Head-to-head · 100 cross-admits
When applicants got into both, 94% chose CLS. Side-by-side on admissions, costs, and outcomes — sourced from 100 self-reported decisions and ABA 509 filings.
Choice, not ranking
These are decisions, not opinions. Scholarship offers, location, intended practice, and personal fit are all priced into the split.
Cross-admit decision
Chose CLS
Typical aid · ABA 509 · 2025
per yearCross-admits who enrolled · self-reported, 3-yr award
View all-time (253 cross-admits)
Trend · CLS's share
Lowest cycle
Highest cycle
Admissions
Rankings, LSAT/GPA, acceptance & yield 2025 ABA 509
Financial
Sticker price and scholarship aid 2025 ABA 509
Employment & outcomes
Post-graduation placement and bar passage 2025 ABA Employment
Cross-admit by cycle
How preferences shifted over recent cyclesRelated comparisons
Other popular cross-admit matchups
Harvard University
169
New York University
140
Georgetown University
110
Cornell University
80
University of California—Berkeley
79
Harvard University
111
Columbia University
80
University of Pennsylvania
63
University of Virginia
53
New York University
49
Overview
About CLS vs Cornell University
Across 100 applicants admitted to both schools and self-reporting on LSD, 94% enrolled at Columbia University and 6% at Cornell University. The split has shifted +15 points across the tracked cycles.
These numbers reflect every factor that goes into a real decision: scholarship offers, geographic preference, intended practice area, and fit. Choosing one school doesn't mean it's "better" — it means the pool of cross-admits, weighing their options, ended up there more often. Pair this with the scholarship distribution and employment outcomes above for full context.
Looking at a different matchup? Browse all comparisons or run a custom pair from the index.
Compare another pair
Detailed comparison narrative
This page compares Columbia University and Cornell University across admissions data, cost of attendance, and employment outcomes — plus cross-admit decision data from 100 applicants admitted to both.
Based on 100 applicants admitted to both schools, 94% chose to attend Columbia University. This cross-admit data reflects real enrollment decisions from verified law school applicants on LSD.Law.
Both schools are closely ranked in U.S. News: #9 and #13, separated by just 4 positions, making cross-admit data especially useful for deciding between them.
Columbia University is significantly more selective, with an acceptance rate of 11.8% compared to Cornell University's 18.2%.
Both schools are located in New York — Columbia University in New York City and Cornell University in Ithaca — meaning graduates often compete in the same regional legal market.
Employment outcomes differ substantially: Columbia University places 70.1% of graduates into large law firm positions, compared to 56.9% for the other school. This 13 percentage point gap is significant for applicants targeting BigLaw careers.
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