Master of Engineering Application
Application Round Deadlines
The Master of Engineering program has three application rounds. Applications wishing to be fully considered for scholarships are advised to apply by the priority deadline date. Applicants should expect to receive an update on their application status within 6-8 weeks of each round deadline. We will consider applications submitted after our round deadlines on a case-by-case basis until the class is full.
Priority Deadline Date: Friday, December 1, 2023 at 11:59 AM EST
Round 2 Deadline: Tuesday, January 23, 2024 at 11:59 AM EST
Rolling Deadline: Monday, April 1, 2024 at 11:59 AM EST
IMPORTANT NOTE: Once enrolled, transferring between programs is generally not permitted.
Application Requirements
To be considered, all applicants must provide the following in their online application:
Résumé
You must submit a current résumé along with your application.
Personal Statement
Choose one of the prompts: (1100 words or less)
Option 1:
Cornell Tech fosters an innovative environment of creativity, technical depth, and leadership. Please highlight your personal and professional attributes and how they will contribute to Cornell Tech’s mission and values, your specific master’s program, and the tech ecosystem in New York City. Include any personal experiences that demonstrate your creativity, leadership, and technical abilities. Elaborate on the creative and technical aspects of any projects you have completed, your entrepreneurial or leadership skills, and your experience working on team projects.
Option 2:
Cornell Tech’s programs provide students the opportunity to build something meaningful and innovative with a cross-disciplinary team and test it with real users and industry experts. Many of our students have prior software development experience. Have you ever developed a complete software application (i.e., an end-to-end user interface application, one or more web services, a database, etc.)? If so, describe that application and your experience developing it.
Video Essay
Applicants are required to complete a video essay via an online platform. The questions focus on the applicant’s goals, professional and/or academic experiences, and help determine personal fit for the applied focus of the program.
Note: the admissions committee will not provide interviewees with the question-set ahead of time and we cannot answer any questions related to the content of the interview prior to its completion.
Letters of Recommendation
Applicants are advised to submit two letters of recommendation. Recommenders should be faculty members, supervisors, or other individuals who know the applicant professionally and/or academically. Ideally, the recommenders should either be able to speak to the applicant’s performance in relevant technical coursework or they should be able to discuss the applicant’s role in substantial projects. Recommendations must be submitted online via our application system. If you believe a third letter will add value to your candidacy, you may include one additional letter.
GRE
The GRE General Test is not required and will not be accepted for admission to the Master of Engineering programs.
Transcripts
Transcripts from each previously-attended college or university are required and must be uploaded online with the application. For students who have studied in the U.S./Canada, we will accept unofficial transcripts. Admitted students will be required to submit an official transcript directly to Cornell University Graduate School prior to matriculation.
Application Fee
A non-refundable application fee of $95 must be submitted with the online application.
International Applicants
Transcripts
International applicants must provide a certified English translation of transcripts if the original language is not English. Successful international applicants will have received a baccalaureate degree from a college or university of recognized standing. For more information, read Cornell’s policy on International Degree Equivalencies and International Transcripts.
Course by Course Credential Evaluation
Cornell Tech requires that transcripts from colleges and universities outside the U.S. and Canada undergo a course-by-course analysis by an expert academic credential evaluator in the United States. Students are responsible for paying all fees for such evaluations and making arrangements with the credential evaluation company to send and receive their documents. Applicants who attended a foreign institution that has an affiliation with a U.S. Based institution such as NYU Shanghai and Abu Dhabi are exempt from this.
Cornell Tech will accept evaluations from Scholaro, World Education Services (WES), Educational Credential Evaluators (ECE) SpanTran, or any NACES organization member. If you are using the service of a credential evaluator that has the capability to send the credentials evaluation electronically, please instruct them to send it to admissions@tech.cornell.edu. If you’re using WES, you can send it to Cornell University – Manhattan NY. The admissions committee requires this evaluation prior to reviewing your application for an admissions decision.
If you are having trouble obtaining official documents, SpanTran offers a course-by-course evaluation based on your unofficial transcripts (choose option 1). We typically allow two weeks after the deadline date for all supporting documents to be submitted.
*Note, your course-by-course evaluation can be submitted after the deadline date but your application will normally not be reviewed until all supporting documents are submitted.
English Language Proficiency
With few exceptions, all international applicants must demonstrate proficiency in the English language via a valid TOEFL or IELTS score. For more information and details about exemptions and reporting your English proficiency test score, read Cornell’s English Language Proficiency Requirement. Note: our minimum score requirements are 100 for the TOEFL and 7.0 for the IELTS test. This may differ from minimum requirements at other schools within Cornell University.
Scholarship
Cornell Tech offers scholarship aid to a limited number of master’s degree students each year. Merit-based aid is determined by a holistic review of all the applicants’ credentials at the time of their admission. Applicants who wish to be fully considered for scholarship are advised to apply by the priority deadline date. All admitted students who are not fully sponsored are considered – no additional application is needed.
