Hi, I was hoping you could share some thoughts on where I should apply. I’m a senior rn so I need to figure this out in the next couple of days.
I could ED CMU, ED Cornell, or REA somewhere, with GA Tech as my top choice. (Leaning toward CMU and GA Tech)
GA Tech is significantly cheaper than both CMU and Cornell. I am fortunate enough to not have to worry too much about the financials, but it doesn’t hurt to keep it in mind.
Here’s a bunch of factors and my thoughts:
Program
All three schools have phenomenal MechE programs, and I’m sure that I will get a good education/opportunities wherever I go. GA Tech has a very high student-teacher ratio, which isn’t ideal. I’m not one hundred percent sure that I want to do MechE instead of, like, Industrial or smth, but all have good options for switching (besides CS/ECE, which I am not interested in).
Student Life
I’ve been lucky enough to get to tour all three schools. I’ve heard that freshman year at Cornell can be depressing or feel isolating. I toured GA Tech during homecoming, so the energy was high and people were very active/happy. CMU has a different feel since it’s much smaller; it felt like a more nerdy community with a chill vibe rather than a crazy high-energy, go-go-go vibe. I’ve also heard that CMU is a very grindy school, but that didn’t seem to be much of a case when I toured there (at least in comparison to Cornell and GA Tech). If anyone can give me a more in-depth idea of the work-life balance or lifestyle at any of the schools, I would appreciate it a lot.
Music
I play trumpet and plan to continue doing so on a recreational level during college. All of these colleges have good music programs. GA Tech has a marching band, which I would consider doing sophomore year, but I am not tied to the idea.
Frisbee
I played in high school and plan to continue playing in college. I probably won’t want to do a high-commitment team that meets all the time (probably would want a team that meets a couple of times a week and does tournaments, etc.). All schools have some level of frisbee, but GA Tech has better weather for it and a better program for it (Tribe). I could always play on the B team or something, idk.
Rock Climbing (indoor bouldering)
They all have it; idk, it doesn’t seem to be a big difference between the schools.
Food
I’ve heard that Cornell’s food is good. CMU has a really nice block system and an array of options around campus. I don’t know much about GA Tech’s food, but it has a C on Niche ig.
Housing
GA Tech has the chance to get a suite freshman year, but it has a C on Niche, so I assume that the other options are bad or smth. Cornell has pretty good housing, I’ve heard, except freshman year dorms, which are pretty isolating and far from the engineering buildings. Tbh, I don’t know much about CMU housing.
Campus
Cornell and GA Tech were prettier than CMU, but Ithaca is very isolating. I don’t have much of a preference between Pittsburgh and Atlanta besides the weather (warm would be nice).
ED Benefit
If I ED somewhere and get in, I get to be done and not be sad writing a bunch of essays in December. If I REA somewhere and choose GA Tech, I have to lock in in December no matter what.
Project Teams
CMU only has one 
but also, you can walk on without applications, interviews, or mandatory shadowing, which is nice. I heard that at GA Tech you have to shadow someone for a year before you can join? That’s kinda crazy ngl. Cornell has a bunch, and they have great facilities for them, so that’s a bonus. Realistically, I’m not going to be on more than one team, so it shouldn’t matter how many there are ig?
Workload
I will be coming into college with credit from AP Calc BC, AP Physics 1 and C, AP Chem, AP Lang, AP Spanish, and dual enrollment Multivariable Calc (and maybe Linear Alg, which I would take this spring). I could always self study smth like APUSH if it saves me from a gen ed in college, idk. I have a lot of credit, so I am not crazy worried about the MechE workload.
Weather
I have lived in New England my whole life (Boston area) and am pretty used to the cold. It would be nice, however, to live in Georgia and be warm with fresh fruit and ■■■■. (Also, cold weather + darkness all the time can feel isolating/depressing, which is not great for Cornell especially and CMU)
The Cornell Situation
For a variety of reasons, I think that I’m leaning toward GA Tech and CMU, but I’m not entirely sure. What those frat guys did was absolutely terrible, and the administration is a bunch of absolute dicks. I am not defending what the guys or the administration did in any way. Most people in my life have told me that they think that I should apply anyway, since the experience of most people at Cornell has been positive, the frat rape situation could have happened anywhere, and most top school/Ivy admins have also done terrible things (Epstein involvement, working with ICE, donating to Israel, using AI to change people’s races in photos, etc.). I am not trying to justify any of this or defend Cornell; this is just what people have told me when I ask for their opinion. If you have additional thoughts, feel free to comment them. Another thing to consider is the type of people who will be in what would be my class at Cornell (bunch of dicks? 90% men? idk what’s gonna happen).
Conclusion (sorry for the yap)
Overall, I don’t know what to do (mostly between GA Tech and CMU). They seem like amazing schools that I would be happy at, so I don’t know how to choose between them. I would love to hear any thoughts, opinions, experiences, etc. If there are any factors that I am not considering that you think I should, let me know. I liked all three of the schools when I toured and don’t know what to do. I would appreciate quicker responses cuz ED deadline is coming up (Nov. 1st-ish, depending on the school).
I have noticed that the CMU admin seems to actually care about the students, which is nice. They like actually take feedback on food and have paid for free ■■■■ for the students that they don’t really have to (like 30 min of free bike rental a day, etc.). This is nice and is a positive thing toward CMU in my mind.