Arts and Sciences, Student Ambassadors

…and things have gone differently than planned, but in a truly amazing way.

What do you mean? Doesn't everyone have a Freud poster in their room?

I entered Cornell as a prospective Russian Language and Literature and Philosophy major. During my sophomore year I decided that Psychology was more appealing to me than Philosophy.

How did this happen? Well, it was a gradual process. I realized with increasing frequency that the topics in philosophy discussed in lectures left me with more questions, in particularly the discussion of the theory of mind. I found myself wanting to know more, finding that what I wanted to be explained and discussed was not a central part of the argument. It soon became clear to me through the responses of my professors that my interests seemed to lay not in Philosophy, but in Behavioral Science.

Switching your course of study within the first few years is incredibly easy due to the fact that no one enters the college with a major (pre-med students are the only exception). Gaining admission to a major generally requires completing a number of prerequisite courses; this varies depending on the department. For this reason changing- or deciding on a major for all of you undeclared students out there- are not an administrative issue, it is very individual.

This does not, however, mean that you have to go through this sometimes stressful change alone. It is for major decisions such as these that each incoming freshman is assigned a faculty advisor, who provides you with counseling and support in making your decision.

What ever happened to those philosophy credits, you may ask, were they simply wasted hours?

NO! Absolutely not. Arts and Sciences is the only liberal arts college at Cornell, which means that studying a wide range of subjects is encouraged! It is for this reason that graduation from the College requires a number of distribution requirements are filled. My philosophy courses counted as my courses requiring a breadth in history and a distribution in Knowledge, Cognition, and Moral Reasoning. But more important was the fact that I learned a lot from and thoroughly enjoyed them. And, I am thrilled to add, I am now enrolled in my first Philosophy class since freshman year and am enjoying the subject as much as I did before, despite the fact that it is no longer my main area of study.

Filed under: academics by Laura-Nicole

As spring semester came to a close, summer plans were on every Cornellian’s mind. I was heading home for an internship. My friend Paulo signed up for EMS driver training. My fellow ambassador Grace prepared to drive cross-country to work as a cook and camp counselor in Wyoming. And my RA, Laura Santacrose, was getting ready to spend a summer in Ithaca as a Cornell tour guide and student researcher.

The day after my last final exam, I stood in front of the stairwell door, surrounded by the friends I had made during my first year. I went around the circle, giving handshakes and hugs, exchanging “see-you-soon’s” and “keep-in-touch’s,” until I finally came to Laura.

Laura reached out to give me a hug. “Come visit me this summer! I’ll be in Ithaca all of June and July.”

“I will, I swear!”

Last weekend, I fulfilled my promise. Late Saturday night, I drove up a very familiar hill, looking for the address Laura had given me. As I approached her Collegetown apartment, an unfamiliar feeling struck me. I had just traveled a couple hundred miles from my house, but I felt like I was returning, not arriving. Coming back to Cornell felt like coming home. The memories rushed back at me—my first trip to campus, the butterflies in my stomach on move-in day, the excitement of seeing my friends after winter break, how bittersweet being done with my first year was—all of it was washing over me. I didn’t realize how attached I was to Cornell and to the people I had met there. Cornell really was my second home.

I pulled up in front of Laura’s apartment complex. (I’ll admit it: I had to call and ask for directions, so Laura was already standing in her doorway when I arrived.) Laura walked out, gave me a huge hug, and ushered me and my friend Maggie (who traveled with me) into her apartment.

The inside of the Collegetown apartment was actually impressive. It was a nice size–definitely spacious enough for at least one more occupant. There was a moderate sized family room and a small kitchen on the first floor, and two bedrooms and a bathroom on the second. I wouldn’t have minded spending the summer there at all.

We talked for a while and caught up before heading to bed. We had a long Sunday planned.

The following morning, I woke up, headed to Church with Maggie and then returned to Laura’s apartment to begin our Ithaca expedition.

Our first stop was The Farmer’s Market.

I could not believe I went my entire first year without ever going to this place! It was awesome. There were all sorts of small vendors selling everything from pizza to flowers to fresh lemonade to pottery to Greek food. There was even a dock you could sit on while you ate. Best part: everything was affordable. This place was perfect for someone on a student budget.

