Apply to GSAS

Thank you for your interest in applying to Columbia University. All prospective students must apply using our online application. The Graduate School of Arts and Sciences does not print applications.

You must specify in your application the department, doctoral program subcommittee, or free-standing master’s degree program in which you wish to study. If required, you must indicate the sub-field of study and the term for which you are applying. A complete application includes: 

• transcripts of all previous post-secondary education
• a statement of academic purpose
• a curriculum vitae or resume 
• three letters of evaluation from academic sources
• GRE scores and, if applicable, results of the TOEFL or IELTS examination
• a sample of scholarly writing if required by the department or program

APPLYING TO MULTIPLE PROGRAMS

In any given term, a student may apply to only one Ph.D. department, program or subcommittee, including the biomedical Ph.D. programs housed at the College of Physicians and Surgeons. Applicants who file more than one Ph.D. application in a given semester will be required to withdraw one of the applications.

Columbia GSAS permits applicants to be reviewed by a second program if they do not receive an offer of admission from their first-choice program, with the following restrictions:

• This option is not available to applicants who are applying for spring admission.

• Applicants may select a second review by a free-standing M.A. program only. Ph.D. applicants may not select review by another Ph.D. program.

• Applicants must choose the option of a second review at the time of submission of the application.

• Each first-choice program will only offer a selected list of second choices.  Some programs do not offer any second choices. Applicants may not request review by a program not listed as a second choice.

• GSAS cannot guarantee that an application will receive a second review. Review by the second-choice program is contingent upon the deadline for and space availability in that program.

• Applicants will be able to view and opt for a second choice (if applicable) after selecting their first choice. Do not submit a second application.

• Applicants must upload a separate Statement of Purpose and submit any extra supporting materials required for the second program. Only submit transcripts, letters, and test scores once. However, if the second program requires a writing sample, applicants must upload a second writing sample.

APPLICATION FEE

A nonrefundable fee of $100 must accompany the completed online application.

The application fee may be paid by credit card.   We accept Visa, Master Card, American Express, and Discover cards, which are processed through the secure Elavon Information Systems Virtual Merchant payment system.

If you cannot pay the application fee using a credit card, you may send us a personal or bank check in U.S. Funds drawn on a U.S. bank, U.S. Postal Money Orders, or Travelers Checks made payable to “Columbia University.” No other form of payment will be accepted.  Personal or bank checks must have the U.S. address of the bank and the nine-digit ABA (routing) number pre-printed on them.  Payment by credit card may only be made at the time of submission of the application. We cannot accept credit card payments after the application has been submitted.  

Applications are not considered complete unless accompanied by the fee. 

STANDARDIZED TESTS 

The Graduate School requires the following standardized tests:

• The Graduate Record Examination General Test (GRE)
• GRE Subject Test scores, if required by the department or program
• TOEFL or IELTS, for all applicants (1) who have received an undergraduate degree from an institution in a country whose official language is not English OR (2) who have received an undergraduate degree from an institution in a country whose official language is English but spent less than two years at that institution

Applicants to the Master of Arts degree program in Mathematics of Finance only may substitute the GMAT for the GRE General Test. Applicants to all other programs may not substitute the GMAT for the GRE General Examination. 

For complete information on the GRE, visit their site at http://www.gre.org.  For the TOEFL, visit http://www.ets.org.

LETTERS OF EVALUATION

Letters of evaluation must be submitted online. Before starting your online application, check with the individuals, preferably professors, from whom you are requesting evaluations to see if they would like to use our secure online system. The process is simple for them to use, and allows you to track the status of the evaluation using the ApplyYourself system. You may submit your online application even if the letters of evaluation have not yet been submitted by your evaluators. When the letters are submitted, we will attach them to your application.

TRANSCRIPTS

• Do not send official paper transcripts. If you receive an offer of admission, you will be required to send official paper documents for verification before the offer is considered official. Do not send official transcripts before being notified by GSAS.

• YOU MUST upload a transcript or record of your academic work (e.g. Web based transcripts, mark sheets, Relève de Notes) from each university-level institution you have attended for use in review of your application. Uploading a scanned copy of your transcript or academic record will expedite processing and review of your application.

• Schools which you attended but from which you did not receive a degree, should be listed at the end of the page.

• Study abroad undertaken as part of your undergraduate work does not require uploading of a separate transcript, provided that both courses AND grades are recorded on the main transcript.

• Transcripts that are in a language other than English must be translated into English. The translation must be certified to be an accurate translation of the original and be notarized or otherwise authenticated. Both non-English AND translated transcripts should be uploaded.

• Applicants to the Sustainable Development and Climate and Society programs must upload a separate listing of specific courses.

Please use the cover sheets provided in the Downloadable Forms section of your online application when mailing us any supporting materials for your application. These forms contain the specific ApplyYourself number for the account you use to submit your application. If you cannot attach or use one of the forms, if possible, write the ApplyYourself number on each document you submit. There will be a delay in processing your application materials submitted without the ApplyYourself number.

All materials should be sent to the Office of Admissions, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, 108 Low Library, 535 West 116th Street, MC 4303, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027.

REAPPLYING

Applicants denied admission may reapply in a subsequent year if further training or experience is presented to strengthen the application. However, applicants who have not been offered admission to the same department or program for three (3) consecutive years should not apply to GSAS.