MOUNT VERNON — Publications ranking colleges recently have singled out Cornell College as one of the nation’s finest and most distinctive colleges.
Cornell was cited as a top choice among “schools that offer an innovative, outside-the-box curriculum” by the 2004 edition of Kaplan Publishing’s “The Unofficial, Unbiased Guide to the 328 Most Interesting Colleges.” Cornell’s One-Course-At-A-Time calendar provides nine terms during which students can choose from more than 50 courses. Classes are capped at 25, with the average size 14. More than 90 percent of Cornell graduates finish in four years or less; two-thirds earn a double major or a major and a minor.
In the first edition of “The Best Midwestern Colleges,” one of five regional guides from the Princeton Review, Cornell is profiled among 150 “best in the Midwest” colleges. Cornell is also highlighted in the Princeton Review’s “The Best 351 Colleges,” 2004 edition.
Finally, Cornell is ranked as one of the nation’s top liberal arts colleges in the 2004 edition of U.S. News & World Report’s annual ranking of colleges. Each year, the magazine releases a ranking of colleges in the following categories: best national universities-doctoral, best liberal arts colleges-bachelor’s (national), best universities-master’s (by region), best comprehensive colleges-bachelor’s (by region) and best specialty schools.
Cornell is also one of 40 colleges featured in Loren Pope’s books, “Colleges That Change Lives” and “Looking Beyond the Ivy League: Finding the College That’s Right for You.” The college is also annually included in “Peterson’s Competitive Colleges: Top Colleges for Top Students” and “The Fiske Guide to Colleges.”
“The hallmark of the Cornell College experience is the quality of faculty-student relationships on our close-knit campus,” says Jonathan Stroud, vice president for enrollment and dean of admission. “While this indicator of quality cannot be captured adequately in rankings in college guides, we are nonetheless pleased that the college’s place among the finest colleges in the country is being increasingly recognized in these types of publications.”
Cornell is an independent, liberal arts college of 1,100 students, affiliated with the United Methodist Church. Founded in 1853, Cornell is one of only two colleges nationally to have its entire campus listed in the National Register of Historic Places. Cornell is celebrating its sesquicentennial with several special events during the 2003-2004 academic year.
National recognition for Cornell