Our next destination was just outside of Ithaca. We headed to Taughannock Falls.

I live fifteen minutes away from Niagara Falls, so not just any water rolling off a cliff impresses me. Taughannock Falls did. While being magnificent and larger than life, Taughannock has a serene quality about it that Niagara Falls does not. I definitely want to bring my family to see it next time they visit Cornell.

Finally, we headed to an early dinner at Kilpatrick’s, an Irish restaurant in Ithaca. It was a little more expensive than your local chain restaurant (I paid around thirteen dollars for my meal), but the food was delicious. I would recommend it (and their apricot chicken wings) to anyone traveling through Ithaca.

With a full stomach and some great photos, I dropped Laura off at her apartment and headed back to my house. The trip was an eye-opening experience for me; there is so much more exploring I need to do in my three remaining years at Cornell. I was sad as I drove away; I wished there were some way I could stay longer. But as I traveled toward Lewiston, listening to the tunes of the Cornell Chordials as I went, a comforting thought came to my mind:

Only six more weeks until I return.

Filed under: events, musings, the freshman experience by Timothy Dyster

For the past 6 months (LONG time, I know!) I have been studying for the MCAT. For the non-premeds, that stands for Medical College Admission Test. It’s the equivalent of the Med School SAT, only longer and much harder.

Pre-meds usually take it in their junior year, but over-achievers are now getting over with it in their sophomore years, while late bloomers can still take it during their senior years. Once you finish your pre-reqs (intro biology, intro chemistry, organic chemistry, intro physics, writing seminar, etc.), you’re qualified to take the test. It’s a standardized test offered 25 or more times per year. It lasts roughly 5 hours and has 4 sections: Physical Sciences (PS), Verbal Reasoning (VR), Writing Sample (WS), and Biological Sciences (BS).

More Info on the MCAT

Each profession or general career path has its own standardized test. Pre-law students take the LSAT (Law School Admission Test), those aspiring to enter the business world take the GMAT (Graduate Management Admission Test), while others applying to graduate-level programs brave the GRE (Graduate Record Examination).

Many test-takers opt to enroll in private test-preparation classes offered by higher education companies such as Kaplan, Princeton Review, Examkrackers, among others.

Post By: Raihan Faroqui ‘10

Filed under: academics, learning outside the classroom, life after cornell by Raihan Faraqui

There are lots of official (and unofficial) blogs about Cornell. Just wanted to list a few here. Check em out and tell us what you think!

Follow the everyday lives and experiences of 9 Cornell bloggers as they write about Life on the Hill

Check out the Voices from Cornell Abroad homepage. Read about Olga’s travels in Spain, Maurice’s time in Egypt, or Alison’s life in New Zealand!

For those of you interested in Cornell’s sports scene, explore this site devoted to the Big Red Basketball Team

Thinking about a career in finance, management, or consulting? Read about the real-life experiences of business school students in the Johnson School at the Johnson Blogs

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Here’s a link to Elliot Back’s (Class of ‘06) popular Cornell Blog: An unofficial blog about Cornell University

CIT and CU Library run a comprehensive Blog Service that links to several Cornell blogs about student life, academics, research, and even faculty blogs.

Post By: Raihan Faroqui ‘10

Filed under: around the quad, around the slope, clubs and activities, events, learning outside the classroom, musings, sports by Raihan Faraqui

About halfway through Winter Break, I decided I was going to do something more meaningful than wear out my Xbox 360 this summer.

Thus began my quest for a summer internship.

Luckily for me, I have an aunt who works in research, so a few phone calls later I was scheduled to interview at two different facilities.

Early the following Saturday, I drove into Buffalo (a city nearby my hometown) and found the chrome-colored building where my interview was. I walked up the stairs to the second floor and into the senior researcher’s office. I shook her hand, introduced myself, and sat down in front of her desk. Almost immediately, she asked me a question which I think affected the outcome of my entire interview: “Now, where it is you go to undergrad?”

