Dartmouth & Cornell

ryanxing
Sun, 11 Jul 2010 03:13:31 +0000

I seriously need help on this. ASAP.

Really the only Ivies I have a slight chance of getting in. I really like Cornell (mostly because of its location in NY and away from a big city). It has decent programs and have a class size that I like. So for a while I’ve been thinking of applying Early Decision to Cornell. One of the factors that I used to choose which school to apply for ED is my chances of getting admitted (I feel like it’s not worth the ED if my chances don’t improve*, but of course my choice still has to be a school I will enjoy attending). But today I looked up Dartmouth. It’s ranked #1 in Undergraduate teaching (Cornell is nowhere in sight) and it is the only other Ivy (besides UPenn) to have high ED admission rates. I gathered up some info on Dartmouth and Cornell and I just can’t decide on which to apply for ED. I’m leaning towards Cornell, but there’s 1 thing that’s really bugging me - Only 11% of students enrolling in Cornell came from the West while 20% of Dartmouth admits are from the West. I’m in California, so that, along with the fact that I’m an Asian male, seriously dents my chances for Cornell. My ranking is not good and my SAT (M+CR) score is 1420.

Cornell:
Located in NY, where I want to go (back)
36% ED admit rate
11% came from West (including CA)
88% from top 10% in HS
Average SAT (M + CR) is 1380

Dartmouth:
Ranked #1 for undergraduates & has a better reputation
26% ED admit rate
20% of admits are from West
91% are top 10% in HS
Average SAT score is 1450

So basically, my chances for Cornell are better EXCEPT for the geographical residence part (huge difference).

I really need advice on what I should do.

*Disclaimer: Cornell states that admission chances do in fact increase if the applicant is applying for ED.