Serving Time in Ithaca (Cornell 2013) Forum

[doomed123]

How come Cornell is the only school with a self-effacing title for its 2013 thread? Seems kinda depressing.

It was an in-joke a number of pages back in the thread. The thread title was Cornell 2013. sjsteece changed it.

Oh, okay. 'Cause to an outsider, it just looked like, "wow, even Cornell students don't like Cornell."

[NeXP]

Congrats to everyone who got/gets off reserve. Welcome to jail.

How come Cornell is the only school with a self-effacing title for its 2013 thread? Seems kinda depressing.

As is Ithaca from november through march.

[mbw]

Thanks for the info mbw, did you go with the student health insurance plan?

I did, and it's been pretty good thus far. Also, very convenient (the health center is just two buildings over...) This year, I'm adding my spouse and kids.

[danidancer]

Alright. I'm in for Cornell. I just can't justify turning it down, even if I end up having to pay sticker the gap between Cornell and Fordham is just too vast. So... HELLO FUTURE CLASSMATES!!!

I have 2 questions though:

1) For those of you that received need-based fee waivers, how generous was Cornell's need-based aid? I'm calling their financial aid office on Monday to inquire about the status of my application and see if I'm eligible. If I've received between $10-20K (per year) at other schools (albeit ranked below Cornell) in need-based aid, how should I expect Cornell to match up?

2) I'm starting to freak out about housing. However, I'm still on waiting lists at Columbia, Michigan and Northwestern, so I'm not sure whether it's something I should even worry about yet? If I signed a lease in Ithaca but got in off one of those waitlists, would I just be out my deposit and first month's rent, or would I be liable for the entire term of the lease? I'm hoping to find a place walkable (or I guess bus-able) to the LS in Lower Collegetown or Downtown, but OCHO and Craiglist are looking mighty bleak - am I already hopelessly late in the game? Is it idiotic to wait another month or so to see how these waitlists pan out? I do have a car, so if I need to venture further out and deal with driving/parking everyday, I can. I would inquire about Hughes, but I have a cat.

[vexion]

I can't speak to the first one. I, too, got suckered into paying sticker. But...

2) I'm starting to freak out about housing. However, I'm still on waiting lists at Columbia, Michigan and Northwestern, so I'm not sure whether it's something I should even worry about yet? If I signed a lease in Ithaca but got in off one of those waitlists, would I just be out my deposit and first month's rent, or would I be liable for the entire term of the lease? I'm hoping to find a place walkable (or I guess bus-able) to the LS in Lower Collegetown or Downtown, but OCHO and Craiglist are looking mighty bleak - am I already hopelessly late in the game? Is it idiotic to wait another month or so to see how these waitlists pan out? I do have a car, so if I need to venture further out and deal with driving/parking everyday, I can. I would inquire about Hughes, but I have a cat.

Once you sign a lease, you're stuck with the terms of that lease. It's a binding contract. Most apartment leases don't have buyout clauses or anything, but if you have a decent landlord, you can usually negotiate something if you do have to back out. It might entail you paying 2-3 months' rent—a reasonable time to find a replacement tenant—but it's better than nothing.

Downtown isn't easily walkable. For walking distance, you're pretty much looking at Collegetown, Lower Collegetown, and maybe West Campus. Try calling Novarr-Mackesey to see if they have any openings (http://www.ithacastudentapartments.com/) They come highly recommended by a lot of current students. It's about a 20 minute walk uphill, but the bus runs to the bottom of the hill (right to the middle of their various buildings) every 10-15 minutes iirc. So you just catch the bus to class and walk back in the afternoons after shuttle service has ended.

You might also do a forum search, look on the official Cornell 2013 Facebook group as well as our unofficial TLS group for people looking for housing/roommates. A lot have just given into the siren song of Hughes Hall, but there might be some people still holding out for a good roommate.

As for riding waitlists... my gut tells me that no, it's a bad idea. A staggering number of people have been waitlisted as opposed to outright rejected, and precious few people get in off the waitlist at top schools like Columbia because their yield is so high. Most schools' final deposit deadlines have passed, and as we saw with Cornell, a few people just got in off the waitlist, all on the same day. I would venture so far as saying that those who would have gotten in off a waitlist already have, or haven't.

[danidancer]

Thanks, vexion! Unfortunately, I don't think any of the Novarr-Mackesey places are pet-friendly. The cat is a non-negotiable. Yes, I'm one of those people.

IDK. I guess I'm just an eternal optimist. Will there really be NOTHING left apartment wise at the end of June? From what I understand, none of the schools I'm still on waitlists for have had movement yet (Michigan has for summer, but not for fall start), and all have said they expect to admit some in the coming weeks... I know the odds aren't great, and I'm extremely grateful and thankful that Cornell came through (it was one of my very top choices at the beginning of application season!). But... I also promised myself at the start of this whole saga that I would ride any waitlists out until late June/early July, to give myself the very best chance possible.

[vexion]

--LinkRemoved--

A whole lot of these are sublets, but I still wouldn't call it "bleak." This one (LinkRemoved) from the landlord with the broken Caps Lock key sounds nice. This one (LinkRemoved) is all law students. Few of the listings expressly forbid pets. Don't forget: negotiation is your friend. Is the cat declawed? Just cause the lease says no pets doesn't have to mean no pets. You're gonna be a lawyer, damnit! Make a case! At this point in the game they're as desperate to rent the thing as you are.

[mbw]

Thanks, vexion! Unfortunately, I don't think any of the Novarr-Mackesey places are pet-friendly. The cat is a non-negotiable. Yes, I'm one of those people.

