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Cornell University

Ranked
Ithaca, United States
20th in World University Rankings 2025
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About Cornell University

Basic information and contact details for Cornell University

institution

Founded in 1865, Cornell University is a private Ivy League university with a mission to “discover, preserve, and disseminate knowledge”. A federal land grant university with a private endowment, Cornell has six locations across the world. Its main campus in Ithaca, New York State, covers 2,300 acres of the Finger Lakes region, and is so extensive that students can go hiking without even leaving the university.

It also has a graduate school of medical sciences in New York city, a base in Rome where students study art, architecture and urban planning, a centre for students to gain work experience in Washington DC, and a medical college at Education City in Doha, Qatar.

Cornell counts 45 Nobel laureates among its faculty members and alumni. Other notable alumni include Tsai Ing-wen, the president-elect of Taiwan, and Huey Lewis, frontman for the band Huey Lewis and the News.

The university boasts a number of unique student traditions, such as Dragon Day, when, in late March each year, a huge dragon is paraded across campus by first-year students of the College of Architecture, Art and Planning. Heckled by rival students from the College of Engineering, the dragon is then burned in Cornell’s Arts Quad. This ritual can be traced back to high jinx of the architecture class of 1901, and was formalised by students in the 1950s.

Another tradition that has continued since Cornell’s opening in 1868 is the Cornell Chimes – daily bell performances by “chimesmasters”. These performers are selected by rigorous, 10 week long competitions, although chimesmasters do not need to have any previous experience playing the chimes. After climbing the 161 steps to the top of the historic McGraw Tower where the bells are housed, chimesmasters play from a collection of more than 2,500 songs, from musicians ranging from Schubert to the Beatles.

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Rankings

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World University Rankings 2025
20406080100
Overall 89.2
Teaching 83.2
Research Environment 91.1
Research Quality 96.8
Industry 69.5
International Outlook 85.5
8486889020162017201820192020202120222023202420258484.684.285.185.185.38585.989.589.2

Breakdown via year: Overall

Ranking positions 2016 to 2025
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Key Student Statistics

A breakdown of student statistics at Cornell University

gender ratio
Student gender ratio
52 F : 48 M (1)
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International student percentage
26% (1)
student per staff
Students per staff
10.5 (1)
student
Student total
25528 (1)

Based on data collected for the (1) World University Rankings 2025

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Subjects Taught at Cornell University

See below for a range of subjects taught at Cornell University

Physical Sciences18th

  • Chemistry
  • Geology, Environmental, Earth and Marine Sciences
  • Physics and Astronomy
  • Mathematics and Statistics

Computer Science16th

  • Computer Science

Social Sciences19th

  • Sociology
  • Politics and International Studies
  • Communication and Media Studies

Life Sciences18th

  • Agriculture and Forestry
  • Veterinary Science
  • Biological Sciences

Law34th

  • Law

Business and Economics18th

  • Economics and Econometrics
  • Business and Management

Arts and Humanities32nd

  • Languages, Literature and Linguistics
  • History, Philosophy and Theology
  • Archaeology
  • Art, Performing Art and Design
  • Architecture

Engineering24th

  • General Engineering
  • Civil Engineering
  • Chemical Engineering
  • Electrical and Electronic Engineering
  • Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering