• Applications Received: 5876
• Admitted: 1122
• Enrolled: 754, divided into 11 clusters
• January Entry Class Size: 203, divided into 3 clusters
• August Entry Class Size: 551, divided into 8 clusters
• GMAT Scores (average): 727
• GMAT Scores (range): 560–790
• GMAT Scores (middle 80%): 690–760
• Undergraduate GPA (average): 3.6
• Undergraduate GPA (middle 80%): 3.2–3.9
• Work Experience (average): 5 years
• Work Experience (middle 80%): 3–8 years
• At Least One Year of Work Experience: 99%
• Average Age: 28
• Age Range: 22-51
• Age Range (middle 80%): 25–31
• Women: 38%
• Minority of US Origin: 33%
• International Citizens: 47%

Undergraduate Majors

Previous industries

Eligibility Criteria and admission checklist

As per B -School, application checklist and criteria are as follows

Transcripts

A bachelor’s degree or its equivalent from an accredited institution is required for admission to Columbia Business School. Applicants should scan and submit PDF versions of transcripts from each undergraduate and graduate institution from which they have received a degree. 

If offered admission, you will be required to provide encrypted digital copies of your transcripts from each of the colleges or universities submitted on your application. Offers of admission are not binding until academic records have been verified.

GPA

Applicants should report their grade point average as it appears on their transcript.

GMAT, Executive assessment or GRE Score

All applicants must submit a self-reported GMAT,  Executive Assessment, or GRE score. Your scores must be valid when you submit your application. (CBS considers scores to be valid for five years after your test date). 

If admitted, you must submit an official GMAT, Executive Assessment, or GRE score. Columbia Business School’s GMAT and Executive Assessment code is QF8-N6-52, and its GRE code is 6442. The Admissions Committee will consider only your highest score when reviewing your application and will not combine sub-scores from multiple exams into a single composite score.

Essays

Applicants must complete one short answer question and three essays.

Short Answer Question

What is your immediate post-MBA professional goal? (50 characters maximum)

Examples of possible responses:
“Work in business development for a media company.”
“Join a strategy consulting firm.”
“Launch a data-management start-up.”

Essay 1

Through your resume and recommendations, we have a clear sense of your professional path to date. What are your career goals over the next 3-5 years and what, in your imagination, would be your long-term dream job? (500 words)

Essay 2

Why do you feel Columbia Business School is a good fit for you? (250 words)

Essay 3

Who is a leader you admire, and why? (250 words)

Optional Essay:

Is there any further information that you wish to provide the Admissions Committee? If so, use this space to provide an explanation of any areas of concern in your academic record or your personal history. This does not need to be a formal essay. You may submit bullet points. (Maximum 500 Words)

Knight-Bagehot Fellows

Rather than answer Essay 1, current Knight-Bagehot Fellows applying to Columbia Business School should use the space allocated to the first essay (500 words) to complete the Wiegers Fellowship application essay.

Wiegers Fellowship Essay Question

What are your career goals? How has the Knight-Bagehot Fellowship affected these goals? How will an MBA help you achieve these goals? (500 words maximum)

Deferred Enrollment Program

Deferred Enrollment candidates will answer three short essay questions instead of the essays listed above.

• Question 1: How is a Columbia MBA going to help you? (250 words maximum)
• Question 2: What has been your favorite class, and why? (250 words maximum)
• Question 3: Who is a leader you admire, and why? (250 words maximum)

Recommendations

First-time applications require two recommendations unless applying for the Deferred Enrollment Program. Reapplicants are required to submit one new recommendation. If you have been working full-time for at least six months, one recommendation should be from your current supervisor. If you are unable to secure a recommendation from your direct supervisor, please submit a statement of explanation in the Employment section of your application.The second recommendation should be from either a former direct supervisor or from another professional associate, senior to you, who can share their insights on your candidacy.

If you have worked full-time for fewer than six months, at least one, but preferably both, of your recommendations should be from a person who can comment on your managerial abilities. You may ask a summer employer or another person whom you feel can objectively assess your professional promise. The second recommendation may be from a college professor. If you are a college senior, we encourage you to apply for the Deferred Enrollment Program, which requires only one recommendation.  

Please note that Columbia Business School and several of our peer institutions use similar, if not identical, recommendation questions. This is an effort on our part to make the process easier for your recommenders. We expect that you, the applicant, will not participate in the drafting of these recommendations. Applications are not considered complete until all required information is submitted. This includes recommendations.

The B-School asks recommenders to consider the following guidelines when writing their recommendations (recommended limit – 1000 words):

Full Time Program

• How do the candidate’s performance, potential, background, or personal qualities compare to those of other well-qualified individuals in similar roles? Please provide specific examples.
• Please describe the most important piece of constructive feedback you have given the applicant. Please detail the circumstances and the applicant’s response.

Deferred Enrollment Program

• Please share how you feel the applicant will contribute to the Columbia Business School classroom and community.

