<p>I applied in Jan., when I checked to see if application was complete they said they "had everything, excpet recommendations" but considered it complete. What should I do?</p>
<p>Gusslink, I am in this same situation, even though I sent in my recs about 5 weeks ago. I'm not sure if they update when they have received them or not.</p>
<p>had to call again, and they still haven't found the recs so I have to start all over again</p>
<p>AnonAnnay,</p>
<p>My GS apartment is acceptable. Can't say the same about my roommate though. Ugh! As far as distance from campus, I think my building is the farthest (furthest?) UAH building from campus and it does not take me more than 10 minutes to walk to Butler.</p>
<p>No pests, super is responsive, heat is not an issue. It's just an apartment. You probably won't spend too much time in it anyway.</p>
<p>What is the difference between Collumbia College and Collumbia University? I tried to google Columbia College and I got this website</p>
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<p>A university has many schools. Some are for college students (who have a HS diploma and are seeking a Bachelors degree), some are for graduate students (who have a bachelors and are seeking a masters or a doctorate).</p>
<p>The Columbia we're all talking about is Columbia University in the City of New York, at columbia.edu:</p>
<p>Columbia</a> University in the City of New York</p>
<p>There are 4 undergrad schools and (I believe) 18 or so graduate schools in the university - like the Business school, the Law school, the Medical school, etc. Columbia College is the oldest of the undergraduate schools at Columbia University.</p>
<p>finally got confirmation that gs has recommendations after I had them emailed to s pecific person at GS they said they would cosider app in next 6 weeks</p>
<p>1) On "Columbia" - Columbia is a poetic name for the United States that dates back to mid-18th century feelings of nationalism and patriotism. Columbia</a> (name) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia</p>
<p>2) On things named Columbia - As a result of the above, Columbia is a popular apellation for things. Like the nation's capital, various cities (University of Missouri-Columbia), and numerous Colleges: Columbia</a> College - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia , one of which was Columbia College in the City of New York, which the old Kings College was re-christened as in 1784.</p>
<p>3) Columbia University - Columbia College is one of three undergraduate schools at Columbia University, alongside 13 graduate and professional schools.</p>
<p>Wow- This is an excellent thread, with a wealth of information. I decided to look up the Columbia GS after meeting a representative from the school at my local Community College. Despite what some may or may not think of its "reputation" I happen to think it is good for a non-traditional student such as myself. Maybe I just bought in to all the representative was telling me, but I will be applying for admission Fall of 2009, I think. Which actually brings me to a question:</p>
<p>I wonder how qualified the person staffing the booth at the fair was, so I wanted to ask the opinion of some others: </p>
<p>I had a poor HS career, finishing with about a 2.5 GPA and a 27 on my ACT. I have worked full time since turning 16 years old, and once I began working, I realized I did quite well in the "working world." So, my experience told me to go to work instead of focus on High School and continue to college. I did quite well, and just recently left my career as an Advisor with Morgan Stanley to go to college. Even at my Community College, I LOVE classes, and learning. I could only imagine my enthusiasm at a place like Columbia GS. </p>
<p>The Rep. I met at the College fair suggested that I apply with only one semester of College behind me. Do you all think that is sufficient to compensate for my HS shortcomings? Also, is it more difficult to be admitted for the Spring than the Fall? I would be Applying for Spring 2009, as I am just starting my first semester. I don't know, for sure, my grades, but if things remain consistant I don't think maintaing a 3.8GPA+ should be a problem. I don't want to apply too EARLY, without substantial course work completed, and risk not being able to reapply. </p>
<p>Any suggestions?</p>
<p>Thanks! -- Love this thread, sorry for the looooooooong post.</p>
<p>A quick question, so I can answer one of my friends who is apply to SGS...do the aid policies at the more traditional undergrad schools also hold true for SGS? Or, is financial aid harder to come by at Columbia?</p>
<p>Thank you in advance.</p>
<p>es four: To answer your question: If you have had a good first semester(as close to a 4.0 as possible), and have had really good life/work experience(This is KEY for GS!), then you should definitely apply for admission as soon as you can afford / want to attend. GS in particular is forgiving for poor HS performance so long as you have "proven yourself" with strong college performance(even if for just a semester), and life experiences(working at Morgan Stanley should be a huge plus here).</p>
<p>Also, is there any reason why you can't reapply? Time constraints?</p>
