Cornell

Cornell University is made up of 7 undergraduate schools and several grad schools. It is unique among it's Ivy League brethren in that it is much bigger than the others both in land mass and in number of students (about 13,500 undergrads). Another distinctive feature is that 3 of it's schools (Ag & Life Science, Human Ecology, and ILR)are state funded- meaning the bill for a NYS resident is just $34,000. The other 4 schools (Architecture, Art & Planning, Arts & Sciences, Engineering and Hotel Admin) are known as endowed schools and cost the more typical $50,000. Like the other Ivies, Cornell does not give athletic nor merit scholarships but does offer generous aid packages to students with the most financial need. Interestingly, many majors are offered in different schools. For instance, Biology is offered at 4 of the 7 schools! It's important to the admissions office that a prospective student knows which school interests them and why.
At first glance, Cornell seems huge. However, it seems that a good job is done to make the students feel comfortable. Nearly all the freshmen live and dine on the North side of campus and spend a week-long orientation period together. About 1/3 are part of a Greek organization. It seems that students have an easier time getting to know each other than at colleges I've seen of comparable size.
While there, I had lunch with Kristen Lysenko (VHS '08)who is one of several former Blackbirds attending Cornell.