History: US history I and II, World history I and II
Language other than English: French V
Visual or performing arts: drama, sculpture, wheel throwing, drawing and painting, vocal arts
Other academic courses: Psychology
Extracurriculars I’m just gonna list the important ones bc some are just hobbies that don’t really matter
2 year internship at a Columbia lab where I significantly contribute to research and have my own project and also mentor another student a year below me. I analyze data, slice brains, make graphs etc (I’m getting a letter of rec from the PI and he’s emailing the admissions office about me)
Volunteering at soup kitchen not sure the hours I’m at rn
Helping my mom who’s a psychology professor with grading papers and research, presented poster at APA conference on our research
Essays/LORs/Other My personal statement is VERY strong I’m not just saying that like a lot of unbiased people have read it and it’s really good. About watching operations on mice at the lab and balancing my love for animals with my love for working at the lab and research that harms animals in the name of science. It’s well written idk if I articulated the idea well but it is very good.
As I already said my PI who works at Columbia is writing me a letter of rec and emailing the admissions office. From school I have letters of rec from my math and English teachers.
The reason for my low gpa is because I had a really bad eating disorder in 9th and 10th grade and missed months of school at a time. I was in the hospital and treatment during this time and have doctors notes and stuff so I will include that in the additional information section.
Schools Just want to know my chances of getting into Columbia ED.
What is your SAT breakdown? You certainly have a shot. Do not mention the eating disorder or any history of mental health issues. Have your counselor state that you were hospitalized for now-resolved health issues. That should be sufficient explanation; there is no need to even utilize the additional info section. Your GPA is lower than many but not outrageously so. You have achieved a number of incredible things, including and especially recovery. Congratulations on a fantastic high school career!
Thank you this is so sweet! And good tip on not mentioning the eating disorder, I didn’t know if I was supposed to but now I know I shouldn’t. And my SAT is 780 math 740 reading.
Great score breakdown. No need to take again but if you are confident you could break 1550, it might be worth a shot considering your slightly(?) lower GPA- do you have any idea how your GPA compares with other competitive candidates at your school, i.e. do they all have 4.0s with the same rigor as you?
No one except the AOs can say you will or won’t get in, but if you are rejected it will certainly not be due to lack of strength as a candidate.
It is ultimately your choice whether you mention the eating disorder. However, many schools flag mental health concerns as potential liabilities. Instead of, “wow, this student overcame a massive struggle,” a disclosed eating disorder could read as “this student has the potential to struggle massively. We might not have the resources on campus to support her,” etc. Or at least that’s a theory. (Edit to add: having your counselor mention in their letter of recommendation that your hospitalization due to now-resolved health issues caused you to miss school and thus your grades during 9th and 10th suffered, is perfectly reasonable. They do not need to mention that it was due to an eating disorder.)
Your school, from what I know, has excellent college counseling. I encourage you to meet with the counselors at your school more often than you read this forum. They will know your school, your profile, and your ED chances better than us. Good luck!
Your 3.82 GPA or any SAT retake may not matter; which subjects did you earn "B"s in? Also, you mention that you currently attend an elite private high school. How common is it for students to place in schools like Columbia University with a 3.8 GPA & 1500+ SAT score? Do you know & if not, can you find out?
I made a table of all ED acceptances to Columbia from my school with their goa and SAT. Here: (sorry it pasted weird)
|Gpa|SAT|
|3.77|1300 test optional|
|3.97|1430|
|3.93|1480 test optional |
|3.73|1460|
|3.59|1470|
|3.96|1530|
|3.98|1540|
|3.95|1570|
I think your best advice/chancing will come from the counselors at your “elite private school.”
Your call, but not sure if I’d mention your eating disorder as it may be seen as a red flag to some. Consider being less specific and asking your guidance counselor to note significant health issues which have been resolved.
Your GPA will be interpreted in the context of the high school where you are studying. As such do not worry about how your GPA compares to the average GPA for all students applying to Columbia since most of them will be coming from different types of high schools.
