I agree your HS should really provide all the guidance you need.
My only real question to you would be if you want help identifying other colleges to consider in case Columbia does not work out. Or maybe that would even give you pause before applying binding to Columbia. That is entirely up to you, but this community is collectively great at that.
I’ve got to think any female considering Columbia should apply to easier to get into (but not easy) Barnard. With an over 10% acceptance rate and a lower test submission rate than Columbia - well…that seems an easy one. Not the only alternative but an easy choice to make as application #2.
Barnard—is a pretty amazing place. And yes, it is one of the colleges of Columbia.
However, while a vast number of students apply to both Columbia and Barnard, almost no one is accepted into both. They are looking for different kinds of extraordinary students, and they have significant differences in the structure of their requirements. Columbia has the core, and Barnard has the modes of thinking.
Only apply to Barnard because you want the kind of experience it offers. It is not an easy way or a back door into the university as a whole, any more than the school of engineering is.
My two cents is if you like the core curriculum concept and you also like large city colleges, Jesuit colleges can be a great option to consider. Fordham of course is right in NYC as well, but there are many more in other large US cities.
That said, the OP should chime in to explain if they want other suggestions at all, and if so what it is about Columbia that is really most appealing to them. Like my top city schools for Cognitive Science research might look different from my top city schools with a core curriculum list.
When you say" test optional" after the 1300 and 1480, does that mean they didn’t submit their scores? It would be a little surprising if the 1300 person submitted. With race not being allowed, those students could be lower income or first gen, which are still allowed.
Oops I just realized I said papers, I have never graded paper since graded multiple choice tests!! My bad