I think my interview was the first time I realized the power of Cornell’s reputation for academic rigor. The smile that crossed my interviewer’s face when I told her “Cornell University” was a sure sign that being a Cornell student was going to work in my favor. She informed me that Cornell students had worked in her lab a few times before and they had all done excellent work. It made me proud that my school was recognized for producing diligent and capable students.

In the end, I elected to apply for only one of the two positions. I officially began my internship this past Monday, and it has been an incredible experience. To sit in on a meeting with chemists, cellular biologists, immunologists and biochemists and listen to their newest ideas about how to fight against cancer was intense. (And it was even cooler to be able to understand some of what they were talking about, thanks to two semesters of intro biology and lab at Cornell.)

The best part is Cornell does everything in its power to make this experience accessible to all of its students. Some of my friends weren’t fortunate enough to have contacts themselves, but a quick trip to our Career Services department allowed them to locate potential research positions near their homes.

Career Services Link

Also, some of my friends are spending their summer at Cornell, working with professors on their research. Basically, with a little bit of effort, any qualified, passionate student at Cornell can find an extraordinary way to spend their summer.

So, Cornell, I would like to say thank you; I am having a fantastic summer, and I think I owe it to you.

Post By: Tim Dyster ‘12

Filed under: learning outside the classroom by Timothy Dyster

This past weekend I made the 3 and a 1/2 hour drive up from New York City one last time (for Spring 2009 that is) to Cornell to experience all the pomp and circumstance that is Commencement Weekend. Lots of my friends are graduating seniors, so this trip had some serious sentimental value.

Check out this neat collection of pics that the Cornell Chornicle put together: Slideshow of Commencement Weekend

As we drove through Collegetown, one thing was perfectly clear: there were LOTS of people here. We could see packs of families, relatives, cousins, grandparents, and friends eagerly roaming College, Eddy, and Dryden Avenues. Forget about parking. Every restaurant and hotel in sight was filled to capacity.

I heard stories of families staying in Binghamton and Syracuse because Ithaca simply could not accommodate everyone!

On the 23rd (Saturday morning), we trekked out to the football stadium to kickoff Senior Convocation Day. News of neighboring Syracuse University booking alum Vice President Joe Biden and NYU snagging Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had heightened expectations for a big-name speaker earlier on in the semester.

So, the university’s choice of Obama chief campaign manager David Plouffe as Convocation Speaker was met with a good dose of “really, he’s the best we can do?”

Maybe it was low expectations, but I found Plouffe’s (pronounced like “pluff”) personal story surprisingly refreshing: his meteoric rise from college dropout to political stardom was certainly inspiring. It wasn’t one of those speeches that left you awe-struck, but it held its own.

Although Plouffe’s appearance filled maybe about half of Schoellkopf Stadium, Sunday was a different story. I have never in my 3 years at Cornell seen so many people gathered at once to witness something. The sight of 30,000+ (my own rough estimate) cheering families and friends was downright surreal. Here’s a pic that I took as I watched the 6,000 or so graduates enter the stadium in a time-honored procession:

Panorama shot of Cornell Class of 2009

Post By: Raihan Faroqui ‘10

Filed under: events by Raihan Faraqui

RAs are awesome.

If you’re not familiar with the abbreviation, an “RA” is a resident advisor, and in the first year dorms at Cornell, RAs are sophomore, junior or senior undergrads.

More info about CampusLife RAs

RAs are charged with many responsibilities, one of which is planning ”programs” throughout the semester–anything from hour-long “marshmallow roasts” to day-long trips to New York City. As a way to celebrate the end of the year, my RA (sophomore Laura Santacrose) organized a dinner cruise for my building (Low Rise 6).

Fifteen dollars later, I was floating on Cayuga Lake while being served a four-course meal:

A few of my friends and me on the boat

The food was delicious and the view was spectacular. I had a great time, and I know my friends did too (they couldn’t help but make a few “I’m on a boat” jokes during the course of the three-hour boat ride). I was really impressed; it was obvious my RA had invested a lot of time and effort into making the cruise happen and keeping it affordable enough for everyone to be able to come.

