What is it?

Cornell University invites individuals who have served in the U.S. military and who are accepted to Cornell in the Undergraduate admissions process  to participate in Cornell’s Veterans Summer Bridge Program (VSBP). The Veterans Summer Bridge Program is designed to encourage and support those who have served to pursue a world-class education and earn a Cornell degree.

You will have an opportunity to take Cornell classes, meet faculty and staff, explore support resources, and get a head start on building community with fellow student veterans!

When is it?

The Veterans Summer Bridge Program (VSBP) 2025 will begin with move-in on Wednesday, June 18, immediately followed by Orientation activities. Classes for VSBP begin on Monday, June 23. Finals will be August 4-5 and move-out of the residence hall is Wednesday, August 6.

How are students selected?

Students may be required to attend due to an unmet prerequisite requirement or are invited to attend the program during the admissions process in the college/school to which they have applied. Courses required or selected are determined by admissions or through conversations between the student and the student’s college/school advisor.

What do students in the program do?

Veterans engage in a focused summer program prior to the fall semester including:

• 2-3 tuition-free credit-bearing courses in Cornell’s Six-week Summer Session. One of these courses will be the Veteran’s Seminar. Invited students may choose a third class; however, only one class can be STEM-based, i.e., calculus, chemistry, computer programming, biology, etc.  For those required to attend, they may only enroll in the Veteran’s Seminar and their required class.
• Social and community-building experiences coordinated by Cornell’s Veterans Program Director in partnership with the Student Veteran Ambassadors and the Warrior-Scholar Project offered at Cornell.
• An orientation to life at Cornell and Ithaca, and an introduction to support services and offices through workshops, discussions and other activities.

What are the costs?

Most of the costs of the VSBP are covered. Participants do not need to use their GI Bill® benefits to participate in the summer program. Cornell provides Summer Bridge Program participants with:

• Tuition and fees for Summer Session courses.
• Housing accommodations and a meal plan for the duration of the program.
• A travel stipend to defer the costs of traveling to Ithaca.
• Access to college advisors and an advisor dedicated to working with Veterans.
• Other covered costs: books, Student Health Plan and Fee for the summer, outings hosted by the Undergraduate Student Veteran Program Director and the Student Veteran Ambassadors. 

How will the program help me?

Cornell undergraduate education encourages you to take intellectual risks, explore the unfamiliar, and follow unconventional but promising ideas through to their conclusions. The Veterans Summer Bridge Program provides a supportive foundation from which you will build the rest of your academic program at the Ivy League’s only federally designated land-grant university. A Cornell education combines the rigorous intellectual tradition of the Ivy League and the democratic spirit of our nation’s great public universities.

Important Dates

For admissions deadlines, please visit: : First-Year Application Timeline and Transfer Application Timeline

VSBP 2025 Dates: June 18 – August 6, 2025

VSBP Move-In: June 18, 2025 (by noon on June 19)

VSBP Orientation: June 19-21, 2025

VSBP Class Dates: June 23– August 5, 2025; 6-week summer session dates

VSBP Move-Out: by 10 am, August 6, 2025

Dates are tentative and subject to change.