Cornell

[DJLamar]

I remember when I checked before the health history form deadline but long after I submitted my forms, there was a comment in that item on the to do list at the new students website that said that they had received my paper form. Now after the deadline it says I've completed the requirement and it has this:

According to our records, you have met all the health requirements mandated by Cornell University and New York State. Thank you.

Also, I'm not sure, but I *think* I remember reading somewhere that even though you have to submit a photo way ahead of time, they don't actually give you the card until orientation or something. I think it's kind of silly that they don't just have a photo booth where they take a picture and make your ID in the course of a couple of minutes when you get there (like my undergrad institute did). Oh well.

And yes, I'm being very picky about my photo too, haha. Minimal blemishes on my face and a good, fresh haircut are a must, and those things take good timing.

[matcha]

Housing Nightmare! Advice needed please!

My boyfriend was suppose to travel with me and be my roommate, but now he's being deployed and won't be able to come with me to Ithaca.

I have a two bedroom apartment I've already signed a lease for, and I'd feel guilty about breaking it. However, I'm nervous about finding a roommate at this late of date! I am trying the listserv Cornell has, but it doesn't seem to be used very much. At least nothing has come to me through it!

Do I break the lease and find a one bedroom or do I make a mad hunt for a roommate a hope we match?

Edit: Does anyone have any thoughts on how to find a roommate?

Edited June 25, 2010 by matcha

[Confused Goose]

I submitted the ID form about 10 days back and it says on the to-do page that cards will be given out at the Cornell Bound check-in event on August 20. As for the health form, I sent it out about 2 weeks back, and there hasn't been any update yet. By the way, I also found out that they update immunization information in your Gannett records which you can access on the Gannett website. So, if they've received your form and verified it, and assuming they've updated the information, you can check it out online.

@matcha : Is there a mailing list for students in your department? I don't know if you've tried it but I guess putting a word out among grads in your program (already studying or incoming) would be a good bet.

[DJLamar]

Wait, is there some event on August 20th that we need to be in Ithaca for? My department only told me about an orientation on the 23rd and I'm not getting back into the U.S. until the 18th... and I have to drive 15 hours to get there and deal with westbound jet lag from a six hour time difference...

[Confused Goose]

Even I was under the impression that cards were to be given out during registration on 23rd.

"You should plan to arrive in Ithaca on Friday August 20^th. If you are planning to live in on campus housing, this is the date that the dorms will be opening. During the weekend, there will be a number of orientation events that you will want to take advantage of. Once there is a schedule posted, I will be sure to share that with you all."

This is from a mail sent out by my dept. I'm guessing then that the schedule's not final yet, and the date mentioned on the To Do page may be last year's.

[DJLamar]

Anyone have any opinions about the CornellCard? Is there any good reason to have one? At Georgia Tech having a balance linked to your student ID was automatic, and the only time I ever really used it was at this one cafe in the computing building that didn't accept credit or debit (I used to just reload my ID online using a debit card on one of the school computers to have money for coffee).

Er, on second thought it seems like once my account becomes bursar-billable it will be about five minutes of effort to do the CornellCard enrollment, but still, is there anything you really gain by having one outside of just paying with your ID?

[DJLamar]

Hmm, well actually I'm already enrolled and it's just telling me that my account isn't bursar-billable. Sorry, I haven't slept enough.

[red_crayons]

Housing Nightmare! Advice needed please!

My boyfriend was suppose to travel with me and be my roommate, but now he's being deployed and won't be able to come with me to Ithaca.

I have a two bedroom apartment I've already signed a lease for, and I'd feel guilty about breaking it. However, I'm nervous about finding a roommate at this late of date! I am trying the listserv Cornell has, but it doesn't seem to be used very much. At least nothing has come to me through it!

Do I break the lease and find a one bedroom or do I make a mad hunt for a roommate a hope we match?

Edit: Does anyone have any thoughts on how to find a roommate?

Tough. Landlords aren't very nice about letting people out of leases around here, so good luck... I would ask ASAP so you know what your options are.

I second posting to your department's listserv. I got a roommate through the housing listserv pretty quickly, but that was months ago. Also, try posting to the shared apartments on Craigslist.

As for ID cards... They can take your picture when you get there. They say they can't to speed things up by having most of them done ahead of time. They might charge you the day of, too?

Most of the orientation programs are run by department, or MAYBE by college. University-wide, it looks like there's only a 3.5 hour pick up your ID and paperwork time on Monday the 23rd. So really, just listen to your department.