Application submitted / received

As per B-School, Keep in mind applications cannot be reviewed until they are complete. Missing required materials, updated test scores, or additional materials must be received by the Admissions Office within three weeks of your application submission.

Once the B-School has received all required application components your application will begin the review process. During this stage, your application is reviewed by at least two admissions officers, after which you will be either invited to interview or denied admission. Please note that August-entry Regular Decision applications will not be reviewed until all January and Early Decision applications are complete.

For all terms of entry, the goal is either to invite applicants for an interview or deny admission within six weeks of a completed application being received. B-School goal for interviewed applicants is to render a final decision within two weeks of the interview report being completed.

Interview

Applicants may be invited to interview with one of our alumni. In most cases, interviews are offered in the applicant’s geographic area, and invitations to interview can be sent at any time after a completed application has been received by the Admissions Office. Interviews are by invitation only and cannot be requested.

Application Fee

The nonrefundable application fee for the Columbia Business School MBA Program is US$250. Applicants are strongly encouraged to pay this fee via credit card (Visa or MasterCard only) within the online application system in order to expedite the processing of their application.

Applicants unable to pay by credit card should contact the Admissions Office at apply@gsb.columbia.edu for directions regarding alternative methods of payment.

Fee waivers are available to full-time students, active duty US military personnel, and members of the Peace Corps, or Teach For All network partners who are currently in service. Proof of current service is required. Applicants who qualify for a fee waiver should email a fee waiver request, as well as proof of service, to [email protected] and explain their need for a fee waiver in the optional essay. Please allow up to one week for an update to your online status confirming that your fee waiver has been approved.

Re-applicant Checklist

As per B-School, Please note that candidates may only apply once to a given term of entry. Candidates may not apply twice to the same term of entry.

To reapply to the MBA Program at Columbia Business School, please use the following checklist to ensure smooth processing. Please note, information and requirements are subject to change without notice.

The Admissions Office retains all applications for one year after a decision is rendered. If you are reapplying no more than 12 months from your initial term of entry to Columbia Business School, the checklist below will help ensure that you submit everything the Admissions Committee will need to reassess your candidacy. For example if you applied for August 2019 you will be considered a reapplicant for January 2020 or August 2020. If you are reapplying more than 12 months after the initial term of entry, you must submit a new, fully complete application.

Please submit the following to the Admissions Committee for your reapplication. If you have trouble starting a new application, please contact the Admissions Office for assistance.

• Reapplication fee: U.S.$250.
• One new recommendation letter, preferably from your current employer. If you have already used your current employer for a recommendation, please choose someone else in a supervisory role or a client.
• Please update the following sections “Application,” “Personal,” “Family,” “Employment,” “Education,” and “Extracurricular Activities”.
• How will you finance your MBA?
• Submit transcripts of any additional courses you have taken since your previous application.
• Please remember to indicate the dates and self-reported scores of the standardized tests that you wish to be considered in your admissions decision.Please note:
  GMAT scores are valid for five years. Your scores must be valid at the time of application submission.Reapplicants are NOT required to submit additional essays. Only the reapplicant essay is required.
• How have you enhanced your candidacy since your previous application? Please detail your progress since you last applied and reiterate how you plan to achieve your immediate and long term post-MBA professional goals. (Maximum 500 words).

Deposits

According t Columbia, All admitted students are required to submit two nonrefundable tuition deposits to secure their place in the class after admission. Deposits will be applied directly towards your first semester’s tuition and fees. Please be aware that if you do not matriculate, your deposit will not be refunded.

January

Students admitted for the January-entry must submit the first deposit of $2,000.00 within two weeks of admission. The second deposit of $1,000 must be received by November 6, 2019.

August

August-entry Early Decision admits must submit the first deposit of $6,000.00 within two weeks of admission. If admitted for August-entry Regular Decision your deposit will be $2,000. If admitted before January 31, 2019 you must submit your deposit by February 19, 2020. If you are admitted from February 1, 2020 through April 8, 2020 your deposit deadline will be  April 22, 2020. Applicants admitted after April 9, 2020 will have two weeks to submit their initial deposit.

All early August-entry Early Decision and Regular Decision admitted students are required to submit a second deposit of $1,000.00 by May 27, 2020 in order to secure their spaces in the class.

Dates and deadlines

January 2020 Entry

• Deadline: October 4, 2019

August 2020 Entry

• Early: October 4, 2019
• Merit Fellowship Deadline: January 3, 2020
• Final: April 10, 2020

*Students may incur additional costs, such as study tours or club events.  The January-Entry student living budget differs slightly since the first year is only 8 months.

Loans & Scholarships

Loans

As per B-School, Over half of the MBA students take advantage of federal and private loan programs to help finance their MBAs. Students should wait to apply for loans until after they have been admitted, as upon admission applicants will gain access to a site with loan application timing information and process. Please read below about each type of loan available to our students.

Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loans