<p>Hi does anyone have any 1st hand knowledge about this? Basically I applied ED to GS and just received a rejection letter last week. Im 23, took a couple years off after poor performace in HS (skipped alot), went to St John's for a year after working in the city as a model/actress and have a 3.65GPA. Spent alot of time on my essay which all my columbia alum friends thought was excellent, had excellent recs and was granted an interview (which I dont think was perfect but was pretty decent).... yet I was turned down and Im bummed to say the least. So going forward, any advice on what I can do before I reapply next spring? Should I go back for a couple semesters and work my ass off and get a 4.0 from some city school like Hunter or City College or perhaps Manhattan College? Would taking continuing education classes at Columbia and acing those help alot? I dont see how a 3.65 is not competitve but Im assuming with the economy being so ****ty the numbers for apps are soaring this year and its the most competitive its ever been. Also does applying ED hurt my chances?- my friends said I shouldve at least been waitlisted.... Thanks for any good advice.</p>
<p>It once seems anyone who has an interview eventually got in, no matter how badly he or she thought. I have seen many people who recently got in have a 4.0 GPA, but i do doubt all of those 300+ admitted transfers have that kind of GPA, so i think your GPA didn’t hurt you so much based on the fact you have an interview. How was your SAT? I don’t know whether it will be helpful to take continuing education at columbia, but if you can show them several straight A semesters, i believe you got a good chance next time</p>
<p>I have to imagine that taking classes at local CC’s and then applying to transfer would be viewed positively. It at least gives you a better track record of academic success to build on.</p>
<p>Thanks for the advice. Has anyone on here been rejected and reapplied later and been granted admission because Im just wondering what the process is… I worked really hard on my first essay and dont know what I could really say differently a year later if I were to write a whole new one. “hey its me again. I went back for 2 semesters at hunter and got straight A’s and am now better prepared to undertake a rigorous CU education…” ?</p>
<p>There’s someone profiled as a notable alumnus on their site. Thought the details of his story escape me, I do recall that he was rejected the first time he applied.</p>
<p>I was personally rejected from Columbia the first time I applied. I then took a year off, continued working at the full-time job I was already at, and re-applied ED the next fall. Got in.</p>
<p>My circumstances were very different but in the right situation they may look on a re-application very positively.</p>
<p>wow denz, Ive read alot of your very informative posts… u went to GS? (for some reason I assumed you were traditional CC/SEAS) did you not do any further schooling while you took off that year? also I really dont understand the mentality of the adcom- if I were to attend a Manhattan community college for a year and got a 4.0, how could they possibly consider the level of work done at a CC on the same level as what would be in store for me at Columbia? is it just the fact that I showed I can do schoolwork while maintaining a fulltime job?</p>
<p>Denzera rules. </p>
<p>Thanks for all the helpful posts in the Columbia forum.</p>
<p>Goto CC in the fall - get a 4.0 and reapply - I’ve read a bunch of posts of people who went back to CC first after the gap in their education then applied. There are three of us from the same CC in Los Angeles that all got in for fall 09- I think going back to CC and acing it shows a great deal of dedication- shows that it’s not just a passing fancy</p>
<p>Hellojan- did you get your Fed Aid info yet?</p>
<p>I’m still waiting. I’ll let you know, sir.</p>
<p>If I were you, I would call someone in the GS admissions office (maybe the person who interviewed you), and ask if you could get some feedback on how the admissions committee saw your application, as well as asking for recommendations on what you can do to enhance your credentials prior to re-applying. It might take a while, but I believe if you are polite and sincere in seeking advice, someone will talk to you.</p>
<p>yeah I emailed one of the officers the other day and have yet to hear back… given the large amount of rejections they must send out do they really have/take the time to personally deal with us “rejects”? If Im super sweet, maybe I should just call and ask to make an appt… would curtis rogers or dean awn hear me out? I think thats much more personable than just an email. Im still really bummed- obviously an interview didnt mean a guaranteed offer but I was really confident about my app…</p>
<p>A call will definitely be better than an e-mail. Besides, the officers seemed pretty friendly the last time I spoke to them. It also wouldn’t hurt to appeal at this point.</p>
<p>Sorry for your rejection :(</p>
<p>No, I went to SEAS. They accept freshman applications from people who’ve taken one year off, but not more than that.</p>
<p>I don’t want to hijack another thread with my personal stories, i’ve gone over the whole thing before (search a bit), but the short answer is, I was working full-time during my senior year of high school, took the last class I needed to graduate in the evenings, and then stayed at that job for another year (no further classes) and reapplied ED to SEAS.</p>
<p>What that fulltime job demonstrated in my case was a maturity and work ethic that the rest of my college application (specifically the transcript) did not demonstrate, despite all of the other good qualities in my app. My intelligence, diversity of talent, and passionate pursuit of interests were already evident, but the discipline to consistently get good grades wasn’t, so the job was ideal for that whereas it wouldn’t be for everyone.</p>
<p>In your case, while you can’t necessarily prove that you’re able to handle Columbia-level classes, you can at least show that you’re inclined towards academics and that the level of Hunter College or City College is no challenge to you (i.e. by getting As). While, you know, holding down a job or something. Either that or start a career in earnest, show some real diligence, get promotions, and then come back to GS and say “you know, i’d really like to finish that whole college thing”. Many GS students take a similar route.</p>
<p>do you think BMCC is sufficient or should I look at something more accredited like NYU’s adult program which is $18grand vs $1400… Im confident I can excel at any school but doesnt it matter to the admissions board where those A’s are coming from? also does it matter if I am matriculated at the school or can I just take classes? Thanks guys</p>
<p>I recently applied and was accepted to GS for fall 2009. Their process is just as rigorous as Columbia College from what I can tell. I am 28 and was a C-/D student in HS and only got an 850 on my SATs!! Yes that is a combined score. Last fall I started back at community college and took 18 credits a semester for Fall/Spring and 21 for this summer with a GPA of 3.95. After speaking with admissions and taking the GS Entrance Exam, I found out that they not only like to see high GPAs but they like to see that you can handle a tremendous amount of work at one time because Columbias course load is pretty tough. </p>
<p>I would really suggest going back to CC and do nothing but STUDY!!! Get as close to a 3.9/4.0 as you can and forge some good relationships with your professors this will be huge when it comes time for your recommendations! Best of luck to you keep trying!!</p>
<p>thanks i appreciate the advice. GS is definitely more competitive than people make it sound on this board which is good to know because it gives it more credence in my eyes. does anyone think taking CU’s continuing ed classes would be worth it as well? theyre expensive at 1,000 a credit but if I ace a couple of those classes than that should look good no? or are they not nearly as hard as the regular undergrad classes?</p>
<p>Make sure to take classes that holds your interest. If the class bores the hell out of you, drop out that class right away. As everyone on this board has suggested, make sure that your GPA is as close to a 4.0 as possible.</p>
<p>If I recall correctly, GS has a rule that you have to wait 4 years (or something like that) before applying there if you were rejected from CC.</p>
<p>
you can probably make your case coming from a BMCC or CUNY type place. In my mind the ROI isn’t worth that kind of difference in costs.</p>