Costs & Affordability

In these difficult economic times, Cornell College has redoubled its efforts to work with families through whatever challenges they may be facing. Through our attractive merit scholarship and need-based financial assistance programs, we remain confident that we can make it financially feasible for any qualified student to enroll at Cornell.

Need-blind admissions

By enrolling students who are the best fit for Cornell, regardless of their financial resources, we build a stronger college and a richer student experience. Therefore, we are deeply committed to a need-blind process for selecting students, made possible by our comprehensive financial assistance programs.

How do our costs compare?

Measured against other institutions offering a similar quality of education, we believe our costs compare quite well. We also hear from many families who initially believed a private liberal arts education was out of their reach. After factoring in financial assistance and the fact that 95 percent of Cornell students graduate in four years (rather than the national average of five to six years), many find Cornell in line with their less-expensive options. We encourage you to use our Net Price Calculator to estimate the cost for you to attend Cornell and to contact us if you have any questions.

Cornell also earned national recognition as one of the 24 "Best Buy Schools” among private colleges in the 2010 and 2011 editions of the Fiske Guide to Colleges. The “Best Buy Schools” are based on the quality of academic offerings in relation to the cost of attendance. Additionally, Kiplinger placed Cornell 70th on their Best Values in Private Education 2010-2011 list, and U.S. News and World Report ranked Cornell 33rd on its “Great Schools, Great Prices” list for 2010.

Closer to home, Cornell earned recent accolades on our affordability from The Mount Vernon-Lisbon Sun.

A shared investment

Our bottom line is this: if you and Cornell are a good fit for one another, we'll invest in you. But to allow us to offer the kinds of experiences that mark a true investment in your future, we also ask for a full commitment from your family, according to their resources. And expect that we'll ask for a commitment from you, as well, to pursue campus employment opportunities or reasonable loans, if necessary.

We believe that this shared investment will provide incalculable returns many times over the initial cost, and we invite you to investigate what we mean when we say Cornell provides "one extraordinary opportunity after another, in the classroom, on campus, and around the world."

Financial Assistance Office

To apply for financial assistance or learn more about ways to make your Cornell education more affordable, please visit our Financial Assistance Office website.