Columbia 2006 MBA Application Toolbox

Columbia

Official website
http://www0.gsb.columbia.edu/mba/admissions

Class Size
Approximately 500

A Demand for Excellence
Columbia Business School looks for intellectually driven, interesting people from diverse educational, economic, social, ethnic and geographic backgrounds who have something special to offer their classmates and communities. Their common denominators are a record of achievement, demonstrated leadership and the ability to work as members of a team.

The Admissions Committee seeks intellectually inquisitive applicants who have superior academic credentials from all areas of undergraduate and graduate study.

Excellent written and verbal communication skills are essential. Fluency in multiple languages is not required for admission but is increasingly desirable for the study and practice of global business.

Over the past five years, between 6,300 and 7,200 men and women have applied each year for one of a limited number of spaces for full-time MBA students; for example, in 2002 only 10 percent of applicants were admitted. The average GMAT score continues to rise.

While the admissions process is clearly extremely competitive, the School considers the professional promise and personal characteristics of each applicant.

Admissions Requirements    
Columbia Business School selects applicants from varied business and other backgrounds who have the potential to become successful global leaders. The Admissions Committee seeks to develop a thorough understanding of each applicant prior to rendering a decision.

We assess candidates in three basic areas:

• Academic strength
  The committee values academic performance and seeks candidates who demonstrate superior intellectual ability.


• Professional promise
  Close attention is paid to each applicant’s professional accomplishments as well as to his or her professional ambitions. The committee seeks applicants who have developed a strong foundation and / or essential skills for their future professional goals.


• Personal characteristics
  The committee seeks to enroll individuals of strong character who have proven themselves as both leaders and team players, who are well rounded and interesting and who have demonstrated the will and ability to actively contribute to the well-being of their community.
  The Admissions Committee endeavors to select a group of people representing an extraordinary variety of professions, nationalities, ethnicities and personal interests.

Columbia Business School does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, age, nationality, sexual orientation, political affiliation, disability or veteran status.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree or its equivalent from an accredited institution.


• The Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT).


• International students whose native language is not English must take the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL). You may be exempted from the TOEFL if you have received a degree from an institution whose official language of instruction is English.

Interviews
Interviews are not required for admission to Columbia Business School, although some prospective students may be asked to participate in evaluative interviews. Conducted by alumni and current students who are members of the Columbia Business School Ambassadors program, these interviews are offered around the globe.

Once the Admissions Office receives a complete application, a prospective student may be invited to interview. Interviews are by invitation only and cannot be requested.

Letter from the Assistant Dean of Admissions    
On behalf of the Admissions Committee, I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for your interest in Columbia Business School's MBA program. We assure you that, although the admissions process is highly selective, each application is read with the care, deliberation and seriousness it deserves.

Our application has been carefully designed to enable you to communicate your academic, personal and professional accomplishments and ambitions. We hope you will take this opportunity to give us a complete and candid picture of yourself. Your application and essays should present you as an individual of diverse skills and interests. Please read our instructions carefully before you begin to complete the online application.

We strongly encourage you to submit the application online. Columbia online applicants benefit from significantly reduced processing time.

We encourage applicants to get to know Columbia Business School better by visiting the campus, observing a class and attending an information session. No reservations are required. Information sessions are led by an admissions officer and a current MBA student. Prospective students are welcome to visit classes Monday through Thursday except during exam and vacation periods. For details, a current schedule and directions, please visit our website at www.gsb.columbia.edu/admissions or call the Admissions Office at (212) 854-1961.

We understand and appreciate the time and energy involved in completing our application. If you have any questions or concerns, please don't hesitate to call us. We look forward to reading your application!

Linda B. Meehan
Assistant Dean and Executive Director of
Admissions and Financial Aid

Online Application Overview   
This application is designed to be completed during many sessions; you do not need to complete any particular section at one time. By using your username and password, you can return at any time before the applicaton deadline to continue your work. When you apply online with electronically submitted transcripts, recommendations, and essays, you will be able to track the status of your application electronically. If you apply online, please do not also submit a paper application.  

Online Application System   
The Admissions Committee strongly encourages you to utilize our online application. Our Web-based application will allow you to submit the entire application via the Internet. In addition, online applicants benefit from significantly reduced processing time.

We recommend that you submit all materials possible online. However, if you choose to mail any parts of your application (such as transcripts and recommendations), please send them ALL in one envelope. Be sure to clearly print your user login and write "ONLINE APPLICATION SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIALS" on the outside of the envelope.

If you choose to submit ALL of your application online, you should submit it only after it is complete and after both recommenders have submitted their online recommendations.

Applicants who complete their transcripts online do not need to send paper transcripts via mail at this time. If admitted to Columbia Business School, you will be asked to send an official sealed transcript.  

