I got a 3950 on my GED and a 1560 on my SATs. Can I get into Columbia University?

I went to high school for my freshman and sophomore year, but my mental health spiraled and I had to pull out for my own sake. When junior year came around I ended up taking the GED so that I could focus on rebuilding my mental health, without worrying about high school. I did, thankfully, and I’m doing just fine now. I got a 3950 on the four GED tests combined, (maximum score is 4000,) and on the SATs which I took earlier this year, I got a 1560. I don’t have any extra-curriculars, but I do volunteer at a soup kitchen once a week and at an animal shelter twice a week. I also do scientific experiments and have some published peer-reviewed articles on them.

I live in NYC and have visited Columbia University many times. Their engineering program is an absolute dream and I so desperately want to go there, as the level of education and scientific equipment they have is unparalleled by the other universities I have considered.

Financially I might have some issues, but I am always willing to work harder and longer so that I can pursue my dreams in mechanical engineering.

My only worry is that my lack of an official high school diploma will affect my chances of getting into the university. While NYS does state that the GED is an equivalent, I do believe that universities with always be biased when it comes to accepting a high school diploma over a GED.

Do you think there is a chance of me getting in? If not, what more do I have to do? I have the rest of this year and the summer to fill my resumé with attractive experience for Columbia to review.

I am willing to take on more than I can logically handle to improve my chances. I’ve worked under stress before and I’m good at it.

It’s worth a shot. Essays will be important. Maybe an interview too. But it’s a reach for anyone,

Just a few blocks away is a very fine engineering program at City College. For most students the engineering education you get there will serve your needs just as well as what you’d get at Columbia. And it’s a whole lot cheaper. They offer the full range of engineering majors - civil, electrical, mechanical, chemical, biomedical, computer, information systems, environmental, cyber security, etc.

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These ARE ECs.

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Are you a junior now? Academically, you’re probably fine, as long as you have met the expected course work of a high school applicant. Typically, that’s four years of English, math, sciences, and various history/social sciences, plus about three years of foreign language. Check their website to see what they look for. You won’t be at a disadvantage necessarily because of your untraditional schooling.

I think your chances aren’t great, but no one’s are. You need to explore other options. Columbia is incredibly selective and will closely read your recommendations, personal statement, and supplements. Your main weakness is probably your limited ECs. The things you mention here are not compelling. The peer reviewed publications will be helpful, but on their own, probably aren’t going to put you in the accepted pile.

Working hard to cover the money is admirable, but you need to consider realistic ways to pay. What is your financial situation? It’s all well and good to think you can cover the costs, but you will only be able to borrow a max of $27,000 from the government to fund your education. Maybe you can pay another $20-30k or so over four years of working. All that money doesn’t cover one year at Columbia. How much will your parents contribute? Or will your family qualify for FA?

We see a lot of students fixated on a dream school. If a college degree is the goal, you need reality. Find schools where you can get great merit scholarships. Find less selective schools where your test scores put you at the top. Fall in love with more realistic options.

In your case, it’s gonna depend on the backstory. If you had had to drop out of high school to care for your dying parent, and work to support your low income family, and you were an underrepresented minority, and the first in your family to attempt to go to college, you’d be in Columbia in a NY minute, full ride. If you were from a middle class or above family, with a parent who was a college grad, and the reason that you dropped out of HS was a mental health issue, I doubt you’d have a chance at Columbia.

But seriously, CCNY is a fantastic option for you! Apply to both. Is it best for you to stay in NYC, live at home or close to home? If not, also look into RPI, RIT, SUNYs Binghamton, Stony Brook, and Buffalo, and U or Rochester. NYU says they’re now meeting full need, but I don’t know what your family’s means are.

Another option, if you don’t wind up with options from this path, is to start off at a NYC community college that has intro level engineering classes, and transfer. If you are able to, you could take a very heavy load, get straight A’s, get fantastic recommendations from the professors, and you’d stand out, as a unique applicant, and you’d get in. Once you’ve got a semester of incredible performance at community college under your belt, it wipes out that you got a GED, instead of a high school diploma.

