Students are accepted from a range of undergraduate majors from the natural sciences, physical sciences, mathematics and humanities. Our students' backgrounds are correspondingly varied: some enter the program directly following their undergraduate degree, others with a Masters degree or other post-undergraduate experience in research, consulting, the Peace Corps, Teach for America, etc.
University minimums for the iBT version of the TOEFL are: Writing, 20, Listening, 15, Reading, 20, Speaking, 22. You must receive the minimum score on each subsection.
The Graduate School requires an overall band score of a 7.0 or higher on the IELTS
three recommendations
Note: GRE test scores are no longer required for application to this program

Statement of Purpose
Please submit a statement of purpose that outlines your reasons for pursuing graduate research and explains your academic interests. General suggestions are available on the Cornell Graduate School admissions website. In addition, we request that you use headings for the following sections:

(1) Motivation (250 word limit): Introduce yourself, what are your personal motivations to come to graduate school, your short and long-term professional goals, and how did you get here?
(2) Academic background & preparation (400 words): Describe your academic training, skills, research experience, and accomplishments relevant to your future graduate work.
(3) Future research (400 words): What research questions would you like to explore as a graduate student? This is in no way binding, it is only intended to give us an indication of where your research interests and approaches are headed. If you have written a proposal for future research (e.g., NSF predoctoral fellowship), those ideas should be included here.
(4) Resiliency and overcoming challenges (250 words): Graduate school often requires independence, persistence, and resilience in the face of challenges, please share your perspectives or experiences in this regard.
(5) Importance of community, diversity, and inclusion (250 words): We strive to build a diverse and inclusive community, which strengthens our intellectual and collaborative department. We value hearing your perspectives or experiences in contributing to such efforts at any scale.