Software Requirements   
This application has been tested for compatibility on Netscape Navigator versions 3.0 and higher and on Microsoft Internet Explorer versions 3.02 and higher. If you are using America Online, version 5.0 or higher is strongly recommended. Parts of this application may not function properly on other browsers. In addition to a compatible browser, you will need the free Adobe Acrobat Reader to access certain documents. If you wish to use the Transcript Template to speed processing of your application, you will also need to have access to Microsoft Excel 97 and to use a browser that supports form-based file uploads, such as Netscape Navigator 3.0 or Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.01.  

Application Fee    
The application fee for the Columbia Business School MBA Program is $215.00 US.

When you are ready to submit your application, the online system will ask you if you are paying your application fee by credit card or by check or money order. Online applicants are strongly encouraged to pay the application fee by credit card using our secure server. Paying the application fee online will expedite the processing of your application.

To pay by Credit Card   
If you are paying by credit card (VISA or Mastercard only), you will receive online instructions once you indicate that you are ready to submit your application. Once you have entered your credit card information and submitted the application, you will receive an e-mail confirming that Columbia Business School's Admissions Office has received your application.
After electronically submitting your application, you will be able to confirm that your payment has been received by checking your status online.

If you cannot pay by credit card   
If you choose to mail a check or money order (drawn on a U.S. bank and made payable to Columbia University), please include a brief cover note and any other supplemental materials in one envelope with the application fee. Write "ONLINE APPLICATION SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIALS" on the outside of the envelope. Please allow up to three weeks for an update to your online status confirming that your fee has been processed.  

To ask for a fee waiver request   
Applicants requesting a fee waiver should select the "Check or Money Order" payment option. If paying the application fee will be a financial hardship, fee waivers are available to full-time students, members of the Peace Corps who are currently in service and citizens of developing countries who currently reside in that country. Applicants who qualify for a fee waiver should fax a fee waiver request letter to 212-662-6754 and should explain their need for a fee waiver in Essay 5. Please allow up to three weeks for an update to your online status confirming that your fee waiver has been approved.  

GMAT information   
You must take the GMAT exam prior to submitting your application to Columbia Business School. Be sure to self-report your GMAT score when completing your application. In addition, you must submit an official score report via http://www.gmat.org (Columbia's ETS code is 2174, MBA department code 02). Please submit only the score you wish to be considered for admission decisions. GMAT scores are valid for five years.  

Additional Information for International Applicants   
Because of the time it takes to send and receive mail from other countries, we encourage international applicants to use Columbia's online application rather than the printed application.  

TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language)   
Thorough English competency is required of all applicants. Applicants whose native language is not English and who have not received a degree from an English language university are required to take the TOEFL exam. Be sure to self-report your TOEFL score when completing your application. In addition, you must submit an official score report via http://www.toefl.org (Columbia's ETS code is 2174, MBA department code 02). We will consider only your highest score when reviewing your application. TOEFL scores are valid for two years.

Essay
You must complete four essays. An optional fifth essay will enable you to discuss any issues that do not fall within the purview of the required essays. Knight-Bagehot Fellows: Please use the space for Essay number 5 for the Knight-Bagehot essay.

If you would like to work on your application in Microsoft Word and then paste it into the essay field, please save your document as a text (.txt) file first. You may also work directly in Notepad, which will automatically save your document as a text (.txt) file. The format may not be retained, but this will not affect admissions decisions.

1. What are your short-term and long-term post-MBA goals? How will Columbia Business School help you achieve these goals? (Recommended 1000 word limit)

2. For January 2006: Discuss what led you to apply for the accelerated MBA at Columbia, and how it best fits your needs?
For September 2006: What has been the greatest challenge to your value system that you've faced and how did you handle it? (Recommended 500 word limit)

3. In discussing Columbia Business School, Dean R. Glenn Hubbard remarked, "We have established the mind-set that entrepreneurship is about everything you do." Please discuss a time in your own life when you have identified and captured an opportunity. (Recommended 500 word limit)

4. Please select and answer one of the following essay questions. (Recommended 250 word limit)

a. Please tell us what you feel most passionate about in life.
b. If you were given a free day and could spend it anywhere, in any way you choose, what would you do?

5. (Optional) Is there any further information that you wish to provide to the Admissions Committee?
(Please use this space to provide an explanation of any areas of concern in your academic record or your personal history.)

Recommendations  
The Admissions Committee requires two recommendations. If you have been working full-time for at least six months, you should submit at least one recommendation from your employer. We strongly urge that this recommendation be from your current direct supervisor; however, if this is not possible, please submit a statement of explanation in the optional essay. The second recommendation should be from either a former direct supervisor or from another professional associate, senior to you, who can add personal insight to your candidacy.

