Students traverse the Cornell University campus on Sept. 30, 2026, in Ithaca, New York.
Spencer Platt | Getty Images
As Cornell University confronts scrutiny over its response to sexual assault allegations, a number of prospective students are reevaluating their application plans, according to college admissions consultants interviewed by CNBC.
The development arrives weeks before Cornell’s Nov. 1 early-decision deadline, which requires applicants to commit to enrolling at the Ivy League institution if accepted.
Amid public outcry over the university’s handling of a 2024 alleged incident and a subsequent lawsuit filed by a plaintiff identified as Jane Doe, several high school seniors have removed Cornell from their college lists, said Christopher Rim, president and CEO of Command Education.
“I originally had nine students applying to Cornell, four of them early — now we have zero applying early,” Rim stated.
The civil complaint, filed in September, alleges that the former student was sexually assaulted in October 2024 at a fraternity house on Cornell’s Ithaca campus.
Jamie Beaton, co-founder and CEO of Crimson Education, confirmed he is “seeing some Cornell applicants reconsider applying there based on campus safety and culture concerns.”
Cornell directed CNBC to an Oct. 13 message from President Michael Kotlikoff. In a statement, the university announced an independent review of long-standing policies and practices, led by former U.S. Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates. Separately, Cornell suspended all fraternity parties and social events for the remainder of the 2026-27 academic year.
“These conversations, and campus protests, have underscored my deep conviction that we must do better: that the time for meaningful and lasting change at Cornell, and at campuses across the country, is now,” Kotlikoff said.
Rim emphasized that the university’s next steps are critical. “It’s very important for Cornell to make sure they do the right thing and make actual changes to their policies,” he said. “Then they are going to have to convince students and families they are serious about it.”
Will Cornell’s Application Numbers Change?
Altering course so close to the early-decision deadline poses a challenge for applicants who have spent months tailoring materials to a specific Cornell college — a distinctive feature of the university’s admissions process, Beaton noted.
Some applicants “feel psychologically committed,” he said, and are “staying the course, and are holding onto hope that the scrutiny on Cornell will force it to make serious reforms to institutional conduct and culture as a result of this.”
While applying early decision can boost admission odds, it leaves less time to refine applications or weigh alternatives. Cornell’s regular-decision deadline is Jan. 2.
Looking ahead, “what we expect is that things will be loud in the short term,” Beaton said, referring to the current application cycle. However, he predicted minimal long-term impact on application volumes or yield — the percentage of admitted students who enroll.
“Scandals at highly selective universities don’t move application volumes in a lasting way, since the pull of the brand, the outcomes and the network is too strong,” Beaton said.
Cornell is the largest Ivy League school by undergraduate enrollment. With an acceptance rate below 10%, the university most recently admitted 5,776 applicants to the Class of 2030, according to the Cornell Daily Sun, the university’s independent student newspaper.