What’s more impressive is that this isn’t the only time Laura has planned something like this: she went with a group of students to see a Tony Award-winning play in NYC earlier this semester, organized an apple picking event last fall, and even planned a Superbowl party earlier this year, complete with pizza and wings. It seems like Laura never stops coming up with new programs for her residents to enjoy!

I think sometimes residents forget how much RAs do–we treat them the way we sometimes treat our parents, taking for granted all their hard work. The more I think about it, the more I realize that Laura has been a huge part of my first year of college. No matter what happened, I knew I could always turn to her for advice. She was my wiser older sibling while away from home.

So, moral of the story: In addition to answering all your questions and helping you out while you’re away from home, RAs work their butts off to make sure you and the rest of your floor get to have some special experiences while at CU. (So make sure you thank them once in a while!)

It’s worth restating: RAs are just plain awesome.

Post By: Tim Dyster ‘12

Filed under: events, musings, north campus, the freshman experience by Timothy Dyster

I’ll be honest with you: I think of myself as a true Cornellian. “Big Red Blood flows through my veins” (well, technically my arteries). Basically, I love almost everything about this place.

Finals are an exception.

Luckily, Cornell does a lot to help its students through this rough time we (fondly?) call “Finals Week.” Slope Day was last Friday, which was an awesome way to end the semester and relax before diving into studying. Also, CU schedules a 72-hour-or-so study period following the weekend after classes end, so as long as you budget your time well, getting ready for finals is totally doable. Better yet, free massages are offered during study week! It doesn’t get much better than that.

But what I really want to talk about is my all-time favorite destresser: The Big Scream. At midnight the night before finals begin, students all over campus run outside their dorms and scream–and I mean SCREAM–to release all that crazy pent up energy from studying for finals. Don’t believe me? Check it out:

The Big Scream

Epic, right?

Post By: Tim Dyster ‘12

Filed under: events by Timothy Dyster

Slope Day has come and passed.

A day of frolicking around on the slope eating vendor food, playing on bouncy slides and listening to music should be enough to sustain us through exam period, right?

I have to be honest, I was less than thrilled when I heard that the Pussycat Dolls were headlining. I was really excited for Apples in Stereo however, a band that I’ve listened to since high school. As openers I was expecting the music to start out with a bang for me and then sizzle.

I had forgotten that the Pussycat Dolls had released a modified English version of Jai Ho! the Oscar-winning ending song from the Oscar-winning film, Slumdog Millionaire.

This was received in a huge way by the crowd and by yours truly:

slope day jai ho and dancing

Turns out the Pussycat Dolls were a shockingly relevant choice for Slope Day 2009 and now there are the Facebook photo albums to prove it.

Filed under: around the slope, concerts and shows, events by Laura-Nicole

Sunday night at 10 p.m. my hall, or more formally 2-Court of Court-Kay-Bauer residence hall, met collectively for the final time to discuss closing information–from what I can recall, I had only been to one other hall meeting because of conflicts.

This meant that the last time I was gathered in that room, with all those people was the first day of orientation. Talk about coming full circle!

As we all sat down in our TV lounge we recalled who had been sitting where over 8 months ago.  Everyone remembered my roommate hitting her head on the TV, and my RA was quick to warn the person sitting underneath to watch himself.

Even though not all 29 hall members were present, we were all a lively bunch. We were too busy talking about what we remembered from that first monumental floor meeting when we were all (secretly) horrified freshman waiting to be told all the rules we would accidentally break (like talking too loudly during quiet hours which our RA is a stickler about).

2-Court residents gather for a birthday celebration fall, 2008.

I sat down and scanned the room to see where everyone was sitting. Our new friendships were evident based on who we were next to at this meeting.

Frustrated, our RA went quiet when we got too noisy, but continued on, explaining important information about cleaning our rooms, damages, and checking out.

Once he was finished, we all scurried out while I stayed back and played “The Price is Right” with my hallmate/friend with our RA serving as host. We joked about prices for damaged pieces of Cornell property, and ultimately, my friend beat me before we all went back to doing work.

Post By: Erin Szulman ‘12

Filed under: north campus, the freshman experience by Erin Szulman