Editorial
The Winds of Change
February 11, 2008 - 1:00amExcuse us for sounding like we’re over the hill. It’s just that we remember the good old days, when pre-frosh could only apply to one undergraduate college at Cornell. Times have changed, though, as times often do, and today’s Cornell applicants have more choices than we ever thought possible. More specifically, high school seniors can now list an alternative college preference on their Cornell applications, giving 18-year-olds all over Long Island greater flexibility in the application process.
The changed application was overtly instituted to ease some unnecessary pressure off high school seniors – most teenagers have yet to figure out what they want to do with their lives, and it’s unfair to expect a commitment to one field of study come application time.
It would seem, though, that we may have underestimated some of these burgeoning bookworms. Of the over 1,100 students admitted early decision to the Class of 2012, only 13 were selected by their alternative-choice college. According to Doris Davis (the head honcho over at admissions), applicants are simply making good decisions about which college is best for them.
This has us slightly confused. The new application would seem to give applicants with a broad range of academic interest a better shot at finding the college that’s right for them. But if applicants are checking the right box when it comes time to list their college of choice, what has the new application actually accomplished?
Davis told The Sun that today’s app is actually a better reflection of Cornell itself. In a school in which majors and areas of discipline are often satisfied by more than one undergraduate college, it makes sense to give Cornell applicants a measure of academic flexibility right off the bat.
Davis’ argument seems to misunderstand what Cornell is really all about. While overlap does exist between the course offerings of Cornell’s seven undergraduate colleges, the University appears to be focusing on what makes those colleges similar instead of considering what sets them apart. Cornell is comprised of more than one college because it strives to promote academic excellence in more than one area of study, and that goal demands a diverse set of academic resources and a diverse framework of academic curricula.
Cornell’s new application, though, blurs the line that distinguishes the seven undergraduate colleges at this university. It encourages students with an interest in biology or computer science to apply to more than one college because, as Davis told The Sun, these majors aren’t limited to a single college anymore. True, we say, but in its haste to satisfy the demands of some Big Red applicants, we’re afraid Cornell may have begun to undermine its traditional college system. We recognize the need to adapt in the game of college recruitment, but we’re not about to downplay the diversity of Cornell’s undergraduate colleges to attract a few more satisfied applicants. Maybe we’re just grumpy in our old age.