Columbia University Admissions

Does the admissions committee at Columbia really have a holistic admissions process as they claim or is it a process of elimination? It has been my dream school since I was 11 but I feel that if they look at my application as a whole, it would look better as opposed to relying on grades and test scores. Also, I’m in the process of starting a company and I am very curious about what the admissions team would think of that. Btw I’m a junior. Thanks!

Columbia had an admission rate of 5.5% in 2018. Even with holistic admissions, academics are a top priority. Admissions officers must feel confident that any accepted applicant can handle the demanding work at the college. Here is the class profile. https://undergrad.admissions.columbia.edu/classprofile/2022

Unsolicited advice: I’d recommend that you give up the idea of a dream school and work to create a solid college list that includes reach, match, and safety schools that appear affordable (find out your parents’ budget and run the net price calculator for each school) and that you would be excited to attend. The people I see who get hurt by the college admission process are the ones who focus on one or two hyper-competitive schools and then don’t get in. Cast a wide net and recognize that (assuming no major hook) Columbia is a reach for pretty much everyone. Expand your horizons and recognize that there are many wonderful schools out there where you can have a great 4 year experience and get where you want to go in life.

“Columbia had an admission rate of 5.5% in 2018.”

Whoa, that is…wow.

I agree, I do have list of 12 other schools I’m interested in so that is done as I have looked into and visited many of them.