I cannot imagine what Cornell could possibly offer to make up for $180,000 difference in cost… This decision seems crazy easy to me. I opened the thread just to comment on how Nashville is infinitely more enjoyable than Ithica, but that argument isn’t even necessary with this price difference.
Anyone saying you should choose Cornell for the name recognition or the alumni network is not thinking clearly. You’re basically saying “It’s worth $180,000 for my daughter to maybe get to know a couple additional alums in order to possibly have an slightly easier time getting one or two additional interviews for her first job, and for her interviewers to perhaps be very slightly more impressed with the name of the university on her resume.” If you do feel that way, by all means, spend the $180,000…