It is the oldest institution of higher learning in New York State and the fifth oldest in the United States. Apart from Harvard, it is also one of the only Ivy League schools located in a major city. While many know Columbia for its Fu Foundation School of Engineering , one of their strongest departments for undergrads and graduate students, its Economic and Political Science departments are also consistently ranked as some of the best in the nation.
It is little wonder then that over 40, students apply to Columbia every year. In , the college was forced to close its doors with the onset of the American Revolution and the British occupation of New York. Columbia College was more thoroughly influenced by the Revolution and strove for greater economic, denominational, and geographic diversity amongst its students and leaders. More than protesting students occupied five buildings in the last week of April , effectively shutting down the university, until they were forcibly removed by police.
These events also led to the creation of the of the University Senate, which granted faculty, students, and alumni a larger voice in University affairs.
However, many believe it still took the University over two decades to fully recover. Starting in the s, new facilities were built, and old ones were renovated.
With the development of the Audubon Biotechnology and Research Park , Columbia secured its place at the forefront of medical research. Now, the university is lead by its new president, Lee C. Bollinger, and recently celebrated its th anniversary.
Through its renowned Core Curriculum and the advanced work of its graduate and professional programs, Columbia sets one of the highest standards for the creation and dissemination of knowledge in the United States and around the world.
Ambedkar, Barack Obama, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Isaac Asimov, J. In , Columbia moved to Forty-ninth Street and Madison Avenue, where it stood for the next forty years. Finally, in , Columbia moved to its present-day location in Morningside Heights. Columbia takes a lot of pride in this campus. Roosevelt, Dwight D. Eisenhower, and Barack Obama. Theodore Roosevelt and Franklin D. Columbia hopes for their graduates to go on to become top-level leaders in their future career or industry, and they choose students who they believe can go on to do just that.
Academically speaking, Columbia looks for exceptional students with high grades and test scores, highly motivated individuals motivated towards a specific career, and the character and work ethic to bring future goals to fruition. The latter two points are especially important for Columbia, as very few students who are admitted do not have an intended field of study. They look for students who can demonstrate these qualities in their extra curriculars and community service.
Finally, Columbia is looking for students who are interested in the Core Curriculum. Columbia as an institution takes a lot of pride in its Core Curriculum, calling it the heart of their academics.
To apply from abroad if your college is not US-style as defined above, you must apply as a first-year student only in your first year of study. If you have begun your second year of study or beyond, you are no longer eligible to apply to Columbia as an undergraduate.
Post-secondary work can be considered for possible transfer credit after you are admitted to Columbia and accept our offer.
You must fulfill our English Language Proficiency requirements , in addition to the Transfer Admission requirements to apply for transfer admission. International Student Admission. If they are not required for the completion of, and graduation from, secondary school, applicants are not required to submit results Undocumented students are encouraged to visit our Undocumented Students webpage.
Students at Non-English Speaking Schools Any documents that are part of your application file and not in English, such as transcripts or recommendations, need to be officially translated into English and submitted along with the original documents. English Language Proficiency Requirement for International Students To be considered for admission to Columbia, you must be comfortable with rapid and idiomatic spoken English.
Your home language is English. Your primary language of instruction at school has been English for the duration of your secondary school career. Please visit www. A minimum score of Internet-based test is necessary for admission to Columbia.
What this means is that you'll need to be taking heavier weighted courses, typically AP or honors courses, to be competitive with other prospective Columbia students.
Again, it's not impossible to get in if you don't have a GPA above 4. Study hard in your first couple years of high school to ensure that you're prepared for the advanced courses you'll need to push your GPA to a Columbia-approved level. Remember, your school may weight AP courses more, so a B in an AP course might mean more than an A in a standard course. Don't despair if your grades aren't perfect in AP courses, but do always strive for the best, and set yourself up for success.
You simply can't earn a 4. Don't take that to mean that being in the top 10 percent is enough—remember, 95 percent of the students you're competing with are also in that same demographic. You need to excel and stand out. Because Columbia is holistic, everything counts.
But one Ivy League college admissions officer has revealed a little secret— everything counts, but the most important thing to not do poorly on is your GPA. This is general advice for Ivy Leagues, not specifically Columbia, but don't discount your GPA as a vital factor in getting accepted to Columbia.
Having a distinct skill—like doing VR while riding a bike—sets you apart from other applicants. Your competition is not necessarily every single student who applies to Columbia. Your competition is every student like you—students who have your GPA, your SAT score, your diversity of extracurriculars. So find a way to stand out from the pack; what areas do you excel in? And if you don't excel now, what can you do to target your application to be less of a Renaissance applicant and more of a specialist?
Consider the "spike" approach to applying to college. A variety of skills is great, but most applicants will also have good grades, test scores, and multiple extracurriculars. To stand out, you want something memorable—a spike in your well-roundedness.
If you have an interest spike, an area where you particularly excel or that emphasizes your dedication to a certain field, you can tie much of your application to that spike and make your application more memorable.
The essay section may be stressful, but it's also your best opportunity to shine. Writing a good answer to the "Why Columbia" essay is essential. The admissions office already knows Columbia is a good school, so use this space to explain why it's the right school for you and how you'll contribute to the community there. Again, this is a great place to return to your spike to tie things together.
Be sure to emphasize your own personal experience in your essay. Reading successful Columbia application essays is a great way to get a feel for what Columbia likes to see, and to better understand how personal details can change the entire feel of an essay.
Columbia's further supplemental questions may seem unusual compared to other colleges; they ask about books you've read, concerts you've attended, and so on. Be honest—though your temptation might be to reach for the most sophisticated answers, this is an opportunity for the college to get to know you better. If your favorite concert of the year was indeed the obscure bassoon recital you attended, by all means, list it.
But don't write in the prestigious documentary du jour if you have no interest in watching it. That said, Hop on Pop is not a grade-appropriate choice, so do try to choose things that represent your interests and your age level.
Certain majors accept supplementary materials , such as some scientific fields, artistic disciplines, or performance-based majors. Students with research experience, you can include an abstract to flesh out your application.
Students in the arts can include a portfolio but should be aware that there is an additional fee—this fee can be waived, but Coalition Application students will need to email the school directly for a fee waiver. Good recommendation letters are a key part of how to get into Columbia. Columbia requires three recommendation letters: one from a counselor, and two from teachers.
Though Columbia does accept one supplemental letter of recommendation , students should only do so if the source is academic and if the letter will add something new to your application. More isn't always better. Teachers, coaches, and other mentor figures are great options for letters of recommendation. Be sure that you're setting your teachers up to write you a great letter by asking early and providing them with any information they might need.
Take a look at letters that got students into Ivy League schools for the caliber of recommendations you should strive for. Take note of how these teachers write about personality as well as academics— select teachers who have the same knowledge of your personality and skills so they're equipped to write about you with the same depth.
Before you take out loans, apply for financial aid! Columbia takes a need-blind approach to processing applications from US citizens, undocumented students, and eligible non-US citizens. International students are processed as need-aware , meaning there may be some consideration of financial need while processing the application. Columbia meets percent of student need and does so without loans. Columbia has a helpful tool for students to determine what documentation and forms they'll need based on when they're applying, their citizenship status, and what year they're applying for.
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