If you are a college senior or have worked full-time for less than six months, at least one, but preferably both, of your recommendations should be from an individual who can comment on your managerial abilities, such as a summer employer or another individual who you feel can objectively assess your professional promise. The second recommendation may be from a college professor.

Recommenders should submit their comments electronically. After you have contacted each reference about providing a recommendation, complete the form on the Recommendations page, and check the "Please e-mail this person a recommendation request" box. An e-mail will be sent with instructions to each appraiser. You will be notified via e-mail when we receive each recommendation. Please do not submit your online application until you receive notification that the recommendations have been received; submitting your application prior to our receipt of your electronic recommendations may delay the processing of your application.

Transcripts   
You have two options for providing the Admissions Committee with records of your academic work. You may submit official transcripts from each of the colleges and universities you have attended as a registered student. Please do not submit high school transcripts. Or, you may submit unofficial transcripts of your academic work using the Microsoft Excel 97 Transcript Template in the online application.

The Transcript Template option requires that you have access to Microsoft Excel 97 and that you use a web browser that supports form-based file uploads (such as Netscape Navigator 4.05 or Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.01). If you use the Transcript Template and you are offered admission, you will be required to provide official transcripts from each of the colleges and universities you have attended as detailed below. If there are discrepancies between the self-reported academic work and official records, your offer of admission will be withdrawn. Offers of admission are not binding until academic records have been verified.

Note: If you studied abroad, and the courses have been transferred back to your home institution and appear with grades on your transcript, you need not request a transcript from the foreign institution.

International Students: If you were educated in a country where original transcripts are not in English, you must send both an official transcript in the original language and a certified English translation along with proof of graduation. Columbia Business School does not endorse or recommend any individual provider of translation services.

GPA Table   
Please use this table to calculate your GPA on a 4.0 scale:  

Description    
The grade-point average (GPA) is the cumulative grade-point average for all terms of academic work completed. The GPA includes all courses for which you received credit or that were recognized for credit by your degree-granting institution.

If your undergraduate institution provides you with a cumulative grade-point average on the 4.0 scale, enter your grade-point average (rounded to the nearest tenth) in the appropriate box. Round 5 and above in the hundredths position to the next highest tenth. For example, a grade-point average of 3.15 would be rounded to 3.2 and 3.24 would be rounded to 3.2.

If your school does not use the 4.0 scale as shown in column 1 of the grading system conversion table on this page, you need to convert your grading system to the 4.0 scale. Use the chart to calculate your grade-point average for each school you attended. For example, if your institution grades on an HH, H, P, LP, F scale (four passing grades), HH=4.0, H=3.3, P=2.3, LP=1.3, F=0. If your school does not use any of the scales listed above, please make a reasonable and conservative approximation of what your GPA would be on a 4.0 scale.

Notification Options   
Columbia Business School uses an online notification process for all changes in your application status, including final decisions. Please check this web site periodically to track the status of your application. Checking your online status will allow you to confirm that all necessary materials have been received and to learn in which stage of the review process your application is. You will receive your final admissions decision through this site.  

Application options   
January 2005 The Accelerated MBA Program is completed in four consecutive terms, beginning in January 2005 and concluding in May 2006. The January term is ideal for those applicants who have built a strong network in the industry of their choice, plan to return to their current employer, or join a family business, or wish to pursue entrepreneurial interests. The program is designed for those students who do not want or need an internship.
September 2005 ED The Early Decision option is ideal for candidates who have completed their research about MBA programs and have decided that Columbia is their first choice school. Early Decision applications are reviewed before Regular Decision applications. Early decision candidates must sign the Letter of Commitment found in the Honor System section (please note that the Letter of Commitment will appear only if you have selected September 2005ED as the term). Early Decision candidates who are offered admission will have 3 weeks to submit a non-refundable $5,000 deposit to hold their space in the class. Applicants who are not yet ready for this level of commitment are encouraged to apply within the regular pool.

Early Decision candidates must sign the following Statement of Commitment:  I choose to apply Early Decision to Columbia Business School, and I understand that if I am admitted a $5,000 deposit is required to secure a place in the September 2005 entering class. I am committed to attending Columbia Business School, and I will withdraw all applications and decline all offers from other schools upon admission to Columbia Business School. I will be enclosing my $5,000 non-refundable deposit upon admittance.

Supplementary materials  
You are welcome to send supplementary materials for your MBA application to the Admissions Office. Please note that we cannot confirm receipt of supplementary materials due to the volume of materials received. If you wish to provide supplementary materials, please address them t

Office of Admissions
Columbia Business School
216 Uris Hall
3022 Broadway
New York, NY 10027