Does Columbia really interview nearly all of its applicants?!?!?!?!

[surfdevl02]

To anyone who knows, is it a misprint in the MSAR when it states that out of the 1,195 out of state applicants to Columbia Univ, 967 end up getting interviews. That's nearly everyone!! The numbers sound ludicrous to me but hey, i'm not complaining...although i do feel like a schmuck cause i haven't gotten one yet.

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[CaNEM]

In recent years, they have interviewed about half.

 

[cabruen]

According to US News

Applications 2552
Iinterviewed 1191
Accepted 306
Matriculated 150

Of course this means nothing to individuals. They have interviewed none of me. 😉

 

[surfdevl02]

Why am i not getting any love from Colubmia yet?? How many people on SDN are still waiting to interview there and how many have already interviewed? When do they stop interviewing?

 

[Jacobim]

I interviewed in October, and I know they contact people they really want (probably based on Scores, not me). I have heard that they admit a handful of people before Feb. (the usualy time). They also really want a 'letter of intent' there, from what they told me.

You should probably hear soon, since I think all applications should be in by now. Good luck. I did not really like the NY lifestyle (dorms), but it is a great school.

"That means that every single day that you see me, that's on the worst day of my life."
--P. Gibbons

 

[surfdevl02]

Do you mean i should write a letter of intent even BEFORE i get offered an interview or only afterwards??

 

[kaos]

I haven't heard from them since I applied. And I applied EARLY. My application was completed about 2 months later (stupid slow paperwork). 😳

 

[Jacobim]

No, after you interview you can send a letter of intent if you want. I think Letters of Intent are stupid, but do it if you really want to go there.

 

[Dr. Lawyer]

This is an interesting, if partially unrelated addendum to the discussion about Columbia admissions. Columbia and Cornell are both excellent medical schools, and both are located in Manhattan. Columbia typically receives in the neighborhood of 3,000 applications every year, while Cornell receives around 6,000. The difference? 168th Street versus 68th Street, and Non-AMCAS versus AMCAS...

 

[xaelia]

1) I don't think a letter of intent to a place that already interviews an absurdly high percentage of its applicants would help much at all. They're probably already interviewing everyone they had even the slightest interest in.

2) Einstein had 6,000 applications last year, while Columbia only had 2,500. Trying to claim the Bronx has the same advantages over 168th St. as Cornell has? 😉 I think the scope of the non-AMCAS application is primarily responsible for Columbia getting far fewer "trivial" applications. How many of us added Harvard to our AMCAS application because it "couldn't hurt", without really researching the school or feeling it was realistic? Put Columbia on AMCAS, and they'd get >4,000 applications....

 

[Cory]

Xaelia makes a good point. Columbia wants to take those applicants that really do see Columbia as one of their top choices. That is why they are non-AMCAS, they don't want the trivial apps. They know that if you took the time to do their non-AMCAS application, then you probably have an elevated interest in Columbia, and are not just applying for the sake of applying. That is why they interview a good portion of those who apply. I did 2 internships at Columbia, and I had the opportunity to talk to a ton of students/faculty and they all advise the same thing... If Columbia is really your first choice, then a letter of intent to Dr. Franz (Dean of Admissions) is probably a good idea (post-interview). This is especially true if you are placed on their waitlist

 

[mvervaine]

sorry to bump this up, but i recently heard that someone from my undergrad who applied last year was initially put on the waitlist, but, because it was a first choice, aggressively wrote LOIs. then, out of the blue, Dean Franz calls this person up and asks him/her if he/she would come in for a "chat" with him (he/she lived in the area and originally interviewed with someone else). he/she did, and was accepted shortly thereafter. so, the morals are: 1. LOIs are taken seriously, and 2. Dean Franz DOES hand pick the class.