We hear you were deferred by Cornell, and now you’re asking, “what’s next?” It’s a good question, because there are a few things you need to be doing (and not doing) right now that aren’t so obvious. First, though, let’s look at the numbers.
Cornell doesn’t publish admissions data anymore because it was — to paraphrase them — freaking people out. We do have their data from 2019, though, which can give us a bit of a sense of how things are working out this year.
In 2019, Cornell’s early acceptance rate was 23.8%. Of that group of accepted students, over a third weren’t ‘normal.’ 12.1% were recruited athletes, and 22.1% were legacies who had parents or other close relatives who previously attended Cornell. Like many schools, Cornell advises students who are hoping to cache in on a legacy connection to apply early. If they don’t apply early, being a legacy isn’t nearly as much of an advantage. Based on those 2019 stats, getting into Cornell early isn’t impossible nor is it improbable, and there is another stat we really like seeing.
In 2019, Cornell only deferred 21.7% of early applicants. This is a very big deal. Some of the other Ivy League schools defer as many as 80% of early applicants. Being part of Cornell’s smaller deferral pool means that they are actually considering admitting you — they just need more time.
What About an Update Letter?
The first step after being deferred by any school is to decide whether to send an “update letter,” or letter of continued interest. Some schools invite them, or even ask for them, which makes the choice on whether to send one easy. “Optional,” you know if you read our blog posts regularly, isn’t optional. It’s mandatory.
But what about when a school doesn’t say if they want an update letter? Cornell doesn’t include information on update letters or submitting additional information post-deferral on their admissions website, which suggests that your well-intentioned letter to inform them that you were voted the head of another club may not be so well-received by them.
As Cornell does not say if they want update letters, you need to tread carefully. Not saying that they don’t want something is not the same as saying that they do. We know that sentence is wonky, so try reading it a few times until the message sinks in.
When a school doesn’t invite update letters, our best advice is to not send one. Instead of putting your energy into an update letter, there are some other things you should be doing to increase your chances of admission in the regular admission cycle.
Keep Working Hard
If you want to get into Cornell, you need to keep working hard. You cannot let your grades slip, and, ideally, you should find a way to improve them — even just a little bit. As the only update Cornell is going to get on your application is your mid-year grade report, you don’t need to put pressure on yourself to add items to your resume (like leadership positions) unless there is something that’s already in the works, or a natural extension of existing activities, that will improve your application for schools you haven’t yet submitted to.
Look at Your College List
As you prepare to submit your regular decision college applications, you need to give your college list a hard look. Being deferred from Cornell doesn’t mean you aren’t qualified to attend a top-tier college, but it is a data point that would be silly to ignore.
Ultimately, you want to attend the best college that you would be happy at. Both those things are equally important — a great school and somewhere you actually want to go. If you’re target and safety schools aren’t places you’d be excited to attend, you need to reassess your list. There is no point in applying to a school you’ll never say yes to. At the same time, keep yourself realistic. Ivy League and other ‘brand name’ schools are great, but they aren’t the only places you can get a top-tier education and have a great college experience. Broadening your options will increase your likelihood of being happy come spring acceptances.
Take a moment
This process is tough, and while we’d love to say it gets easier, you’re not going to have much time to breath until after regular decision letters go out. The only way to stay sane is to accept that this is a stressful time, and to lean into ways to alleviate some of that pressure, even if only for a moment. Walk your dog, read a book, or binge-watch Junior Bake Off on Netflix. It’s amazing how watching seven-year-olds bake cakes takes the edge off a rough day.
If you feel like your college application needs to be amped up for the regular decision cycle, send us an email. We help students like you bounce back from deferrals by crafting compelling applications.