Is UC Berkeley harder to get into than Cornell for undergraduate admissions?

Yes, for most applicants Cornell is usually considered harder to get into overall for undergraduate admission, though the comparison depends a lot on your residency and intended major. Cornell is a private Ivy with a highly selective applicant pool across its colleges, while UC Berkeley’s selectivity shifts more dramatically based on whether you are in-state, out-of-state, or international. Berkeley can feel just as hard, or harder, for certain programs like engineering, EECS, business, or other capped majors.

For a student applying broadly across majors and looking at overall national perception of admissions difficulty, Cornell tends to be the tougher admit. Its process is also more consistent across residency categories because it is not a public university prioritizing California residents the way Berkeley does. Berkeley is still extremely selective, but California applicants often have a somewhat different admissions landscape than nonresidents.

The student who may find Berkeley more attainable is a strong California resident applying to a less impacted college or major and presenting a profile that aligns well with the UC system’s academic focus. Berkeley also does not use test scores in admission, so students whose strengths are grades, course rigor, and activities rather than standardized testing may feel the process suits them better.

The student who may have a more realistic shot at Cornell is one whose academic profile matches a specific Cornell college very well and who can write strong supplemental essays that clearly fit that program. Cornell’s admissions are also college-specific, so applying to Arts and Sciences is not the same as applying to Engineering, ILR, or Hotel. That structure can help some applicants, but it also means you need a very coherent fit story.

Cornell is usually seen as more selective overall, but Berkeley is not meaningfully easier in the most competitive majors and can be tougher for out-of-state applicants. For a realistic admissions list, I would treat both as reaches unless your profile is exceptionally strong and your intended program is less selective within the university.