<p>does anybody know what the topic is for the application essay, how many are required etc?</p>
<p>As far as I know, you have to wait for the 2006 application until August or so. Take it easy in the meantime. By the way, what brings you to this forum. From your website, I can see that you are an artistic whiz. If you're interested in the humanities division of an undergraduate college, you should seriously consider Vassar, Amherst, Swathmore, Northwestern, Tulane, etc. I have friends who go to those schools and who love the undergraduate experience, especially their literature and art professors. Columbia is quite overpriced too, especially for out of state applicants ($40K plus). Anyways, good luck with the application process. I remember procrastinating, but don't regret it at all. After all, the application is filled with mostly recommendations and statistical personal information. It shouldn't take too long.</p>
<p>thanks for the info :) i'm just interested in applying to columbia, and as you've correctly deduced, getting a head start on college applications. i'm already very interested in amherst and swarthmore, primarily for their philosophy faculty, which i understand are amazing. you're right, it is overpriced, but so few aren't that i don't find it worth getting too picky over...
perhaps you would know then....whether the essay topic is usually a generic "make your own" kind of thing, or does columbia go all out nuts like U Chicago with prompts about mustard and such? :)
thanks again SkyLight</p>
<p>last year, the prompt was basically, "tell us about yourself."</p>
<p>you make your own</p>
<p>Hey, ontolome I am a student at Columbia. Even though I chose to go to school here, I regret coming here mainly because 1) It was overpriced, 2) If I would have gone to another cheaper liberal school, I would be able to use that surplus money to buy books, my dreamed Apple laptop, 3)and most importantly, I would like to be in a more liberal atmosphere. Even though Columbia is in a very liberal area, it is not as conducive to the arts and free thinking (many of my friends happened to be atheists and gays and are in thriving communities at some elite colleges in New England and the West Coast). In fact, I am thinking of transferring next year. If anything, take your time considering your options before deciding to waste your time, money, and energy on a Columbia application. By the way, have you heard the news about the Islamic professor at Columbia who supposedly harrassed and basically humiliated his Jewish students. I am not sure of the accuracy of the allegations, but I do not want to have anything to do with it. If you desire to apply to a NY area college, maybe you should consider Colgate, Barnard, Bard, Manhattan College, etc. (<a href="http://www.collegenews.org/annapolisgroup_schools.xml%5B/url%5D">http://www.collegenews.org/annapolisgroup_schools.xml</a>)</p>
<p>While everyone's opinions are certainly valid insofar as they're true, you should make sure that ultimately your final college decision isn't laced with bad experiences of the vast minority. As a Columbia undergrad myself, I find it an extremely rewarding intellectual and social experience to study there, and most of my friends would agree. Being a small liberal arts institution in itself within the context of a major research university, Columbia College in many ways fosters free, liberal thinking; discussions are abundant among peers even outside the classroom, and in my observation everyone's opinions have always been respected and responded to in a meaningful way. </p>
<p>Most private colleges now (including Amherst, Swarthmore, Vassar, Northwestern, Tulane, and so many others), cost near or upwards of $40,000 regardless of whether you're in or out of state, so I would hardly consider this particular one to be overpriced, and with the academic facilities available to you, it's almost a bargain. Of course, this doesn't apply to anyone on financial aid (like me), which by the way was more than satisfactory. Columbia offered me the biggest package by far in comparison to other institutions, and it cost me less to attend school there than it would have at subsidized public colleges in my home state. Also, since the standard of living in upper Manhattan is so high compared to colleges in rural areas (and its cost of attendance is essentially equivalent to these aforementioned private colleges), the bargain argument is thus reinforced.</p>
<p>And if you choose not to apply to Columbia for the reasons in the above post, you probably shouldn't consider applying to Barnard either if you're a woman, because the two colleges are intimately connected, and Barnard shares a large part of Columbia's culture (though Barnard is still its own independent college).</p>
<p>Anyway, to contribute an answer to your question, ontolome, the essay prompt over the past few years has consistently been the following:</p>
<p>"Write an essay which conveys to the reader a sense of who you are. Possible topics may include, but are not limited to, experiences which have shaped your life, the circumstances of your upbringing, your most meaningful intellectual achievement, the way you see the worldthe people in it, events great and small, everyday lifeor any personal theme which appeals to your imagination. Please remember that we are concerned not only with the substance of your prose but with your writing style as well. We prefer that you limit yourself to the space provided. You are certifying that the information submitted in this application is entirely your work and, to the best of your knowledge, accurately and honestly presented."</p>
<p>Good luck with applications. I apologize if this post offended anyone in any way; I just wanted to shed some light on some of the negative aspects being addressed. Although there are undoubtedly negative qualities of Columbia that can't be reasoned or reconciled (just like at every other college!), there are the good and bad you should consider in all schools before you wisely invest or recklessly waste your resources in them.</p>
<p>Well said, blah1111.</p>
<p>In regards to the original question, in addition to the essays, there are also places for short (maybe 3 lines or so) answers in which Columbia asks about books you've read recently, cultural experiences you've enjoyed, etc. There is also a brief space to note why you're interested in Columbia. This is pretty much unique to Columbia; most other colleges' applications ask little more than the generic questions on the Common Application, while I sense Columbia wants to try to get an idea of how you think. (Columbia does not accept the Common App.)</p>
<p>Not to be too partisan or anything, but this is the place for that sort of bias, I would also add in contrast to SkyLight's first post that Columbia's performance and visual arts opportunities are excellent and very well complemented by the surrounding environment of New York. Many of the surrounding museums, galleries, and performance venues are among the best in the world! Additionally, humanities instruction is strong, from the Core Curriculum to the highly regarded history and comparative literature departments, not to mention world-class social science instruction in economics and political science!</p>
<p>I was told (by Columbia) that my essay was good. The key to doing well on the Columbia essay? Do your best to not address the question at all.</p>