Undergraduate Admissions

Cornell Engineers are motivated, collaborative, compassionate, and intelligent. If these qualities resonate with you, consider joining our diverse community of passionate students and faculty. You will be emboldened to break the rules of conventional thought—to think independently and explore new ways to improve the quality of life on our planet. Together, we tackle problems great and small. How will you break the rules to do great things?

Virtual Visit

Cornell Engineering Virtual Visit

Update on On-Campus Visits

In the interest of community safety, Cornell will not hold in-person tours or information sessions this spring. Likewise, we will not hold any in-person admitted student events; admitted students will receive information on virtual visit opportunities in April.

Additionally, our admissions staff continue to work remotely, and visitors are not allowed on campus until further notice. We encourage you to take a look at Cornell’s Information for Visitors, which is updated regularly.

Alternatively, we hope you will check out the many virtual opportunities available on our virtual visit site.

You can also take advantage of these University-wide virtual features: 

If you are interested in learning more about Cornell, please sign up to receive communications from us, or email us directly with questions.

Important Update on SAT/ACT requirements

What makes Cornell Engineering unique?

  • We are the largest and highest ranked engineering program in the Ivy League.

  • Our program has incredible depth with 14 majors and 20 minors in addition to the breadth of academic opportunities across the University.

  • Cornell Engineering sponsors 29 student-led project teams.

  • Females compose 53% of the Class of 2022 and 50% of the College of Engineering overall.

  • All faculty in our college teach and advise undergraduate students.

  • Our students gain access to an unparalleled career network.

  • We provide outstanding support services from faculty, peers, and our advising and student services offices.

 

Due to the coronavirus pandemic, we are unable to host on-campus information sessions. We have created a Virtual Visit site to help you learn about Cornell Engineering. We also have created an online version of our information session to help get you started.

 

View the slides from our Cornell Engineering Information Session

See also:

Discover Cornell Engineering

First-Year Applicants

Individuals with a high school diploma or GED who have earned fewer than 12 college credits may apply as a first-year applicant.

International Applicants

International applicants are defined as students who are not U.S. citizens, U.S. permanent residents, do not have refugee/asylee status, or who are undocumented residents without DACA status.

Cornell engineering student Atsu

I am a Cornell Engineer

I will break the rules to do what was once thought impossible. My advice to you? Pursue every opportunity that you see, no matter how small.

Atsu ( Manassas, VA ), chemical engineering

Cornell engineering student Caitie

I am a Cornell Engineer

For me, engineering is problem solving. I feel that the base of all engineering is learning how to think in a different way, and apply that way of thinking to solve problems with creativity and innovation.

~ Caitie (Midland, MI), operations research and engineering

Cornell engineering student, Justin

I am a Cornell Engineer

I will break the rules to prove that some rules are worth breaking.

~ Justin (Homestead, FL), computer science

Cornell engineering student Kenny

I am a Cornell Engineer

An engineering education isn't defined by all math and physics you learn in the classroom. It's about being on a team that builds a race car. It's about creating a satellite that NASA will launch into space. It's about writing software to automatically identify birds from the songs they sing. These are all real experiences my friends and I are having here at Cornell, and they are what will define you as an engineer.

~ Kenny (Palo Alto, CA), mechanical engineer

Cornell engineering student Chloe

I am a Cornell Engineer

You are unstoppable if you believe in yourself.

~Chloe (Port Harcourt, Nigeria), mechanical and aerospace engineering

Cornell engineering student Francis

I am a Cornell Engineer

People might say that your path is defined for you, but it’s not their life. It’s yours, and you have the power to define and achieve your own success.

~Francis (Forest Hills, NY), electrical and computer engineering

Cornell University: Glorious to View (Short Version)

This video celebrates what makes Cornell University so special—its campus beauty, breadth and depth of academics, spirit of inclusiveness, and commitment to serving the public good. From its inception, Cornell has aspired to be elite and egalitarian. As founder Ezra Cornell said, “I would found an institution where any person can find instruction in any study.”

Want to see more of Cornell University? Watch the full version.

Featured Alumni

Spotlight
MSE M.Eng. Alum Andra Chen '20

Meet Andra Chen

(This story is Part 3 in a series featuring MSE M.Eng. students and the projects they worked on.) Some students with a four-year undergraduate degree in materials science decide to jump right into the... Read more about Meet Andra Chen

Spotlight
MSE M.Eng. alumni Ryan Prager

Meet Ryan Prager

(This story is Part 2 in a series featuring MSE M.Eng. students and the projects they worked on.) Some students with a four-year undergraduate degree in materials science decide to jump right into the... Read more about Meet Ryan Prager

The Latest News and Stories

Key Statistics about Cornell Engineering

Percentage of women in first-year class
53%
of the incoming first-year class are women
Percentage of under-represented minorities in first-year class
21%
of incoming first-year class at Cornell Engineering are under-represented minorities
ranking of Cornell engineering
#9
U.S. News and World Report Rankings of Best Undergraduate Engineering Programs (Schools with doctorates)
See more stats
Cornell engineering student Haley

I thought I wanted to be an engineer because I liked math and science, I have learned that I truly want to be an engineer to help people. At Cornell Engineering, at the end of the day, your end user for anything and everything that you do is another human being, and I think that is pretty special.

— Haley '19