Transferring to Cornell University from San Jose State University

Colleges & Universities Cornell University
1

<p>Hello Everybody, I have a few question about transferring to Cornell for the fall of 2011. Right now I am a student at San Jose State University in California. I am a second year sophomore and currently undeclared in major. I am interested in applying to Cornell as an Anthropology major (College of Arts and Sciences). My interest in Anthropology grew upon doing an Ethnographic research project last year for Cultural Anthropology. The primary reason for why I want to transfer is because it has been really difficult for me to further explore the field of Anthropology due to state budget issues that affect the amount of classes that are offered within the Anthropology department. Overall, I am limited in the amount of units I am allowed to enroll in per semester (14 units max.) It is increased to 18 when school starts, however, by the time school starts most classes are full and no add codes are available. This has affected my educational goals significantly. Of course, this is not the only reason why I chose Cornell. The Anthropology department at Cornell offers an honors program in Anthropology that would allow me to do extensive research in the field and formulate a senior honors thesis based on that research. This program is not available at SJSU. Also, because of the budgetary crisis, research opportunities are very limited at SJSU, and because I am interested in Anthropology, I would really benefit from the research opportunities offered at Cornell. (I would especially like to work with/take a class with Professor Adam Clark and his amazing knowledge in Primate Behavior) Finally, and probably my most unusual reason for wanting to transfer to Cornell is the Residential Program Housing opportunities. I feel that San Jose State does not have what I am looking for in a college campus in regards to student involvement. This is probably because SJSU is a commuter school and students here are not inclined to participate on campus. The residential programs would allow me to learn from my peers outside the classroom and serve the campus as part of a community. So, my ultimate question is: Are my reasons for applying to Cornell good enough to be considered? </p>

<p>I understand that academic standing at my current institution is important in being considered for Cornell, which is why I will share my academic information and like many students on this website…how competitive do I look as a student?</p>

<p>Overall GPA: 3.94
ACT from 2 years ago 27
AP Credit: AP Spanish Language - 5, AP World History - 3</p>

<p>Freshman year courses both semesters (37 units including summer)</p>

<p>Humanities 1A Honors - A
Human Nutrition - A
General Psychology - A
Cultural Anthropology - A
Humanities 2A Honors - A
General Chemistry 1A - A-
Anthropology 12 - Human Evolution - A
General Chemistry 2A (Summer Session) - A-
Elementary Statistics (Summer Session) - A</p>

<p>Sophomore Year Courses (semester 1) - (14 units)</p>

<p>Humanities 2A Honors
General Biology 1A - Fundamentals of Biodiversity
Introduction to Sociology </p>

<p>Planned Semester 2 (13 units)</p>

<p>Humanities 2A
General Biology 2A - Animal Biology
Anthropology 13 - Archeology </p>

<p>Extracurricular Activities and Awards so far.</p>

<p>Secretary for Student Advocates for Higher Education (club)
Alpha Phi Omega - Treasurer/ Publicity Manager
About 150 hours of community service through Alpha phi Omega
Made it into the Dean’s list. (IDK what that means)
Work Part Time (on weekends) </p>

<p>Thank You very much for your help. Sorry about all those words.</p>

2

<p>I don’t think Cornell wants students who don’t know how to use paragraphs.</p>

3

<p>that’s not a nice response…I think you seem very motivated and should definitely apply.</p>

4

<p>I don’t know how the ACT is considered for transfers, but that would be a pretty low score for Freshman Admissions. Maybe raise that a bit?</p>

5

<p>@trasfers2010 - I do admit that my inquiry would have been better understood if I used paragraphs, however, that does not justify you for being rude. My understanding is that you are here to support students in their academic endeavors, which is something you are not doing. I am sorry that my question was a waste of your time, but if you have nothing helpful to say please do not respond. </p>

<p>@faustarp - Thank You, I appreciate your kindness. I am indeed very much motivated to pursue my academic interests, but do you think those are legitimate reasons for wanting to transfer? </p>

<p>@FullOnFriendship - What would be a more competitive ACT score for Cornell so I can try to raise it?</p>

6

<p>A 33 would be a competitive ACT score.</p>

7

<p>I think your reasons for transferring are completely legitimate, and you should definitely at least try. I think your good academic record in college really helps you also.</p>

8

<p>Do you guys recommend me retaking the ACT then? And how important is my secondary school record as a 2 year transfer student? (I did not do very well in High School. I graduated with a 2.8 GPA and made it into San Jose State - I wasn’t very motivated then.)</p>

9

<p>According to CollegeBoard, the middle 50% of ACT scores is 29-33. So yes, I think at the very least a 32, but try for 33+.</p>

<p>I read in another thread that HS school records aren’t that important in the admissions process for 2 year transfers.</p>

10

<p>I would also think a compelling essay and some strong recommendations from professors especially in anthropology would help. Your college records look great so you are doing all you can to help yourself with your GPA and such. </p>

<p>I wonder, “why Cornell?” as there are many schools that require one to live on campus and have excellent anthropology departments. Since you live in CA and have access to U of CA schools such as Berkely, UCLA, UCSD and some excellent private colleges, which I am sure also have strong antrhopology programs I think you need to make a more specific and compelling case for Cornell. I understand that you are interested in the work of the professor that you cite, but I think you should have a really well developed set of reasons for Cornell so that the fit is easy for anyone to see.</p>