This article appears in the 2007 edition of The Sun’s annual Freshman Issue.
Over 2,000 members of the incoming class have come together on Facebook discussion boards to discuss who’s straight-edge, who’s single and which bodily discharge incoming Cornellians identify with. The Facebook group “Cornell Class of 2011!!!” hosts these discussion boards and represents approximately two-thirds of the students who will descend upon North Campus for orientation in a few weeks.
This year Cornell fielded 30,382 applications for admission to the Class of 2011 and accepted 6,229 students from this pool. The admission rate is 4.2 percent lower than last year at 20.5 percent of applicants accepted.
According to Doris Davis, associate provost of admissions and enrollment, 48.2 percent of admitted students are females and 51.8 percent are male.
Facebook groups for every college and freshman dorm within the University have been founded for and by the Class of 2011 as incoming students prepare for the upcoming year, including “WOOO MEWS HALL WOOOOO” and “Cornell 2011 CALS.”
“I am definitely nervous about the degree of difficulty of Cornell’s academics and the amount of hours I will be devoting to my studies,” said Jacob Frank ’11, an Ohio native and the founder of the “Cornell Class of 2011!!!” Facebook group. “But I am excited for a fresh start.”
Andy Ahart ’11 is coming to Ithaca from Missouri and will be participating in Cornell’s varsity track and field program.
“My expectations for the upcoming year are to have a blast, compete hard for the track team and hopefully get a few good grades in there somewhere,” he said.
“I’m excited to learn, as nerdy as it sounds,” said Becky Cripps ’11, an incoming pre-med student from Madison, Wisc. “I’m not used to having resources like those available on campus.”
Hailing from Florida, Alina Ali ’11 is nervous about the cold Ithaca winters. “My fears include freezing on the way to class and becoming too stressed out with school work,” she said.
New York City native Antonia Singleton ’11 is already in Ithaca, spending her summer at Cornell’s pre-freshman summer program.
“This summer is giving me an idea of what things will be like in the fall, however, I am sure there is a lot more it than what this summer offers. I want to see what the rest of school looks like, because over the summer I only see a portion of the incoming freshmen.”
Members of the Class of 2011 chose Cornell over other schools for many reasons.
“I chose Cornell because every person that I have met who goes there loves it,” said Gillian Bader ’11, a Tenafly, N.J. native. “When I visited, I got a good vibe and could just picture myself at Cornell.”
Cornell’s campus and food were two large factors in Frank’s decision to attend Cornell.
“When I first enjoyed Cornell’s breathtaking views and quads I knew it was the right school for me. The great food was also a big selling point,” he said.
For other students, Cornell’s enthusiasm for its hockey team was a factor in their decision to attend.
“I grew up playing and watching hockey,” said Cripps. “There was no way I’d go to a school that didn’t love and revolve around the sport.”