Columbia University supplemental essays
Columbia University asks for six supplemental essays in 2026-27. Common App, Coalition App. Personal statement required (250-650 words).
That is six supplements plus the Common App personal statement: seven pieces of writing in all. Early Decision closes November 1, 2026 and Regular Decision closes January 1, 2027. The prompts carry these limits: 100 words or fewer, 150 words or fewer. Every Columbia University prompt is printed on this page in full, with its word limit and who has to answer it, checked against the college’s own admissions page.
Deadlines
| Round | Date |
|---|---|
| Early Decision | November 1, 2026 |
| Regular Decision | January 1, 2027 |
Checked against undergrad.admissions.columbia.edu/apply/process/columbia-questions. Confirm on the college’s own page before you submit.
The essays, 2026-27
Required · 100 words or fewer
List the titles of texts, resources and outlets that have contributed to your intellectual development outside of academic courses, including but not limited to books, journals, websites, podcasts, essays, plays, presentations, videos, museums and other content that you enjoy.
Short answer. Paste it on the homepage and we will read it.
Required · 150 words or fewer
Tell us about an aspect of your life so far or your lived experience that is important to you, and describe how it has shaped the way you would learn from and contribute to Columbia's multidimensional and collaborative environment.
Short answer. Paste it on the homepage and we will read it.
Required · 150 words or fewer
At Columbia, students representing a wide range of perspectives are invited to live and learn together. In such a community, questions and debates naturally arise. Please describe a time when you did not agree with someone and discuss how you engaged with them and what you took away from the interaction.
Short answer. Paste it on the homepage and we will read it.
Required · 150 words or fewer
In college/university, students are often challenged in ways that they could not anticipate. Please describe a situation in which you have navigated through adversity and discuss how you changed as a result.
Short answer. Paste it on the homepage and we will read it.
Required · 150 words or fewer
Why are you interested in attending Columbia University? We encourage you to consider the aspect(s) that you find unique and compelling about Columbia.
Short answer. Paste it on the homepage and we will read it.
Required · 150 words or fewer
What attracts you to your preferred areas of study at Columbia College or Columbia Engineering?
Short answer. Paste it on the homepage and we will read it.
Your Columbia University checklist
Six supplements, all required. The first deadline, Early Decision, is November 1, 2026.
- Common App personal statementRequired250-650 words
- Supplement 1Required100 words or fewer
- Supplements 2 to 6Required150 words or fewer each
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Getting into Columbia University
Columbia University admits 4.0% of applicants. The middle 50% of enrolled students scored 1510-1580 on the SAT and 34-35 on the ACT.
About 1 in 25 applicants are admitted, at a college of 8,973 undergraduates.
| Enrolled students | 25th | Median | 75th |
|---|---|---|---|
| SAT total | 1510 | 1550 | 1580 |
| SAT reading and writing | 740 | 760 | 780 |
| SAT math | 770 | 790 | 800 |
| ACT composite | 34 | 35 | 35 |
What SAT score do you need for Columbia University?
A 1580 puts you in the top quarter of the students who enrolled, a 1550 at their midpoint, and a 1510 at the bottom quarter, meaning one in four enrolled students scored below it. The same three points on the ACT are 34, 35 and 35. A quarter of an enrolled class scoring under the 25th percentile is not a rounding error, so a score below the range is a reason to strengthen the rest of the application rather than a reason not to apply.
US Department of Education, College Scorecard (2026-09-17). Percentiles describe students who enrolled, not everyone admitted. SAT totals are the reading and math bands added together, which is how every source in this market reports them and is an approximation of about 10 to 20 points, because the two sections are correlated.
- What SAT score do you need for Columbia University?
- Columbia University sets no minimum. Among students who enrolled, the middle 50% scored 1510-1580 on the SAT: a 1510 sits at the 25th percentile, 1550 at the median and 1580 at the 75th. A score at or above 1580 is a clear strength in the application; below 1510 it is the part of the file the rest has to make up for. These are the figures Columbia University reports to the US Department of Education, released in the College Scorecard of 2026-09-17.
- What ACT score do you need for Columbia University?
- The middle 50% of enrolled students scored 34-35 on the ACT, with a composite of 35 at the median. There is no cutoff: a quarter of the enrolled class scored below 34. Reported by Columbia University to the US Department of Education, College Scorecard release of 2026-09-17.
- What GPA do you need for Columbia University?
- The honest answer is that the federal data behind this page does not contain one. Colleges report their admit rate and their enrolled students' test scores to the Department of Education; they do not report a GPA distribution, so any site quoting an exact average GPA for Columbia University is either reading that college's own Common Data Set or estimating. What the reported data does say is that Columbia University admits 4.0% of applicants, and the more selective a college is, the closer to the top of the class its admitted students sit and the more the strength of your course load counts alongside the number itself.
- How hard is it to get into Columbia University?
- Columbia University admits 4.0% of the people who apply, which is about 1 in 25 applicants. At that rate no set of numbers makes admission likely, a perfect one included, because the college turns away far more qualified applicants than it takes. Strong grades and scores get the application read; the essays, the recommendations and what you have actually done decide it from there.
What Columbia University costs after grant aid, by family income, from the same federal data.
Sort your whole college list into reaches, targets and likelies, or find colleges that fit your GPA and test scores. Both are free and neither needs an account.
Columbia University essay questions, answered
- Does Columbia University have supplemental essays?
- Yes. Columbia University asks for six supplemental essays in 2026-27. Every prompt is printed in full on this page. Word limits: 100 words or fewer, 150 words or fewer.
- How many essays do you write for Columbia University in 2026-27?
- Six supplements, plus the Common App personal statement.
Schools with similar admit rates
Columbia University admits 4.0% of applicants. The colleges either side of it in our set by admit rate, most selective first, each with its own prompts and deadlines: Stanford University (3.6%), Harvard University (3.6%), Yale University (3.9%), University of Chicago (4.5%), Massachusetts Institute of Technology (4.5%), Princeton University (4.6%).