Also: undergrad check in might be on August 20th. But grad school is the 23rd. You'll want to stay far away from campus when undergrads are checking in.

[matcha]

Whew! I just received a letter from my department head, sending out the department handbook and course listings... it feels so overwhelming! I'm not even sure how to begin.

[Gelato]

REMINDER All forms are due today! July 12 Monday!

Required:

Bursar Disclosure Statement

Student ID Card Request

Plus a few optional things, among others, are:

Commuter & Parking Services

CornellCard Enrollment

Fitness Centers Enrollment

So: Questions for the Cornell Community!

Important ones first. Do you pay your tuition bill through the Cornell Installmet Plan / Sallie Mae? Or can it be paid through the monthly billing on Net.Pay?? I'm a bit confused by all the options. How many choices are there? Let's assume for my case that I do want to do it on a monthly basis, rather than all upfront at once.

What the heck is this Cornell Card for? Are discounts to services offered if you pay by Cornell Card?? It looks like a "credit" card type. Is anyone else thinking of NOT doing it?

Last but not least-- who procrastinated on getting the "perfect" picture and is about to get stuck with any old picture for your ID card??

Ok ta for now.

Edited July 12, 2010 by DebbieC

[purple]

REMINDER All forms are due today! July 12 Monday!

Required:

Bursar Disclosure Statement

Student ID Card Request

Plus a few optional things, among others, are:

Commuter & Parking Services

CornellCard Enrollment

Fitness Centers Enrollment

So: Questions for the Cornell Community!

Important ones first. Do you pay your tuition bill through the Cornell Installmet Plan / Sallie Mae? Or can it be paid through the monthly billing on Net.Pay?? I'm a bit confused by all the options. How many choices are there? Let's assume for my case that I do want to do it on a monthly basis, rather than all upfront at once.

What the heck is this Cornell Card for? Are discounts to services offered if you pay by Cornell Card?? It looks like a "credit" card type. Is anyone else thinking of NOT doing it?

Last but not least-- who procrastinated on getting the "perfect" picture and is about to get stuck with any old picture for your ID card??

Ok ta for now.

Hi! Yeah I was just looking at the same forms... And I have some questions too...

ID card photo: I just took a couple shots in front of a blank wall and cropped it. I hope they accept it... I don't know what type of accounts can be applied to it, but I'm excited to get my new ID card for student discounts and bragging to friends If they don't accept it, does that mean I will have to wait in line when I get there?

Parking & Commuter services: The form says we can register our vehicles w/out purchasing any permits. But then on the bottom, it says we shouldn't submit the form if we aren't ordering anything... so should I register my car if I'm living off-campus? I'm kind of worried, because will be living very close to campus.

Cornell Fitness Centers: Is this one worth the purchase? Are the fitness centers nice? I don't know how much time I'll have to go regularly, but I guess it would be nice to have a place to work out in the dead of the winter...

@Debbie C: Oh good question about the Installment Plan... It says you have to call them up? Has everyone filled out their MPNs for their loans? I'm new to this... help!

[Gelato]

Important ones first. Do you pay your tuition bill through the Cornell Installment Plan / Sallie Mae? Or can it be paid through the monthly billing on Net.Pay?? I'm a bit confused by all the options. How many choices are there? Let's assume for my case that I do want to do it on a monthly basis, rather than all upfront at once.

What the heck is this Cornell Card for? Are discounts to services offered if you pay by Cornell Card?? It looks like a "credit" card type. Is anyone else thinking of NOT doing it?

Oops, sorry Purple, didn't see your questions there before calling-- yeah, I did call the Bursar. So did everyone else it seems, hold time was 11 minutes. I just did a round of taichi while the speaker phone told me to hold

Anyway. I came up with a new question. What the heck is the Bursar Bill talking about, with finance charges and credit and such. So the Bursar includes yeah, tuition, housing, anything that needs to be paid to the University goes on your bill. It also includes stuff purchased with the Cornell Card which can act like a credit card.

But if I want to pay my university tuition (and housing if I had it) and that sort of yearly bills ~monthly~, instead of upfront, then I need to go through CIP which is administered by Sallie Mae, which will let our bursar show fully paid upfront and then we pay Sallie Mae each month.

Net.Pay is a way for us to pay our bills, including tuition (which will show up in full) along with anything else that comes up / incurs over the course of the month, like if you use your Cornell Card. You can pay your tuition on it, but it won't be monthly.

Cornell card, it sounded like everyone on campus uses it/ accepts it. Some places on campus may not accept regular credit cards.Though cash sounded ok. I guess I'll get it.