IDK. I guess I'm just an eternal optimist. Will there really be NOTHING left apartment wise at the end of June? From what I understand, none of the schools I'm still on waitlists for have had movement yet (Michigan has for summer, but not for fall start), and all have said they expect to admit some in the coming weeks... I know the odds aren't great, and I'm extremely grateful and thankful that Cornell came through (it was one of my very top choices at the beginning of application season!). But... I also promised myself at the start of this whole saga that I would ride any waitlists out until late June/early July, to give myself the very best chance possible.

While I agree with Vex that riding out waitlists this year might be an exercise in futility, I don't think you'll be completely out in the cold if you wait to get an apartment. There are lots of places to live in Ithaca, some not as convenient as Collegetown, but still very accessible. I'm in Fall Creek, and it's a five minute car ride, 20 minute bus ride or 25 minute walk (up the hill -- 15 minutes down.) I have classmates who also lived in this neighborhood all year, and a few who are moving in (away from Collegetown) next year, because it's cheaper, has few obnoxious undergrads, most places allow pets, etc. Most people either go to the law school in the morning and stay late to study, or return home and do their studying there -- not too much back and forth, so proximity is probably overrated.

[Ostrizr316]

Our Classmates are going to be awesome!

http://abovethelaw.com/2010/05/cornell- ... e-the-law/

(also posted on our facebook group)

[mstich]

I just signed a two-bedroom apartment with Novarr Mackasey (http://www.ithacastudentapartments.com/). I am looking for a male roommate so if anyone is still looking let me know and I will get you more details. The apartment is only about 6 years old and like people have mentioned they have a shuttle in the mornings to the law school.

[jks289]

Is it a pipedream to think new admits might get money? I imagine there is nothing for the waitlist, but this "reserve" status had me confused.

[danidancer]

Is it a pipedream to think new admits might get money? I imagine there is nothing for the waitlist, but this "reserve" status had me confused.

I'm certainly not expecting merit aid, but I do hope there'll be at least a token need-based grant to sweeten up the sure to be copious amounts of loans I'm about to undertake...

[jks289]

Is it a pipedream to think new admits might get money? I imagine there is nothing for the waitlist, but this "reserve" status had me confused.

I'm certainly not expecting merit aid, but I do hope there'll be at least a token need-based grant to sweeten up the sure to be copious amounts of loans I'm about to undertake...

Yes, I don't expect anything significant (or anything at all really) I was just hoping they might take a little bit of the edge off that 70K/year COA. I guess we'll have to wait and see.

By the way for people who have already deposited, has anything been assigned with your name on it (email, Net ID, etc)? I need to change my name on file to my new legal name, but I'm not sure how quickly I need to take care of it and don't want to end up with oldlastname@cornell.edu. Who should I even ask about this? Admissions? Registration?

[Big Tuna]

Is it a pipedream to think new admits might get money? I imagine there is nothing for the waitlist, but this "reserve" status had me confused.

Hard to say, I was a very late April admit and got no money with GPA around the 25th percentile and LSAT way above the 75th percentile.

[jks289]

Is it a pipedream to think new admits might get money? I imagine there is nothing for the waitlist, but this "reserve" status had me confused.

Hard to say, I was a very late April admit and got no money with GPA around the 25th percentile and LSAT way above the 75th percentile.

No money as in no aid packet has come, or no money as in they sent you a letter saying "You aren't getting any money. Sorry."

[Big Tuna]

as in no grants, scholarship. basically a letter saying hey look forward to borrowing 70k per year for three years.

[vexion]

iirc Cornell doesn't explicitly distinguish between need-based aid and merit aid. So even if you get finaid, you won't know why.

By the way for people who have already deposited, has anything been assigned with your name on it (email, Net ID, etc)? I need to change my name on file to my new legal name, but I'm not sure how quickly I need to take care of it and don't want to end up with oldlastname@cornell.edu.

Congrats on getting married/divorced/adopted!

[jks289]

iirc Cornell doesn't explicitly distinguish between need-based aid and merit aid. So even if you get finaid, you won't know why.

By the way for people who have already deposited, has anything been assigned with your name on it (email, Net ID, etc)? I need to change my name on file to my new legal name, but I'm not sure how quickly I need to take care of it and don't want to end up with oldlastname@cornell.edu.

Congrats on getting married/divorced/adopted!

Thanks! It's married, for the record.

[mbw]

I got in off of EA deferred last year and got a generous scholly.... so don't give up hope.

[danidancer]

Posted this to the facebook group as well, but I thought it might get some more traction here... Anyone still looking for a roommate(s)? After doing some back of the envelope calculations on the cost of attendance, it's looking like I probably can't afford a place anywhere remotely close to campus on my own... I come with an adorable if slightly neurotic kitty.

[danidancer]

I got in off of EA deferred last year and got a generous scholly.... so don't give up hope.

Fingers crossed mbw. Fingers crossed. I checked on my financial aid application today, and apparently it's completed and ready for review soon. Eek!

[legallybrunette16]

I got in off of EA deferred last year and got a generous scholly.... so don't give up hope.

Fingers crossed mbw. Fingers crossed. I checked on my financial aid application today, and apparently it's completed and ready for review soon. Eek!

I know I was super anxious. So, if you want... you can call the admissions office and they may email you your financial aid letter

[jks289]

Does anyone have the admissions or financial aid fax number? I left it at the office and need to send in the final part of my financial aid application.

[Ronaldo]

Does anyone have the admissions or financial aid fax number? I left it at the office and need to send in the final part of my financial aid application.

607-255-1357

http://library.lawschool.cornell.edu/Wh ... People.cfm

I don't know if it's accurate.

[Ronaldo]

607-255-7193...

I think this one is for admissions