Cornell University - REASONS for TRANSFER

Essay Question: Please provide a statement that addresses your reasons for transferring and the objectives you hope to achieve.

Transferring to Cornell University is a goal of mine for several reasons. Cornell provides many opportunities that I am eager to take advantage of. First, I would like to participate in Cornell's unique academic experience. Cornell has unsurpassed commitment to both undergraduate education and research. I have had firsthand experience with this as I have witnessed my dad work both as a professor and scientific researcher in his lab at Cornell. I want to be a part of both of these aspects; first experiencing the academic side as an undergraduate then I would like to move on to researching interpersonal and community relations and potential ways to enhance how we communicate.

Because I am still unsure of my specific career path, my main desire currently is to learn as much as possible. There are still many things in the world that I do not know about. I want to be a sponge and absorb knowledge so that I can gain a better understanding of both the world and my desired field of study. This goal is achievable at Cornell as I would have over 4,000 courses to choose from. Furthermore, Cornell offers outstanding faculty connections that will give me the opportunity to start networking, something that I believe is extremely important for my future. Finally, attending Cornell would allow me to be close to my home in Ithaca. This is especially important because my dad will be moving to China for work within the next year. I would like to be close to home so that I can help my mom who will be working and caring for my sister. Attending Cornell would not only allow me to continue my education at a prestigious school, but also give me the opportunity to contribute at home.

Cornell will provide many chances for personal growth and discovery. Attending Cornell would be a great investment in my future, an opportunity I would take full advantage of.

Feedback of any kind would be very much appreciated, thank you.

I like the clarity and directness of your essay. 2 short comments: 1. You need to be a little more specific. The only thing I feel that you understand about Cornell is that it offers 4000+ courses, and even then I'm not sure it is unique to Cornell. Are there specific programs, research opportunities, labs, that you are interested in Cornell? When I went through the application process a few years back, my counselor said that if you can replace the name of the college by another one, say Yale, then there is really no distinctiveness in that essay.

2. Passive sentence structure. Example:


I would fully take advantage of the opportunity of attending Cornell as it would be a great investment for my future.

There are a few other similar circumstances. try to use "I -action-" instead of "the school"

Well, for me, this sounds a little negative and I fear this may work negatively on your candidacy. Instead of saying that you are open to any field and like to absorb any sort of knowledge, I feel it is better to say that you are not very certain about specialization in a particular field.


Give some example for this so that they know you are talking through a good understanding about Cornell.