Best colleges in New York

Cornell University is a private land-grant research university that was founded in 1865 in the suburban college town of Ithaca, New York by Andrew Dickson White and Ezra Cornell. It has a total undergraduate enrollment of about 15,000 students who attend classes on a campus that covers over 4,000 acres. Cornell is on a semester-based academic calendar with tuition and fees for both in-state students and out-of-state students that exceeds $55,000, though financial aid is available. 

Cornell University is made up of seven colleges and seven graduate divisions, including competitive hospitality and business programs. The school is known for its robust international network that is fostered in part by two satellite campuses in New York City and Education City, Qatar. 

Cornell University is part of the Ivy League and has affiliations with some of the top academic scholars of the last century. In addition to its strong scholastic traditions, the school is known for its Botanic Gardens and a large portfolio of university-owned and operated land in New York City. Notable alumni include Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, television star Bill Nye, and Christopher Reeve, who was known for being the first actor to play Superman.

Columbia University was founded in 1754 and was known as King’s College through a royal charter from King George II before being renamed after the Revolutionary War. Columbia has a total undergraduate enrollment of about 30,000 and is located in a dense urban setting in the Morningside Heights neighborhood of Manhattan just east of the Hudson River. The university boasts a low student-to-faculty ratio of 6:1 and charges a lower tuition rate than Ivy League counterparts Harvard and Yale. 

Columbia is at the scholastic epicenter of New York City and plays host to research institutions like the Goddard Institute for Space Studies and historic physics forums like the Manhattan Project. The school has a range of academic offerings for students to choose from through over 15 competitive colleges like the Mailman School of Public Health and the Columbia Climate School. Students at Columbia have the option to attend study-abroad programs at partner schools such as the London School of Economics, the University of Oxford, and Pantheon-Sorbonne University. 

Beyond academics, students at Columbia can enjoy iconic museums like the MOMA, take their lunch in Central Park, or head to Yankee Stadium. Notable alumni include former President Barack Obama, investor tycoon Warren Buffet, and writer Isaac Asimov. Columbia has an extensive alumni network that includes MLB Hall of Famers, Nobel Laureates, and Justices of the United States Supreme Court.

New York University, or NYU, is a private university that was chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature in an effort led by Alber Gallatin, with a total undergraduate enrollment of just over 25,000. NYU is situated in an urban setting on a campus that takes up over 171 buildings in the vibrant city of New York. NYU receives the most applications of any private institution in the United States and can be very difficult to get into given the competition. The school’s colors are violet and white, which lends itself to their nickname “The Violets.” 

Located in the heart of Manhattan, NYU is made up of ten schools and prestigious programs including the nationally-ranked Stern School of Business and the Silver School of Social Work. Students take classes on a semester-based academic calendar and NYU tends to offer intimate undergraduate classes of 20 students or fewer, which can be perfect for students that prefer small group learning over the traditional large lecture format. 

NYU has produced many successful alumni, including current U.S. Senators, former Federal Reserve Chairmen, and even Academy Award winners. NYU’s urban location on Washington Square and Greenwich Village has been a cultural hub for over a century, with famous artists in residence including Edward Hopper and Bob Dylan. Noble alumni at NYU include film director Martin Scorsese, fashion icon Tom Ford, and former mayor of New York City Rudy Giuliani.