This list of Cornell University alumni includes notable graduates, non-graduate former students, and current students of Cornell University, an Ivy League university whose main campus is in Ithaca, New York.

Alumni are known as Cornellians, and many are noted for their accomplishments in public, professional, and corporate life. The school's alumni include 25 recipients of National Medal of Science and National Medal of Technology and Innovation combined, 38 MacArthur Fellows, 34 Marshall Scholars, 31 Rhodes Scholars, 249 elected members of the National Academy of Sciences, 201 elected members of the National Academy of Engineering, and over 190 heads of higher learning institutions. Cornell is the only university in the world with four female winners of unshared Nobel Prizes among its graduates: Pearl S. Buck, Barbara McClintock, Toni Morrison and Claudia Goldin.

As of 2006, Cornell had over 250,000 living alumni. Many alumni maintain university ties through the university's homecoming. Its alumni magazine is Cornell Magazine. In Manhattan, the university maintains the Cornell Club of New York for alumni. In 2005, Cornell ranked third nationally among universities and colleges in philanthropic giving by its alumni.

Academia College and university leadership

Walter S. Davis (M.S., 1933, Ph.D., 1941) – president of Tennessee State University (1943–1968) Gregory L. Fenves (B.S., 1979) – president of the University of Texas at Austin (2015–2020), president of Emory University (2020–2025), chancellor of Emory University (2025–) Zvi Galil (Ph.D., 1975) – dean of the Georgia Institute of Technology College of Computing (2010–19), president of Tel Aviv University (2007–09) Chris Gibson (MPA, 1995, M.A., 1996, Ph.D., 1998) – president of Siena College (2020–23), U.S. representative from New York (2011–17) Ana Guadalupe (Ph.D., 1987) – chancellor of the University of Puerto Rico, Río Piedras Campus (2009–13) David Starr Jordan (M.S., 1872) – chancellor of Stanford University (1913–16), president of Stanford University (1891–1913), president of Indiana University (1884–91) Charnvit Kasetsiri (Ph.D., 1972) – historian and rector at Thammasat University Steven Knapp (Ph.D., 1981) – president of George Washington University (2007–17) Archie Palmer (B.A., 1920) – president of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga Marc Parlange (M.S., 1987, Ph.D., 1990) – president of the University of Rhode Island Wendy Raymond (B.A., 1982) – president of Haverford College (2019–present) Arthur K. Smith (Ph.D., 1970) – president of the University of Utah (1991–1997), president of the University of Houston (1997–2003), chancellor of the University of Houston System (1997–2003) George R. Throop (Ph.D.) - chancellor of Washington University in St. Louis (1927–44)

Anthropology and sociology

Carol Aneshensel (B.S., M.A., Ph.D.) – sociologist, professor, and vice chair of the Department of Community Health Sciences at UCLA's School of Public Health Sarah T. Barrows (M.A. 1893) – phonetician and phonetics pioneer Alfred Blumstein (B.A., Ph.D.) – criminologist, former dean of the Heinz College at Carnegie Mellon University, and member, National Academy of Engineering (1998) Aaron Cicourel (Ph.D.) – professor emeritus of sociology, University of California, San Diego, 1992 American Academy of Arts and Sciences fellow, and 1982 American Association for the Advancement of Science fellow Kimberlé Crenshaw (B.A. 1981) – critical race theory scholar, Columbia Law School Harry Edwards (Ph.D. 1970) – sociologist specializing on race and sports and University of California, Berkeley professor emeritus Shelly Errington (M.A., Ph.D.) – cultural anthropologist, professor of anthropology, University of California, Santa Cruz, and 1981 MacArthur Fellow Diana E. Forsythe (Ph.D. 1974) – anthropologist, University of California, San Francisco, noted for her work on artificial intelligence and medical informatics Daniel A. Foss (B.A.) – sociologist and author of Beyond Revolution: A New Theory of Social Movements and Freak Culture: Life Style and Politics Ward Goodenough (B.A. 1940) – anthropologist, University of Pennsylvania, 1971 member of National Academy of Sciences, and 1975 fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences Sabine Hyland (B.A. 1986) – anthropologist, professor of World Christianity at University of St Andrews, specialist on khipus and religion in Peru, and 2019 Guggenheim Fellow Suzanne Maman – social scientist and HIV/AIDS researcher Erik Mueggler (B.A.) – anthropologist, professor at the University of Michigan, and 2002 MacArthur Fellow Mary Racelis (B.A. 1954) – anthropologist, sociologist, professor at Ateneo de Manila University and University of the Philippines Diliman, and former UNICEF regional director in Eastern and Southern Africa David M. Schneider (B.S. 1940, M.S. 1941) – cultural anthropologist known for studies of kinship, former William B. Ogden Distinguished Service Professor Emeritus in Anthropology, and chairman of Anthropology, University of Chicago G. William Skinner (B.A. 1947, Ph.D. 1954) – anthropologist and sinologist known for delineation of the physiographic macroregions of China and 1980 member of the National Academy of Sciences Julian Steward (B.A. 1925 zoology and biology) – anthropologist known for development of a scientific theory of cultural evolution and 1954 member of National Academy of Sciences Stanley Jeyaraja Tambiah (Ph.D. 1954) – social anthropologist, Esther and Sidney Rabb Professor Emeritus of Anthropology at Harvard University, 1997 recipient of the Balzan Prize, 1998 Fukuoka Asian Culture Prize, and 1994 member of the National Academy of Sciences Mildred Bertha Thurow Tate (Ph.D. 1935) – rural sociologist Brackette Williams (B.S. 1973) – anthropologist and 1997 MacArthur Fellow

