<p>is it part of the reason most attend Columbia or is it something that most students don't like?</p>
<p>if there is a spectrum from those who love it couldn't do without it (10), and those who hate it and wish it would end (1), i think most folks are probably at about a 6 or 7. </p>
<p>it is something that unwittingly is enjoyable, easy to do (unless you hate reading), creates a sort of class cohesion. there are problems with the core, and a lot of your experience depends on the teachers you have for it. but in the end many alums cite it as one of their favorite parts of attending columbia, and what keeps them coming back to events, to donate, etc.</p>
<p>i think that your question is hard to answer because you will find so many answers. on the scale i'd say i'm probably at about a 9. i really enjoyed the core, thought it was just the most engaging part of columbia, and buy into the whole pedagogy of it. but as folks on here have noted, i might be a bit on the higher end of love than the avg. student.</p>
<p>I'm not sure if I'm too into the core curriculum. I don't think I would mind having one, but I'm not pro-Columbia just because it has a core curriculum. Would that be a bad thing to say at an interview?</p>
<p>Be honest at your interview! I didn't stress at mine and we just chatted, and he recommended me.</p>
<p>so a few things to know:</p>
<p>a) interviewers tend to be the most gung-ho about columbia and therefore about the core. rare do you find someone who hated the experience choose to do the task (i know some, but they are few and far between).</p>
<p>b) one of the few things any interview is able to do is really answer the question - "if i went back to school again, would I want this student to be in columbia classroom with me? would i want to see them at the other end of a core class?" it is specific in columbia's case, but pick your school and that is often the extent to which interviews can explain anything - whether or not an interviewer finds you compelling as a speaker, articulate in your ideas that they would like to see you part of their academic community.</p>
<p>c) interviews can matter - it depends how close you are. if you're on the border: a negative review could sink a ship, a positive review wont necessarily make your application, but it could push you over the top. if you're nowhere close, it may not matter. if you're really strong - only the weakest of interviews may impact your chances.</p>
<p>d) many students never get an interview - so worrying about this now is like planning for something that may never happen. sure it is good to hone in on whether or not you like columbia (not just its nyc location, or top faculty, or good brand, but its social and academic culture) now, but don't stress over the particulars until you actually have to stress over them.</p>
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<p>my perspective as an interviewer here, with my biases: when a kid shows up and seems to know nothing about columbia and especially know nothing about the core (this is irrespective of what they think of it) i tend to feel the kid didn't take the time to read even a wiki page, and write a negative review. </p>
<p>the few students that have expressed some reservation about the core, usually do so in the questions part - did you feel that it was too consuming, did you have time to do other things; at which point the interviewer would answer honestly. it shows you're thinking about that problem without making you seem like you have an answer yet. be modest.</p>
<p>the one student that started to rant about how she loved the freedom of the curriculum, but couldn't express what she meant by freedom - i gave her low marks. if you're going to pretend to know something, don't know it half-way. read up about it, and anything you are not sure - feel free to form as a question.</p>
<p>most students tend to know enough about the core to explain what excites them about it - perhaps omitting their fears - and with a personal twist why they think it is a good option for them without relying on columbia's admissions brochure (i know it pretty well by now). that is often my expectation for how students ought to think about the core.</p>
<p>but needless to say you will be hard pressed to have an interview with me or most alums where the core isn't a question. that is if you have an interview, which is not guaranteed to everyone.</p>
<p>Ugh absolutely hated it. Then again, I was a science major.</p>