It's not our first time around the block. 

Our block attracts a colorful community of diverse, empathetic neighbors—students, faculty, staff, and alumni—who care about each other, because we’re only as collectively strong as we are individually strong. 

But “block” is more than an expression of our vibrant campus life; it’s the innovative—some might say ingenious—foundation of every Cornellian’s education. Flexible, experiential. We’ve been living, learning, and teaching on the block plan, One Course At A Time, since 1978 when we left the traditional semester plan behind. (We haven’t missed it.)

Yeah, we’ve been doing what most would consider a new thing, investing our time and treasure, for 42 years and we’re virtually unique in the higher ed space. 

Benefits of the Block Structure

Why did we choose to teach on the block, where students only take one course every 3 1/2 weeks? It offers flexible and experiential learning unlike—and superior to—semester plans. 

We were able to rapidly extend our calendar to a 10-block year starting fall 2020 so that you’ll have 8 standard blocks per year, plus 2 additional flex blocks. No matter what happens with this pandemic, we won’t be disrupted and you’ll graduate on time, in 4 years or less. 

We have the infrastructure and experience that teaching on the block plan requires—our courses are all built for it, no adaptation required. Our professors all choose to teach this way—and they excel at it. Our students are the kind of risk-takers who thrive when they’re challenged and supported by faculty mentors and a campus full of people cheering them on every step of the way. (Sound like you?)

Bring on fall 2020. We’re ready to teach on-campus or online, as the situation requires.

You can step in and step out of your academic term as your personal situation dictates during our 10-block year. There are even more opportunities to work with your advisor and make your learning plan your own. And if you want, you can earn a 4-year degree in just 3 years. 

This. Is your block.