Pipeline Program Participation
Cornell Tech is pleased to offer application fee waivers to qualified participants of programs designed to provide educational and/or career support to students.
If you are an administrator or a participant of a program not listed below, you may request that we consider adding the program to our list of programs eligible for an application fee waiver for its participants by writing to admissions@tech.cornell.edu, provided the program’s mission explicitly aligns with Cornell Tech’s mission and values and demonstrates a clear intent for students to enter a professional or research-based master’s program.
Fee waivers are available to participants of the following programs:
African Institute for Mathematical Sciences (AIMS)
AIESEC
American Economic Association Committee on the Status of Minorities in the Economics Profession Mentoring Program (CSMGEP: Mentoring Program)
American Economic Association Summer Training Program (AEASP)
American Indian Science and Engineering Society (AISES)
AmeriCorps
Annual Biomedical Research Conference for Minority Students (ABRCMS)
Annual Ivy Plus University of Puerto Rico Event
Anointed Foundation
Association Computing Machinery Women Council (ACM-W)
Atlanta University Center Consortium (AUCC)
Big 10 Grad Expo at Purdue University
Black in AI
Black Doctoral Network (BDN)
Building Infrastructure Leading to Diversity (BUILD)
Cal-Bridge Program
California Forum for Diversity in Graduate Education
Carleton College Summer Mathematics Program for Women Undergraduates
Cientifico Latino Graduate School Mentorship Program
Center for Bright Beams Summer Program (CBB)
CCMR NSF PREM
CCMR Summer REU Program at Cornell
CLASSE Summer REU Program at Cornell
CLASSE Summer Research for Community College Students (SRCCS)
CNF/ NNIN REU Program at Cornell
Columbia University Bridge to the PhD Program
COMPASS
Cornell Diversity Preview Weekend (DPW)
Cornell, Maryland, Max Planck Pre-doctoral Research School
Cornell Summer Math Institute (CSMI)
Cornell Summer School on Designing Technology for Social Impact
Collegiate Science and Technology Entry Program (CSTEP)
CU Integrated Graduate Education, Research and Training (IGERT) Visitation
The CUNY Pipeline Program
EDGE Program: Enhancing Diversity in Graduate Education
ENGINE (engineering name exchange)
Fisk-Vanderbilt Bridge Program
FLIP (Diversifying Future Leadership in the Professoriate) Alliance
Florida A&M Graduate Feeder Conference
Forte Fellows
Gates Millennium Scholars
National Consortium for Graduate Degrees for Minorities in Engineering and Science (GEM)
Grace Hopper Celebration
HSI Pathways to the Professoriate: Cal State- Northridge, FIU, UTexas- El Paso, NYU, UC-Berkeley, UPenn, Northwestern, UC-Davis
Dr. John H. Hopps Jr. Defense Research Scholars Program
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
The Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences (INFORMS Annual Conference)
LASPAU
Laureates & Leaders Program at MIT
Learn IT, Girl Fellowship
LXAI (Latinx in AI members only)
The Leadership Alliance
Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation Summer Undergraduates (LSAMP)
Mathematical and Theoretical Biology Institute (MTBI)
Mathematics Summer REU Program at Cornell
McNair Scholars
Mentoring, Educating, Networking, and Thematic Opportunities for Research in Engineering & Sciences (MENTORES)
Minority Access to Research Careers (MARC)
MIT Summer Research Program (MSRP)
National Name Exchange
National Organization of Black Chemists and Chemical Engineers (NOBCCHE)
National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE)
National Society of Black Physicists (NSBP)
National Society fo Hispanic Physicists (NSHP)
Ohio State University- Research Internship for Young Academics Program (OSU-RIYA)
Out in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (oSTEM)
Out for Undergrad (O4U)
Peace Corps
Philosophy in an Inclusive Key Summer Institute (PIKSI)
Philosophy of Law Undergraduate Summer School (PLUSS)
PREP
Project 1000
Rutgers Summer Institute for Diversity in Philosophy
SHAWCO
Society for Advancement of Chicanos and Native Americans in Science (SACNAS)
Society of Women Engineers (SWE)
Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE)
SoNIC Summer Workshop
Summer Immersion Program in Philosophy (SIPP)
Summer Mathematics Institute at Cornell
Summer Program for Women in Mathematics (SPWM)
Summer Program for Women in Philosophy (SPWP)
Summer Undergraduate Research in Science and Engineering (SUnRiSE)
Tapia Conference
Team for Research in Ubiquitous Secure Technology (TRUST)
The Sadie Collective
Univ. of Arizona Summer Undergraduate Program for Engaging w/ Research (SUPER)
University of Michigan Building Bridges to the Doctorate Program
West Virginia University Summer Law Institute
Williams Math Summer Research Program
Women and Mathematics Program (WAM)
Women in Data Science (WiDS)