Do you have the ability to see where students from your high school with a similar GPA have ended up for university? Your guidance counselor might be able to help with this.
This might help quite a bit, but it is hard for us to know. Assuming that this has gone well it certainly sounds helpful and hopeful.
I think that we can only really take wild guesses at your chances at Columbia. I have seen other cases of other students where their GPA was in the “not bad enough to disqualify the application” range and other factors were in the “yes you really want this student” range, and the other factors appear to be what got them admitted (mostly to different elite or selective schools, but this description might apply to one person who did end up at Columbia). My personal wild guess is that this might very well apply to you also, but I really don’t think that any of us can know with much confidence at all. Perhaps this is a long and convoluted what to say that I feel hopeful regarding your chances, but this is really just a guess.
To me if Columbia is clearly your top choice and if you can afford it (either you can afford full pay or the NPC returns a result that your parents are okay with) then to me it does look like it is very much worth an application.
I would also apply at least to safeties. Whether you also apply to match schools is likely to depend upon how you feel about your safeties, and whether the ED result comes back before other applications are due.
Regarding the eating disorder, to me the top thing that comes to mind is the question: Are you fully over it? The eating disorders that I am most familiar with are ones that are tough to fully 100% get over, but I do know someone quite well who has done exactly that. You would need to be careful how you mention it in any application.
|Gpa|SAT|
|3.77|1300 test optional|
|3.97|1430|
|3.93|1480 test optional |
|3.73|1460|
|3.59|1470|
|3.96|1530|
|3.98|1540|
|3.95|1570|
Here is other students stats that have been accepted. Some are much lower than mine but it’s hard to know if they had crazy legacy or parents who donated a building. As for the eating disorder, I would say I am pretty over it and I think I’ll talk about it as a health issue.
Getting over the eating disorder is big. Congratulations!
Also, a 3.82 at an elite private school is really very good, anything over 1500 in the SAT is excellent, and it sounds like you already have very interesting and relevant experience at Columbia. I expect you to do well wherever you end up. Best wishes!
Do you have a similar table of ED rejections? Nevertheless, I would apply if Columbia is your top choice & would talk about the eating disorder & your journey from illness to complete recovery with no chance of a relapse meaning no potential liability during your matriculation at Columbia. You have a pretty decent shot of getting admitted ED & greater than RD. None of the ED acceptances had 4.0 GPAs meaning Columbia doesn’t expect a 4.0 on an applicant’s transcript from your high school. I recommend submitting all test scores; avoid test optional in your case.
Let’s say you ED and get rejected. Oh well. Their loss. Columbia isn’t the only school in NYC if that’s the goal. You’ve got Barnard, NYU, Fordham and more and plenty in the outskirts.
A college is four years somewhere - you can be happy in many places. So you’ll be fine.
If Columbia wants you, then awesome. If not, they missed out on a good one and go to the school that loves you.
Your self worth shouldn’t be determined based on a school’s validation. You already know you are legit - and more than academically.
Why is that scary - only one ED rejection? Columbia likes to admit students from your high school since they’ve been successful at graduating in four years. But do keep alternate options in mind in case of a waitlist or rejection.
By the way, do you have access to any historical waitlist statistics - specifically ED deferral leading to waitlist then leading to admit or reject? What about RD statistics - also is it broken down by Columbia College & Columbia Engineering?
With respect as to whether or not to share that you had an eating disorder a couple of years ago, it is fine and may strengthen your application as it can be an indicator of seriousness of purpose in light of your background ECs and planned area of study.
Am I the only one taking pause at this? Helping with research is fine, though I don’t see how you get away from the fact that it’s not as good as with an independent prof (though the work in the lab presumably is?), but having a high schooler grade college papers seems odd to me (and tbh I would complain about this if my kid was in that college class). Is this something that OP should actually mention in the activities section?
That reservation aside, agree this looks like a very strong applicant.