply at Cornell? If it was engineering (which I’m gathering from your experience with engineers without borders), it’s even more competitive. Yes, needing aid makes it even more challenging. No, to discrimination against Asian students. Cornell turns away incredibly accomplished students every year, both domestic and international.
If I have to guess it would be due to the fact you need financial aid as an international transfer student. Cornell does not give aid to all international students.
@oldfort If I was eligible, they could’ve offered me a place and said I’m not eligible for financial aid, no?
https://admissions.cornell.edu/apply/international-students
Cornell is not need blind admission when it comes to international students.
Truth be told, admission is usually need aware. I have always advised students if they could afford to be full pay do not apply for FA. The possibility of getting few thousand $$ does not outweigh of better outcome.
I don’t think they “discriminate” Asians per se, but they do have a quota for Asians. So, Asians have to compete with Asians to get in. Unfortunately, Asians are a try-hard bunch, so even straight A + 1600 SAT / 36 ACT students don’t always get in. if your high school GPA is 4.5 out of 5, it’s not very competitive among Asians. You didn’t say your SAT score, but from your not sending it, I would guess it’s not extremely high.
In Regents of the University of California v. Bakke, the SCOTUS ruled schools can’t use quotas. In a later case involving UMich, the SCOTUS ruled colleges and universities can’t reward “points” based on race. However, obviously schools can take race into account. I cited these because the poster above stated they have quotas, however, they legally can’t.
While they can’t set actual numbers, obviously race does play a large factor and the competition amongst Asians at elite universities is most likely seen has the most competitive. Being Asian, International, and requesting FA probably largely factored into their decision because your profile is far more stellar than some others I saw admitted. It also could’ve had to do with essasy. When making admissions decisions at elite schools, essays play a large factor because they make you stand apart from your other highly successful peers.
Clearly, you’re smart, successful, and very qualified. You will do great things wherever you graduate from. You may have to work harder or look deeper for the same opportunies, but you can find them. College is what you make it.
Did you apply anywhere else? If you really don’t like where you are, you can always apply as a junior, assuming you’re a rising sophomore.
Best of luck!
Just because SAT isn’t required doesn’t mean it isn’t considered.