I hope that helps anyone who needs a bit of clarification. Or did I just confuse you further? I'm still not 100% clear myself. :-/

Anyone who can is very welcome to clarify my comments for others!

~Debbie

[DJLamar]

Hmm, well I hope the gyms are

1) good

2) at least one of:

2.a) very close to the southwestern part of campus, collegetown, and Upson Hall so I can walk to them

2. equipped with parking lots where you don't actually need a permit and can park for free (lol sure)

because I just signed up for the full year. Probably a stupid decision, but I want to try to be more fit (the hill will help with that for one). I was obligated to pay a fee for the gyms at Georgia Tech for four years even though I rarely used them (though they were pretty good), but maybe the fact that I volunteered to pay for this one will be extra motivation to get my money's worth...

In any case, I hope the fact that they're billed to the Bursar's office account means that I don't have to actually pay that $140 or so until I get my stipend payment...

[Gelato]

re: 7 DIGIT STUDENT ID NUMBER

Hey, little tip for y'all.

I was starting to write a question, but the bursar picked up the phone while I was typing so I have the answer to my question. I thought I'd just give it to you guys since you may be just as confused as me

So I tried to sign up for Net.Pay and Cornell Installment Program, but could not for the life of me figure out what my 7 digit student ID was.

So sign in with your Net ID to the Student Center

studentcenter.cornell.edu

(which is the same place you update your emergency contacts)

and then check under Demographics. There, you should get your student ID number.

Good luck!!!

Debs

[red_crayons]

My $0.02 on this:

- Cornell Card. I had it as an undergrad. It shows up on your bursar bill, but it's billed separately, and gets finance charges applied separately and, I think, at a higher rate. My parents flaked out on helping me pay it, I rolled it over from semester to semester, and eventually spent over a year paying it back. Boo.

It's a credit card that's semi-attached to your bursar bill. You can use it many places on campus. You can use Cornell card and Big Red Bucks (prepaid food account) at dining halls, campus cafes, and for food in campus stores. You can't use BRB for NON-food, so Cornell card would kick in for buying books, medication, etc. Except at Gannett, the health center, where you can charge things directly to your bursar bill.

I'm not doing Cornell card again. I have a regular credit card if I want to put off paying for things, and it has a lower interest rate, too. Meh.

- Gyms at Cornell are like the libraries: There are several small niche ones, and a couple big ones with all kinds of people. One of the bigger gyms (Helen Newman) has very limited free parking after 5pm. Another (Teagle) has a parking garage pretty close by, which is I believe also free after 5pm. Luckily Teagle is also very close to Upson, and close to collegetown, and it's the biggest gym, too.

I LOVE the gym system. None of them are perfect, but there's so many, and they're open all the time. It's very convenient. And it's wonderful to have a cheap way to stay active during the long, long winter. The nice private gym in town is $50/month for students.

- Parking. Don't bother registering if you're not getting a parking pass. It's just so they know where to send the tickets!

As staff, I can buy packets of 10 day parking passes. You can do that as a grad student, too. I'm not buying a parking pass, but I'll buy packets of 10 as I need them. I live downtown and drive to campus about once a week, when I'm running late or have extra stuff to drag along. It helps that one of the zones that those work for is literally 10 feet from my office door...

- Payment. I know nothing about this. I am really getting pissed with all the super shady emails. Cornell Bursar signature, meaningless Sallie Mae subject line, and all text? It couldn't possibly look more like a scam. I refuse to use it, and I'm going to continue dealing with all money issues in person, in Day Hall, at the Bursar's office. Thanks, but no thanks, Cornell.

Cornell's billing practices are the worst part of the university, IMHO. They nickel and dime you, and they have high turnover in financial aid/bursar so no one can answer complex questions, and now they have this horrible, sketchy payment system. Signing up for NetPay right now is making me feel really paranoid.

But mostly... I'm SO EXCITED. Yay being a student again!

Edit: OH MY GOSH. I can't even express how much I hate the way they apply credits to your bill!!! They bill in early July, but don't apply credits until sometime in August, leaving the next 3 weeks for me to worry about funding mysteriously being pulled and not being able to pay my bill. ARGH. Their billing system does no favors for those of us who tend toward paranoia and panic.

Edited July 16, 2010 by red_crayons

[DJLamar]

Hey, little tip for y'all.

I was starting to write a question, but the bursar picked up the phone while I was typing so I have the answer to my question. I thought I'd just give it to you guys since you may be just as confused as me

So I tried to sign up for Net.Pay and Cornell Installment Program, but could not for the life of me figure out what my 7 digit student ID was.