Economics

Alice Amsden (B.A. 1965) – Barton L. Weller Professor of Political Economics, MIT Luc Anselin (M.A. 1979, Ph.D. 1980) – principal developer of spatial econometrics, 2008 member of the National Academy of Sciences, and 2011 American Academy of Arts and Sciences fellow Hugh E. Conway – labor economist, professor, and construction industry expert Maureen Cropper (M.A. 1972, Ph.D. 1973 economics) – distinguished university professor, University of Maryland, College Park; member of the National Academy of Sciences (2008) Frank Fetter (M.A. 1892 philosophy) – economist, former president of the American Economic Association, and American Academy of Arts and Sciences member Austin Frakt (B.S. 1994) – health care economist and founder, The Incidental Economist Robert Gilpin (M.S. 1954) – international political economy scholar, professor emeritus of Politics and International Affairs at the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University, and American Academy of Arts and Sciences fellow Garance Genicot (M.A. 1997, Ph.D. 1999) – economics professor, Georgetown University Claudia Goldin (B.A. magna cum laude 1968) – economist and 2006 National Academy of Sciences member Sanjeev Goyal (M.A. 1989, Ph.D. 1990 economics) – economics professor, University of Cambridge, and British Academy fellow Elaine Hill (Ph.D. 2014) – health and environmental economist, professor at the University of Rochester Charles Henry Hull (1886) – economist, historian, and former dean of Cornell University's College of Arts Paul L. Joskow (B.A. 1968) – economist, distinguished fellow of the American Economic Association, Econometric Society, Industrial Organization Society, and American Academy of Arts and Sciences fellow, Elizabeth and James Killian Professor of Economics, emeritus at MIT, past department chair of MIT Department of Economics, and current president of the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation Ehud Kalai (M.S. 1971, Ph.D. 1972) – game theorist, mathematical economist, James J. O’Connor Distinguished Professor of Decision and Game Sciences at Northwestern University, and American Academy of Arts and Sciences and Econometric Society fellow Edwin W. Kemmerer (Ph.D. 1903) – economist at Princeton University who served as president of the American Economic Association (1926) – known internationally as one of the most prominent so-called money doctors, and 1934 American Academy of Arts and Sciences fellow Frank Knight (Ph.D. 1916) – economist and one of the original leaders of the "Chicago School" of economic theory John Williams Mellor (BSc 1950; MSc 1951; Ph.D.) Sendhil Mullainathan (B.A. 1993) – behavioral economist at Harvard University, co-founder of MIT Poverty Action Lab, MacArthur Foundation "genius grant" recipient in 2002, and Infosys Prize recipient in 2018 Edwin Griswold Nourse (1906) – agricultural economist, first chairman of the US Council of Economic Advisers, former president of the American Economic Association, Brookings Institution vice president, Guggenheim Fellow, and 1934 American Academy of Arts and Sciences fellow Jack A. Roth (B.A 1967) – physician-scientist, thoracic surgeon Thorstein Veblen (graduate study 1891–92, transferred) – economist and author, The Theory of the Leisure Class

History

Glenn C. Altschuler (Ph.D. 1976) – Thomas and Dorothy Litwin Professor of American Studies and vice president for University Relations at Cornell University Barbara Watson Andaya (Ph.D. 1975) – professor of Asian studies at the University of Hawaii and director of the Center for Southeast Asian Studies Leonard Andaya (Ph.D. 1972) – professor of Southeast Asian history at the University of Hawaii John L. Brooke (B.A. 1975) – Arts & Sciences Distinguished Professor of History at Ohio State University; recipient of Bancroft Prize (1995) Edward Countryman (M.A. 1969, Ph.D. 1971) – historian and educator; recipient of Bancroft Prize (1982) Nancy F. Cott (B.A. 1967) – historian, Sterling Professor of History and American Studies at Yale University and Jonathan Trumbull Professor of American History at Harvard University; member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences Charlotte J. Erickson (M.A. 1947, Ph.D. 1951) – Paul Mellon Professor of American History at the University of Cambridge (1983–1990); MacArthur Fellow (1990) and Guggenheim Fellow (1966–1967) Louis R. Gottschalk (A.B. 1919, A.M. 1920, Ph.D. 1921) – professor of history (1927–1965), department chair (1937–1942), Gustavus F. and Ann M. Swift Distinguished Service Professor of History (1959–1965) at the University of Chicago Henry Guerlac (B.A. 1932 chemistry, M.A. 1933 biochemistry) – historian of science considered among the pioneers in the development of the academic field of the history of science; president of the History of Science Society (1957–1960), recipient of the George Sarton Medal (1973) Marie Boas Hall (Ph.D. 1949) – historian of science; fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (1955) and of the British Academy (1994), recipient of the George Sarton Medal (1981) Dominick LaCapra (B.A., faculty 1969–) – Bryce and Edith M. Bowmar Professor of Humanistic Studies at Cornell University; member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (2006) Frederic C. Lane (B.A. 1921) – historian in Medieval history, professor emeritus of history at Johns Hopkins University; president of the American Historical Association (1964–1965); fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and of the Medieval Academy of America Melvyn P. Leffler (B.S. 1966) – Edward Stettinius Professor and former chairman of the Department of History, dean of the college and Graduate School of Arts & Sciences at the University of Virginia; recipient of the George Louis Beer Prize (2008) and Bancroft Prize (1993) William Leuchtenburg (B.A. 1943) – historian, William Rand Kenan Jr. professor emeritus of history at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; recipient of Bancroft Prize and North Carolina Award for Literature