<p>What are the people like? Is there a community sense or is everyone all "I'm a New Yorker for the next 4 years so ill push u around and not care about you"? Are people friendly?</p>
<p>Im probably not gonna get in anyways (low gpa of 93, etc.) but just wondering bc I'm considering applying ED</p>
<p>People are friendly but they are extremely stressed and busy which might come off as unfriendly. There is little sense of community relative to other campuses such as Dartmouth, however there is more diversity and less “classism.” If you’re lucky you’ll make a handfull of friends but you’ll hardly ever experience any “ra ra school spirit.” Columbia seems to attract the singularly driven, independent types . . .</p>
<p>I am going to have to respectfully disagree with DowneasterDad. Columbia has a very diverse student body who are really proud of their school and bond together over all kinds of activities. There is tremendous school spirit - maybe not at football games but on all kinds of activities on campus -this weekend is Baachanall - look at teh pictures, looks like a lot of students bonding and having a real sense of community to me.
My kid loves the school and has made many, many friends from all around the campus - it is not all about where you dorm at Columbia. Going to a Co-op program is the best way to find a close bond with a group of students even before school starts - they have stayed close throughout the semesters. There are many dorm related activites - dorm dinners and such to meet and maintain friendships. Also many classes do group outings and dinners - get to to your classmates and professors outside of the classroom.
The big difference that I have noted is that not all social activities are related to events of campus - but big groups of kids explore the city together.
I would say that people are really friendly, driven - they work hard and are very involved in their school.</p>
<p>@itsthatime</p>
<p>I don’t remember writing that Columbia wasn’t diverse nor do I remember writing that the students weren’t proud of their school. Let’s be real though, the students are so busy academically and with the endless activities NYC offers up that the atmosphere is indeed a bit fragmented. That’s not a bad thing and it’s what most Columbians signed up for. This is not to say that you won’t find friendship or good times on Morningside it just means that there is no “circle the wagons . . . we’re in this together,” vibe that is definitely present on the average college-town campus. Those schools inheirently have to do a better job at fostering community because their students spend more of the majority of their time at the mercy of those campus facilities, at least a bit more than Columbians have to at Morningiside. Now events like Bachannal and Orgo Night are great for school spirit but they are the exceptions that prove the rule. My original post was merely to let the OP know that, when compared to other typical college campus environments, Columbia is different; not better, not worse, just different.</p>
<p>if you want to know what columbia students are like, read our publications. Check out the Columbia Spectator, The Blue & White, Bwog, 292magazine (this is a new freshman magazine, the others are more established), and The Federalist (just google them. If you can’t find 'em, add “columbia” to the search). We’re jaded and cranky and we like to complain about our school, but just because /we/ complain about it doesn’t mean that anyone else can. People are generally friendly, but there are people who aren’t. There is a general sense of school spirit (we love to commiserate about housing/lack of space in Butler/how crappy Lerner is) but we’re not going to turn out for the football game. I love it here, but it’s not for everyone. I’ve met a lot of fantastic people, and on the whole the student body is pretty friendly if a bit stressed. But again, reading our publications is the best way to get a feel for the student body.</p>