So sign in with your Net ID to the Student Center

studentcenter.cornell.edu

(which is the same place you update your emergency contacts)

and then check under Demographics. There, you should get your student ID number.

Good luck!!!

Debs

Awesome, I've been wondering about this but it keeps slipping my mind to check or ask about it.

By the way, does anyone know exactly when money will be disbursed to us? I have the university fellowship if that makes a difference.

[red_crayons]

Awesome, I've been wondering about this but it keeps slipping my mind to check or ask about it.

By the way, does anyone know exactly when money will be disbursed to us? I have the university fellowship if that makes a difference.

I checked on this. August 23rd was the answer I got. That's the day of registration.

Danya

[DJLamar]

Damn. With the recent stuff about signing up for direct deposit and tuition being billed and all I had momentarily gotten my hopes up that we would somehow magically get the money in a couple of weeks.

[Gelato]

Got a couple of thoughts to add.... let me organize it in my head and share.

Biggest one first:

We should do a real life GradCafe meet and greet! What do you guys think? I have no idea when or where or how, but it would be awesome to put a face to our online handles. Maybe a brunch on the second Sunday after class begins? Or else a BRB meet? But how would we find each other? Anyway throwing the idea out there if someone (red crayons!) more familiar with Cornell and Ithaca wants to suggest some stuff

because I just signed up for the full year. Probably a stupid decision, but I want to try to be more fit (the hill will help with that for one). I was obligated to pay a fee for the gyms at Georgia Tech for four years even though I rarely used them (though they were pretty good), but maybe the fact that I volunteered to pay for this one will be extra motivation to get my money's worth...

In any case, I hope the fact that they're billed to the Bursar's office account means that I don't have to actually pay that $140 or so until I get my stipend payment...

Hey DJLamar,

1- I think the bursar bill is due in August along with everything else.

2- The gyms are spread out... you can look up the maps. And they also list which gyms have which fitness classes.

I decided to wait until I got on campus to pay for this... I'm feeling a bit poor this month after paying two months' tuition.

What do you usually do at the gym? I usually attend classes (it's a regular structured time so I'm more likely to go) or do the elliptical machine. Maybe we should be gym buddies to keep each other going haha. Any other joiners?

My $0.02 on this:

- Cornell Card. I had it as an undergrad. It shows up on your bursar bill, but it's billed separately, and gets finance charges applied separately and, I think, at a higher rate. My parents flaked out on helping me pay it, I rolled it over from semester to semester, and eventually spent over a year paying it back. Boo.

It's a credit card that's semi-attached to your bursar bill. You can use it many places on campus. You can use Cornell card and Big Red Bucks (prepaid food account) at dining halls, campus cafes, and for food in campus stores. You can't use BRB for NON-food, so Cornell card would kick in for buying books, medication, etc. Except at Gannett, the health center, where you can charge things directly to your bursar bill.

I'm not doing Cornell card again. I have a regular credit card if I want to put off paying for things, and it has a lower interest rate, too. Meh.

Oh, thanks for the clarification!

Well I'd probably treat it like a credit card, which in my world gets paid off every billing period (in theory) because the parents always made me pay it each month to avoid the interest.

- Payment. I know nothing about this. I am really getting pissed with all the super shady emails. Cornell Bursar signature, meaningless Sallie Mae subject line, and all text? It couldn't possibly look more like a scam. I refuse to use it, and I'm going to continue dealing with all money issues in person, in Day Hall, at the Bursar's office. Thanks, but no thanks, Cornell.

Cornell's billing practices are the worst part of the university, IMHO. They nickel and dime you, and they have high turnover in financial aid/bursar so no one can answer complex questions, and now they have this horrible, sketchy payment system. Signing up for NetPay right now is making me feel really paranoid.

But mostly... I'm SO EXCITED. Yay being a student again!

Edit: OH MY GOSH. I can't even express how much I hate the way they apply credits to your bill!!! They bill in early July, but don't apply credits until sometime in August, leaving the next 3 weeks for me to worry about funding mysteriously being pulled and not being able to pay my bill. ARGH. Their billing system does no favors for those of us who tend toward paranoia and panic.

Dude, I know!! And totally agree. It's very sketch. Having said that, I find this to be the case for a lot of Cornell things, there is a ton of information out there, but you can't find a lot of it, mainly because it is so spread out. And even after perusing all the info that I think is out there... I am still missing what I consider fundamental answers, like to the questions that I've been posting here.

