<p>Alright, so the reason i titled this thread the way I did is because my question has nothing to do with opinions or ideas. I want facts...please.</p>
<p>What is the process of reviewing applicants? How do they boil down their number of acceptances, and how do they accept one applicant not knowing that the next applicant up for review could be similar but better?</p>
<p>My basic question just has to do with the process - I just don't get when (dates) they review applicants, how many rounds you go through, how regional vs. national admissions works....</p>
<p>so please, if you know someone in admissions, have been in admissions, or just know a lot about the admission process at columbia....let me know what the deal is.</p>
<p>Agree with Denzera and C’02. As interviewers none of us know the exact procedure the admissions office uses to screen/evaluate candidates or exactly the precise way decisions are made. It is probably best we do not know- our very small role in the process of aiding the admission office in interviewing the students might be compromised. We might not be able to provide the admission office with what they need which is a perspective on the student as a person. Keep in mind again as has been stated many times before that the interview is a very small part of the admission process. </p>
<p>If you are interested in a general outline of how the admission process works from the inside, there are a few decent “tell-all” books out there written by former admissions officers. Don’t know if the Columbia process is similar to theirs but these books might give you an outline of how the system works. BTW, these books are not without their critics so read critically if you choose to dive in. </p>
<p>They are</p>
<p>Michelle Hernandez - A is for Admission (Dartmouth)
Jacques Steinberg - The Gatekeepers (Wesleyan)</p>
<p>From what I recall, they have regional admissions officers, which takes care of certain regions which consist from as large an extent as many states, to as small as a few Private schools. From there they read your file, and if they like it they send it to committee. The committee decides to accept reject defer waitlist. They aren't really focused about a numbers kinda thing. It not like well here's 10 applications, we need to take 1. They just have high enough standards that the acceptance rates happen to be around that level.</p>