<p>Hi, I was wondering, how selective is first year transfer to columbia? Is there any way to improve your chances? For example, suppose that you go to a small no name school, but get a 4.0 high SAT score and etc. Is there a chance of getting into Columbia college? Or does the prestige of your freshman school weigh heavily. Also, how much would they look at your HS record?</p>
<p>Columbia weighs your high school performance to a very high degree, more so than I have noticed at any of the top notch competitive schools. At the transfer information sessions they tell you straight out a sluggish senior year will hurt you immensely. Even with a stellar high school performance, 4.0 in college, and the most amazing rec’s it is still a shot in the dark when dealing with Columbia.</p>
<p>wow… that really kills me a bit. Is there any way to overcome that?</p>
<p>Columbia GS might be an option for you, I am not sure. But if CC is truly your dream, then by all means, do great in college and give it a shot. I was not trying to discourage you but just point out that admission to Columbia is never anywhere close to being guaranteed - just take a look at last year’s Transfer thread and see how many amazingly qualified applicants were rejected over and over and over again. It’s quite depressing.</p>
<p>Whats the difference between GS and college? I havent heard about GS. And what about Fu? Is it easier to enter Fu and transfer to CC?</p>
<p>I have the same question actually, if doing like math, cc or seas easier?</p>
<p>@ Transfer</p>
<p>When I visited Columbia earlier this month all of the current students seemed to agree that SEAS is generally harder than CC - I’d assume the same applies to your situation.</p>
<p>As a transfer student, your first-year grades and recommendations will be looked at more closely than your high school record. You’ll generally have to pull a 3.5 GPA or greater, depending on your coursework (engineering transfer GPAs, for example, tend to be lower). While most of the Ivys tend to favor elite-level schools when it comes to transfers (Cornell is a notable exception), you should have a decent shot at transferring coming from a lower-tier school as long as you have compelling reasons for transferring. Bottom line: Make sure you spend some time on your “Why Transfer?” essay.</p>
<p>@ LW Trojan, Oooh sorry, I actually meant easier to get into as a Transfer* I should’ve clarified, sorry.</p>