Cornell was founded in 1865 as a non-sectarian, coeducational institution where admission was awarded regardless of race or religion. It has gone on to become one of the most prestigious Ivy League universities in the US. 

The school was co-founded by Eztra Cornell, a senator who volunteered his farmland in Ithaca for the project. In its third year, the school admitted its first female students, setting an early precedent in promoting a diverse campus that values equality among students.

The main campus is still in Ithaca, New York, where nearly 20,000 students are currently enrolled. The school offers traditional liberal arts course work, but it’s especially well-known for its programs in life sciences, hotel administration and engineering.  

Student Life
With more than 900 registered organizations in operation at Cornell, students are never short on things to do. Whether it involves playing in a sports club, hiking with an outdoors group or catching a late-night jazz set, Cornell has something planned to suit every student’s interests. 

There are also 70 active chapters of fraternities and sororities in operation at Cornell. This is the second-largest Greek system in North America, with 33 percent of male and 25 percent of female students involved.  

Ithaca is a small town and the local nightlife is relatively low-key. The bars and clubs in Collegetown (south of the central campus) give last call at 1am.

Diversity
By some measurements, Cornell is the most educationally diverse member of the Ivy League. The 20,000 students on the main campus represent every state in the Union and more than 120 countries.

The University Diversity Council outlines goals and strategies to foster an even more diverse future. The most recent university-led initiative is to build better networks across the mosaic of student-led organizations in hopes of building stronger facilities for the university’s increasingly diverse student population. 

The university also hosts regular diversity-related events on campus. These include readings, cultural exhibitions and symposiums.  

Academic Programs and Resources
Cornell lives up to its Ivy-League reputation and operates some of the most prestigious academic programs in the US. The university is especially well-known for its schools of Engineering, Architecture and Agriculture. 

Cornell is in one of the most prolific universities in the world when it comes to graduating students who ultimately go on to complete PhD coursework, and the figures are even more impressive when you narrow the scope to those studying life sciences or engineering.

Class sizes range from small to medium. More than half the classes at Cornell have fewer than 20 students, and professors are accessible to students outside of class. 

Faculty & Staff
Cornell employs around 1,600 faculty members on its main Ithaca campus, and a few well-known past professors include Vladimir Nabokov, Carl Sagan and dozens of Nobel laureates. The ‘Chronicle of Higher Education’ recently cited Cornell as an excellent school to be an employee based on surveys of the staff and administration. 

On average, there is one faculty member for every nine students, giving students ample opportunity to ask questions and seek guidance outside of class. Cornell students endure a heavy workload, and all professors provide office hours for extra help. 

Safety, Health & Wellness
Cornell is a safe place to live and study, and a competent campus police force can be summoned with one of many blue-light phones scattered across campus. Students can use these phones to report an emergency as well as to request a police-trained escort to any campus location. 

Beyond this, the Gannett Health Services provides students with primary medical care as well as a pharmacy and counseling center to promote student wellness. The main campus clinic sees to most medical services, while after-hours medical emergencies are handled through Cayuga Medical Center. 

Cornell fitness centers are also open to students. These include state-of-the-art gymnasium and athletic facilities. 

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