<p>mikesown- Thank you for the insight, I appreciate it. I hope my work for A.G. Edwards and Morgan Stanley is sufficient work experience. I was by far the youngest of my class and office, but I guess I don't really know what I'm up against. Is working for Morgan Stanley impressive enough to overlook my poor High School performance? I also have sat on two non-profit boards, so I have some "extra" leadership experience. Learning about the GS program is surprising for me, but from what I have learned since High School I'm shocked more schools don't offer a program like this. I think non-traditional students have a MUCH different perspective, and add a really interesting dynamic to classrooms. </p>
<p>As far as constraints on WHEN I apply/reapply, I don't really know. How often can I apply to Columbia GS? Each quarter? If I am not admitted, do I have to wait before reapplying? If that is the case, I would rather wait until I have a sufficient record to prove my capabilities. I'll also be applying to UC Berkeley, Northwestern, Claremont McKenna and a few others in the Fall of 2009. I assumed it would be easiest to just apply to all of them at once. </p>
<p>I would apply to Columbia GS for admission this Fall of 2008, but my Spring 2008 grades will be finalized before the applications are due.... I get my grades a month or so after the deadline. </p>
<p>As far as money, I do not have much, so I will be financing the majority of my education. I would like to get started at a different school ASAP. I love school and am very enthusiastic to get started at a more focused institution. </p>
<p>Thanks again for the help!</p>
<p>s4</p>
<p>Correction above... I intended to say ....,but my Spring 2008 grades will NOT be finalized....</p>
<p>es four: I don't believe there's any restriction on the number of times you can apply. Also, even if your grades come out a month after GS's deadline, you can still send them; the decision takes a bit of time to come out(longer than 4 weeks), so as long as you send them a note about when grades come out, and they should be forgiving. Since you bearly missed the Early Action deadline for Fall GS admission(March 1), you can apply for Regular Decision on June 1 for Fall admission. Alternatively, you can apply by April 1 for Summer admission. </p>
<p>One thing you should be aware of is that GS provides almost no aid. GS is a cash cow for Columbia, simply put. So, expect to pay full-fare, and be surprised if you get significant aid.</p>
<p>Ahhh...that's the catch.</p>
<p>Well to be fair, financial aid funds at CC/SEAS and (and at many other colleges) is derived from tuition, endowed funds, and annual giving, solicited directly by the school for those purposes. GS just doesn't have the money in its account yet, and will have to focus on developing a donor base of its own eventually.</p>
<p>If rejected from GS or any of the undergraduate divisions, you have to wait three years before reapplying.</p>
<p>GS actually does provide fairly decent financial aid, given its limited resources. If you do well enough, you'll qualify for a pretty good amount of aid (and win named scholarships and be invited to join honor societies, etc), only increasing with the amount of time you spend at the school. Basically, GS is interested in maintaining its strongest students and uses whatever limited funds it has to make sure that they stay so that - hopefully - they give back to the school as graduates. That's really the only way GS is ever going to eventually raise the funds necessary to offer that much more aid down the road.</p>
<p>As for the recent announcement concerning CC/SEAS, GS should be glad it got anything at all (a 17% annual increase coming from unearmarked funds). Most students, including those on the GSSC, don't understand how endowments work. Suppose of the $8 billion in Columbia's wallet, $6 billion is specifically earmarked for CC/SEAS aid. None of that can go to GS students, just like it can't trickle down to GSAPP, GSAS, Law, Business, etc. A drawn out fix would include greater reaching out, but GS doesn't have a Dean in that position right now. Rather than an impersonal financer, we have a full-time professor. A quick fix would require reaching out to successful grads that reached their professional positions because of a life-changing Columbia expeirence given by GS. Unfortunately, the school is still fairly new for this (in comparison to CC/SEAS). This will likely change in time.</p>
<p>None of this is to buy into the unsubstantiated claim that GS is a "cash cow" for the university. After spending enough time there, I really don't think it is at all. It serves a purpose for an extremely diverse group of students that would perform better in a mover independent setting than CC/SEAS allows while establishing their own lives outside of the classroom. The cash cow argument applies more to a non-degree granting division like continuing education department allowing unrestricted access to the course catalog for individual purposes. Most people that make this claim are fairly ignorant to the purpose of the school.</p>
<p>Window:</p>
<p>So SGS got 17% of the unrestricted funds this year...what does that roughly translate into monetarily?</p>
<p>Has anyone heard anything from GS yet this application cycle?</p>
<p>WindownShopping, </p>
<p>Are your re-application figures current? I called GS admissions, and the woman informed me you could apply the semester following denial. She also made it seem like there is no limit to the number of times you apply.</p>
<p>Who is correct?</p>