Columbia Junior Transfer and the Core?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Columbia University
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Hi everyone,

I’m currently an accepted transfer student at Columbia, coming from a community college. I’ve been accepted to Columbia college and I’d like to major in Computer Science.

I’m really worried about the Core affecting my experience at Columbia. I’m coming in as a junior, so I will have two years to complete the core as well as take my major classes (I barely took any at my community college because they didn’t technically have a computer science department). I’m wondering how much that will limit my course schedule… and my enjoyability of the college experience by limiting what I can take.

Would any transfer students, or anyone else like to chime in about this? Especially in regards to the few core classes that can be substituted? Is it possible to relinquish some of my transfer credit to become a sophomore instead? I’m trying to see if transferring here is feasible and makes sense for me.

Thank you! :slight_smile:

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@eternaldream Hiii, I’m sorry I cant answer your question but can you tell me more about your experience?
Accepted transfer at Columbia from a community college is such an amazing thing and I really want to know about your stats… And do you ask for financial aid? I really hope to transfer to Columbia and knowing more about this transferring process might help me a lot. Thanks! :slight_smile:

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@eternaldream hi, transferred this year (albeit as a sophomore, not a junior). if you haven’t already, i would 100% map out what your class load would have to look like for the next two years. if you’re doing compsci in CC and you haven’t done most of the classes pertaining to your major, i’m going to guess that you probably have very, very limited options in terms of getting all your classes done before you graduate (i.e., no electives at all). i’d say that the average columbia student takes 5 classes a semester, and this is what your junior/senior year might look like in terms of core classes:

junior:
lit hum x2 (year long class)
art humanities (semester long) || music humanities (sem. long)

senior:
contemporary civilization x2 (year long class)
global core x2 (have to take two semesters)
PE x2 (not a legit class tho, can definitely take PE + 5 other classes)

you have to take four semesters of a foreign language unless you can place out of some/all of it, which may also limit your class choices. i think there are intensive language sections where one semester counts for an entire year, but those are much harder/i wouldn’t really recommend taking one along with four other classes.

i just looked at the bulletin for compsci, and it seems as though you have to take ~13 classes? which i think is going to be hard/stressful–compsci isn’t known to be an easy major. however (and idk if you’ve thought about/are willing to pursue this option), you can graduate from columbia with just a concentration, and the concentration in compsci is only 7 classes, which is infinitely more doable.

regardless, i really don’t think that you’re going to have time for electives outside of your major + the core requirements, unfortunately. you’re going to need to think about planning out the next two years. in terms of core requirements, you can place out of some of them–language with testing scores/placement tests, uwriting with three papers you’ve already written in college, science should already be taken care of w your compsci classes, and possibly global core (i say this very tentatively because almost everyone i know this year who petitioned to get out of a requirement was denied). everything else you are almost 100% going to have to take.

https://www.college.columbia.edu/core/core

in terms of relinquishing junior standing…this is a bit of a gray area. columbia /says/ that you have to graduate within four years, including however many you spent at your previous institution. and they make it sound as though this is very cut and dry, but i do have two friends who should be juniors who are instead second semester sophomores. i think that you could swing it if you wanted to, but i don’t think you would be likely to get more than an extra semester to graduate. the extra semester is reserved mostly for people who would not be able to complete their major in time (which applies to you, probably, but also idk if they’d just tell you to do the concentration instead).

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@slothz

Thanks so much for your reply! I’m currently deciding between Stanford and Columbia right now and am super indecisive.

I ended up speaking to a dean at the college and getting a lot of information from her. I also ended up mapping up my schedule. I’d have to take about 20 credits a semester and I’d have absolutely no room for electives at all :frowning: I don’t think doing a concentration would be wise because it’s essentially a minor right? It wouldn’t be a major, so what’s the point?

I also asked about relinquishing some credits and they told me no :’( My only option is to take on that heavy course load. How did your friends go about coming in instead as second semester sophomores?

May I ask how your experience was at Columbia? Do you think 20 credits a semester is a lot? Did you have time for extracurriculars? Any other advice you can give would be greatly appreciated.

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@eternaldream

20 credits is a lot and i would not recommend it, especially if you want to maintain your sanity/make friends/join clubs/explore nyc. i took 18 credits each semester (18.5/17.5 actually, but whatever) and i was pretty stressed out. 7.5 of those credits were bio/orgo and i don’t think that any year after this one is going to be as bad, but my friend who’s in compsci in SEAS spends an insane amount of time on his homework.

as far as concentrations vs. majors go, concentrations are kind of in-between majors and minors. i think that your concern is definitely valid and it’s something that i’ve heard echoed a lot from other people. at the same time, i don’t think that graduating with just a concentration is necessarily something to be ashamed of–dealing with the core is tough, especially as a transfer student (even more so if you haven’t really started your major yet). the core is so expansive/forces you to branch out into so many different areas that even if you graduate with just a concentration, you’ll still end up with a really well-rounded education.

perhaps relinquishing credit isn’t quite the right term–i can ask my friends how they went about it if you’d like (not really sure on specifics), but i know that one of them was basically in your position and was starting an entirely new major. i assume you’d just talk to your advisor about it and they’d be able to point you in the right direction?

stanford is an amazing school as well though, so you honestly can’t make a wrong choice. best of luck with your decision, and feel free to contact me if you end up coming to columbia!