Columbia ED? Or play it safe?

College Search & Selection
1

Hi Guys, I’m now deciding which school i’m applying to early decision and I needed some help deciding if I should even shoot for a columbia. I think it’s a far reach for EVERYONE but without my sat/act score i’m not sure if I should waste my ED on a school I have a super low chance getting in anyways. I have my list set up with reaches, targets, and safeties but now i’m just deciding which to apply to ED. I really want to apply to Columbia but alas.

Here are my stats

GPA: 3.9 UW, 4.4 W
Class Rank: 33/460
Race: Black
Gender: Female
Income: Less than 40,000
AP: APES(4), World(4), Psych (5), Bio, Calc AB, Lang,

Senior Year Classes:
AP Hug
Physics Hon
AP Stats
AP Lit
AP Gov
AP Macro
French IV Hon

Extracurriculars

French Club 4 years (Secretary for 3)
French Honor Society
Pieirian Honor Society
Leadership Academy (Internship with local university) - received 3 awards
French Congress - 2 blue ribbons, 1 red
Garden Project (volunteering)
Students Demand Action(Political Activism) for 3 years
Dream Defenders (Political Activism)

I’m planning to major in French also

2

Have you looked at Barnard ? It might be a good option and you can take 50% of your classes at Columbia and have the smaller community at Barnard - plus ED rates and stats seem very compatible to your profile. If you are not interested in an all female school - ignore my thoughts :slight_smile: Is this your only reach school? Does your 2nd choice school have ED2 ? Also, are you planning to take the ACT/SAT ?

3

Go for it. A school like Columbia is always chomping at the bit for qualified Black students. You’re certainly academically qualified. You’ve taken a rigorous program.

And you’re planning to major in French?? You’re a dream URM candidate. You’ll need to kill it in the essay.

Where are you from? Where do you go to high school?

4

I’ve looked at Barnard as well! I put it down as a reach on my list and have already started on supplementals, I liked their curriculum and community also. I’d rather go to Columbia because I honestly prefer larger schools, but if it came down to it and I had a way better chance at Barnard I think I would apply there ED to be safe. It sounds kind of mischievous, but the classes overlap for so many majors anyway it wouldn’t make that much of a difference. I don’t have a clear #2 but these are my other reach or target schools that have early decision 2: American, GW, U of Chicago.

And unfortunately my testing dates have been cancelled due to Corona. Where I live is a hotspot so I really don’t think i’ll be able to take it very soon :confused:

5

Is being a French major appealing to admissions? I didn’t even know that haha. I’m from florida from a public high school with about 2,000 students.

6

I think that your chances are pretty good, and you would not be wasting your ED.

I do not know what a person does with a French major. However I grew up in a city where most adults are bilingual (French / English). Some children start out that way essentially from birth. I do see value in knowing another language.

7

Have you considered applying to the Questbridge match program? It could be a good option for you.

8

Have you heard of Questbridge? You seem to qualify and you can ED to up to 12 partner schools. Columbia and U of Chicago are partner schools.

9

Yes, I thought it would be a perfect fit and I saw tons of schools that were already on my list but I’m having trouble getting in contact with all of my teachers (they might’ve quit) and I probably won’t have an application ready by the time its due unfortunately.

10

Yes, I thought it would be a perfect fit and I saw tons of schools that were already on my list but I’m having trouble getting in contact with all of my teachers (they might’ve quit) and I probably won’t have an application ready by the time its due unfortunately.

11

That’s what both of my parents were warning me about. Both of them are majors of some science but I honestly don’t have any interest in STEM at all, it’s not that its super hard or anything but I just don’t find it interesting at all. I’ll probably have to double major in something if I want to end up with a job in the future to be realistic.

12

@eagerkid0111 As long as you have your part of the Questbridge application by the deadline(personal and financial info, essay and short answers), you are fine. Your guidance counselor and teacher recommendations can submit after the Sept 29th deadline.

13

You need two teacher LoRs for QB (and you will need those for Columbia, and other schools, as well) and a school report from your counselor.

I encourage you to try to make the end of September deadline, QB will likely increase your chances of attending a meets-full-need college.

https://www.questbridge.org/high-school-students/national-college-match/how-to-apply

What is your affordable safety school?

14

Ohhh I did not know that but that’s awesome. So yeah then, I I’ll continue on my application.

15

University of Central Florida and Georgia State. I can get the in state scholarship for UCF that’s pretty much guaranteed and a merit scholarship for Georgia since its not competitive at all.

16

I just realized you are not the OP. You should start your own thread so as not to hijack @oliviapope2’s. I was suggested OP apply to QB, but sounds like it could be good for you as well.

17

Actually they are the same person. Since that confuses the thread, I am closing.