What do you find appealing about columbia

Why does Columbia require applicants to answer this essay question? And what is the admissions committee really looking for in your answer? Let's analyze the "Why Columbia" essay prompt. No matter which schools you're applying to, "Why This College" essays are perhaps the most common essay prompts you'll find on college applications because colleges want to see that you really want to attend their school.

Students who are passionate about their college or university are more likely to feel that the school is a good fit for them. They'll be more likely to commit to their studies, participate in on-campus activities, and become an active alum after graduation. Therefore, if you show in your essay that you really love Columbia, it will make admissions officers feel more confident that you're going to have a significant and positive impact on their school.

If your reasons for attending Columbia are vague or even plain wrong for instance, say you claim you'd like to take a major that isn't actually offered at Columbia , the admissions committee will think that you don't care about the school and aren't really interested in it.

Basically, the purpose of the essay is to suss out whether your interest in Columbia is genuine and to see whether you're ready to take advantage of Columbia's many opportunities.

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We want to get you admitted to your dream schools. Learn more about PrepScholar Admissions to maximize your chance of getting in. There are a number of different topics you can pursue for your "Why Columbia" essay. Ideally, you'll want to explore specific topics that you can talk about in-depth. When it comes down to it, make sure to choose something about Columbia that no other school offers. For instance, Columbia is in New York City and therefore has relationships with lots of businesses and organizations in the area.

You could use your essay to examine how these Columbia-specific opportunities in New York will positively affect your education. What you don't want to do, however, is wax on about how you love city-living— you need to make sure to describe how Columbia's specific relationship with NYC will help you to further your goals.

Match opportunities at Columbia to specific goals you have. For example, you could talk about how a particular professor's course aligns with your career objectives. You need to be very specific in your answer: every single thing you say should relate back to a certain feature of Columbia. The entire focus of your essay should be what Columbia offers and how you'll take advantage of the school's academics and activities to get the best college education possible.

Regardless of how you decide to answer this prompt, there are four tips everyone should keep in mind to ensure that they are fully answering the question, giving the information Columbia wants to see, and standing apart from other applicants. Before you begin writing your response to this essay prompt, you should know exactly why you want to attend Columbia University. There are multiple ways you can do this research:.

Every college campus has its own vibe, and visiting is the best way to get a sense of how Columbia might work with your personality as a student. From your research, you should have come up with specific reasons why Columbia is a great school for you. The more specific you can be when answering this prompt, the better.

Don't say Columbia has great academics, caring professors, and an interesting student body. The vast majority of schools have that! Instead, try to mention opportunities only Columbia can provide, such as specific professors, courses, extracurricular activities, or research opportunities.

The things you discuss should be things your other top schools don't offer—things that really make Columbia stand out.

Columbia wants students who care a lot about their studies and their school, so be sure this comes across in your response. A bland statement such as "I am impressed by Columbia's strong engineering program" doesn't tell the school anything about you or help you stand apart from other applicants. Show your passion by naming specific professors or features of the program.

You've done your research to mention certain qualities Columbia has that have enticed you, and now it's time to discuss specific qualities about yourself, too. Why does the engineering program make you so excited? What do you want to get out of it? Be detailed, specific, and honest. Scholarship Requirements. In addition to the scholarships and awards outlined on the Office of Student Aid website, Penn State offers awards to incoming first-year and transfer students.

Learn more about the Discover Penn State Award! If you have more questions regarding the Discover Penn State Award, please contact the campus to which you have been admitted or your campus of interest. View the full campus list.

The admissions process at Columbia is a holistic one, which means that every part of the application matters to help inform our judgment. We read personal statements to try to understand each candidate and what motivates them. We read teacher recommendations carefully to understand a candidate's contributions in the classroom and what that candidate might offer their Columbia classmates.

In the end our goal is to find the students who are the best fit for Columbia. Each year, there are many more qualified applicants than there are places in our class. With such an appealing pool of applicants, it is the job of the admissions committee to get to know all students and select those that we believe will take greatest advantage of the unique Columbia experience and will offer something meaningful in return to the community.

A profile of the current first-year class is available on the Admissions Statistics webpage.