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Post a comment or send questions to tal36@cornell.edu….
STANDARDIZED TEST SCORES
Q: “Hi Tim. I have been reading your blog for quite some time now. I just want to thank you for being such an informative guide to Cornell’s architecture program and college life. I am a current a junior in high school and Cornell is my top choice. Through reading your blog entries, I have become more determined in going to CU for architecture than ever before. I just have some questions concerning SAT’s and I hope you will be able to answer. Well, I took my first SAT in this past Jan. and I found out that my critical reading score is almost 200 points lower than my math’s. Plus, my total score is only in the upper one thousand range. I’ll definitely study extra hard and take it again later this year. But do you have any idea on how much SAT weights in the admission to Cornell? Now, I’m most worried about SAT’s, especially because I haven’t taken the subject tests for math and science yet. Also, I am applying to the summer arch program and I must send in my most recent score. Please let me know your opinion on this. Thank you very much in advance!”
A: Hi there, thanks for your question. Standardized test scores are a common concern among prospective students and I think others might benefit from this information. Cornell does not have any SAT/ACT cutoff for admissions. Test scores are only one variable in a complex (and subjective) process that takes into account your academic record, letters of recommendation, essays, extracurricular activities, etc. In architecture, there are two other important variables: the portfolio and the interview. Judging from my own experience, these two aspects of the admissions process will be the most important for prospective architecture students. Highschool seniors with remarkable test scores are regularly turned away from our department because they lack the skills/creativity associated with a design profession. On the other side of that equation, the architecture school will sometimes accept promising students with relatively low test scores. As a result, I believe test scores in the College of AAP are slightly lower than Cornell’s average. I don’t want to make test scores sound unimportant, because they will certainly be considered along with the rest of your application material. But there is no reason to get bent out of shape because of them. Work on your portfolio and your essays and I think you will be in great shape for the five-year program and/or the summer school. Best of luck! -Tim
WWOOF ITALIA
Q: “hey there, i am thinking about wwoofing in october in italy and i was wondering if i could ask you a couple questions about your farm? if so, shoot me an email at xxxxxx@gmail.com. thanks!”
A: I am not exactly a WWOOFing expert, but I had a great experience at the farm in Pontassieve. My friend spent time at several other farms throughout Italy and the work ranged from near slavery to sailing and tending to pot plants. If you are looking into Italy, you need to join the Italian WWOOF organization. They maintain a list of registered farms that need help. Then you need to contact the farms directly and see if/when you can work with them. Once you join WWOOF Italia, you get “SOS” emails about farms that need help the most. For more detailed information, go to their website wwoof.it. Have fun!