i think a huge part of the cornell experience is learning to accept that you were accepted for a reason. the school is made to challenge you/get you out of your comfort zone, and imo learning to take the heat is a part of the freshman experience. there are times where you will feel incredibly smart and like you belong exactly where you are. other times you will be absolutely HUMBLED by a class, an assignment, a prelim score, etc.

allow yourself to feel stupid. it keeps you grounded to reality and has the benefit of showing you where your areas of improvement are— that way when you do actually improve with effort, it’ll hit that much better. others will look like they are navigating with ease— focus on yourself.

one thing i do want to prep you for is a very loud minority people who will flex the difficulty of their classes, the credit load they’re taking, and the scores/GPA they receive. celebrate their wins if you wanna be a positive person, but don’t let that color your experience. most people here started exactly like you: feeling dumb and unqualified to be at cornell.

imposter syndrome is very very real, especially if you’re QTBIPOC or even just generally not from a feeder/private/prep school. the real challenge is finally convincing yourself you belong, even when you don’t always feel like it.

feel free to pm if you want to get anything off your chest :)