Good luck all! See you in about a month!

*excited*

~Debbie

[DJLamar]

So if the gym fee is in fact due August 7th when the bursar bill is due... what happens if I don't pay it until the end of the month? >_>

If I would have known it were due that early and considered the fact that I could have signed up for the gym later then I wouldn't have signed up for it right now... I have enough on my plate as far as money goes until I actually get paid by the school.

2- The gyms are spread out... you can look up the maps. And they also list which gyms have which fitness classes.

I decided to wait until I got on campus to pay for this... I'm feeling a bit poor this month after paying two months' tuition.

What do you usually do at the gym? I usually attend classes (it's a regular structured time so I'm more likely to go) or do the elliptical machine. Maybe we should be gym buddies to keep each other going haha. Any other joiners?

I looked after posting and the far southwest one seems to roughly form an equilateral triangle with my apartment and my office (with a little less than a 15 minute walk from any one point to any other), so that's decently convenient.

I've never been a regular gym person haha. I don't think I've been to a gym even since freshman year of undergrad. I'm looking to a) trim off more of my bit of excess weight (this is already happening with no effort this Summer since I'm living in Munich, just like the last time I lived here... and I think the hill in Ithaca will help keep it up) and build some extra muscle (so I'm thinking a basic routine with pullups, bench, squats, some free weights, etc. for that). I'm up for a gym buddy though -- definitely need as much encouragement as possible to not stop after three times like the last time...

I also like the idea of the cookout.

[DJLamar]

Also, can you believe this?

The photo you submitted on July 12, 2010 with your Student ID Card Request form could not be used to produce your Cornell University ID Card due to poor image quality/low resolution.

[...]

If you are unable to submit a suitable photo at this time, you can be photographed in person when you arrive on campus. In order to avoid waiting in line, we strongly suggest you submit your photo on-line.

I really wish they would have said that earlier, even though some here guessed it in advance. To me it's much less annoying to wait in line for five or ten minutes (or longer even) than to take twenty pictures of myself in hopes of a good one, only for the best one to be rejected anyway...

[red_crayons]

So if the gym fee is in fact due August 7th when the bursar bill is due... what happens if I don't pay it until the end of the month? >_>

You can walk to Helen Newman Hall any day of the year, pay for your gym fee by credit card or add it to your bursar bill. They will program your card then and there, AND give you a paper receipt so you can use the gyms immediately if, for some reason, your card isn't activated immediately. If you haven't opted to purchase the gym membership yet and you're strapped for cash, wait until you get here and go in person.

But if you already opted in, and it's on your bursar bill...

The gym you mention on the "far southwest" is probably Noyes? If so, it is tiny, meaning there's often no equipment free, filled with anorexics and dudes on sports teams, and in the middle of undergrad dorms. Not my favorite for those reasons. It is new and has big windows, which makes it worth trying. But it's also down a big hill. Teagle - near the baseball field and Barton - is close to Upson, easier to get to (less hill), parking closer in the evenings, and has a more pleasant atmosphere.

Maps of campus are really deceptive because the hills change EVERYTHING.

I'd be up for meeting up. I'll have to see how things work out. Lunch during the week will probably be easier than Sunday brunch, as at least 2, possibly 3, of my September weekends are spoken for (Philly, NYC)...

[DJLamar]

So if I don't pay the bursar bill (that's the only thing that will be on there -- no tuition or anything), will they just charge me a fee perhaps, or are there more dire consequences than that? Also, the other gym that you mentioned -- can you park next to it without a permit in the evenings?

[red_crayons]

So if I don't pay the bursar bill (that's the only thing that will be on there -- no tuition or anything), will they just charge me a fee perhaps, or are there more dire consequences than that? Also, the other gym that you mentioned -- can you park next to it without a permit in the evenings?

If you don't pay your bursar bill, you can't register for classes, ride the bus, or officially participate in campus life at all. And they'll charge you interest once you're overdue for a certain amount of time. Of course, in practice, crying works to get deadlines pushed back...

Teagle is really close to Upson and collegetown. You could just walk. If you really want to park, there's free after 5pm parking up at Helen Newman. To park near Teagle, you'd have to walk across the street to the parking garage, which I believe is also free after 5?

[DJLamar]

Oh ok, if that's all that happens when I don't pay my bill, then I'll be ok. I'll be able to pay it before I actually get to Cornell, I just don't want to waste the money on it while I'm still hanging around Europe and it would be hard to transfer money to them from the German bank account that my pay is going into.