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I got a 3950 on the four GED tests combined, (maximum score is 4000,) and on the SATs which I took earlier this year, I got a 1560. I don’t have any extra-curriculars, but I do volunteer at a soup kitchen once a week and at an animal shelter twice a week. I also do scientific experiments and have some published peer-reviewed articles on them

If you can show how you’re a good fit for the school it’s worth a shot. Columbia accepts homeschoolers, and if they’re from NYS they don’t have high school diplomas either.

Do you know your EFC and how much your parents can contribute? Columbia’s aid is need based. If your EFC is a lot higher than what your parents can pay then Columbia won’t be affordable. If that’s the case we could suggest other schools.

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You will need to research whether or not Columbia’s undergraduate school of engineering (SEAS) considers GED candidates. As another potential option, it appears you may be eligible to apply to Columbia’s School of General Studies, which would allow you to apply to SEAS at a later time (see link, below). You also might consider those liberal arts colleges that consider GED candidates and that offer 3–2 combined programs with SEAS.

https://bulletin.columbia.edu/general-studies/academic-policies/study-within-graduate-professional-schools/combined-program/

You will want to attend a university that is ABET accredited for mechanical engineering. Columbia is. So are multiple of the CUNY and SUNY universities. So are many other universities in New York State (and elsewhere).

These are really good ECs.

A university professor who I know told me once that he thinks that of the very smartest students who he had dealt with over his career, he thinks that all of them at some point have dealt with some mental illness (I suspect that “all” was an exaggeration, but this is certainly common). The point is to get this under control, find your dream, and work towards your dream. This sounds like it is exactly what you have done.

Run the NPC on schools that you are considering. I do not think that we can even guess whether Columbia will be more affordable or less affordable than one of the SUNY’s or CUNY’s or somewhere else without knowing a lot more than you are going to want to tell us about your financial situation. Do take cost into consideration.

I think that you are going to do very well. I think that it is worth an application to Columbia. However, you also need to apply to other universities which are more likely for admissions. Once you get your degree from an ABET accredited university you will find that there are good jobs in ME, and after a year or two no one will care where you got your bachelor’s degree.

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Two other schools in The City that should definitely be on your list . . .

First is Cooper Union. They are great for financial aid. If you are admitted, you automatically get a half tuition scholarship. They are also good at meeting need. Excellent reputation but hard to get in.

Less difficult to get admitted but still a high standard for their engineering program is Manhattan College, which has a very reputable Engineering School. They are good with financial aid and are very good at working with students with unusual backgrounds.

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You certainly have a chance. Don’t just limit yourself to Columbia. There are plenty of schools that have mechanical engineering programs. Are finances an issue? If so look at affordable instate options: CCNY, SUNY, etc.

The engineering program at Columbia SEAS is rigorous, so they will want to know you can handle advanced coursework. Since you left HS as a sophomore, you probably didn’t have a chance to take many AP classes. So you’ll need to demonstrate that you can handle college level math/science. Not sure the best way to do that. Perhaps self-study for APs? Calculus AB/BC, Physics would be the ones to shoot for. Or other option is to take classes at a local community college.

You’ll probably also need to go back to your high school to get a transcript. Don’t mention the mental health reasons in the application. Ask your high school not to mention that either.

The first thing I would do is check each school’s common dataset. That should contain information on whether a GED is acceptable or not.

Also, it is always better to reach out to the school’s area recruiter/AO and ask politely via email. Many schools will make an exception if the rest of application is strong.

“dream” is always a red flag when choosing universities! what is it *in particular) about the engineering program that you are drawn to?

What other universities have you considered? Columbia has a good program- but there are plenty that are better (including quite a few public universities).

Is another big red flag. As others have noted, there is a cap on what you can borrow in your own name, and engineering programs don’t leave a lot of time for outside work during term.

Can you give a little more info on this? I am interpreting it as saying 1) you are doing science research independently; 2) you are writing up the results in article format; 3) you are submitting the resulting articles to journal(s); 4) the articles are going through the peer-review process and 5) are being selected for publication. Is that correct? If so, is the impact factor for the journal(s) more than (say) 2? Also, by inference, is the subject area that you are researching and writing relevant to some aspect of engineering? Because if you are getting published for original research in an engineering/engineering-adjacent area, in peer reviewed journal(s) with an impact of 3 or better, you might want to talk to the department directly.

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