Columbia University is a famed Ivy League university in the heart of New York City. Columbia has had a rocky few years as far as keeping calm on campus, but so have many big name universities in the United States with passionate and engaged student bodies. Columbia remains an outstanding educational institution that opens doors for students from around the world, launching them into top-tier careers, professional programs, and graduate-level study. There are about 9,000 undergraduates between Columbia College, Columbia Engineering, and the School of General Studies, an alternative undergraduate pathway for non-traditional students, like military veterans, and 35,000 students overall. Accepted students are pretty evenly divided between the arts and humanities, engineering, mathematics and natural sciences, and social sciences. They receive over 60,000 applications for first-year admission, and the acceptance rate for the Class of 2029 was 4.29%. 

We know, getting deferred from your dream school is a gut punch. You poured your energy into your Columbia application, hit submit, and now you’re stuck in the gray zone of “maybe.” It’s frustrating, it’s confusing, and yeah, it stings. But before you spiral, take a second. Breathe. A deferral isn’t a no. It’s a hold. A “not right now, but maybe soon.” And that means your shot isn’t over yet!

Columbia is a big deal, and that is an understatement. As a top university in the United States and member of the famed Ivy League, Columbia also has the bonus perk of being located in one of the most famous and popular cities in the world: New York City. For international students, it isn’t just the allure of the top academics and bright lights, though — it’s also the three convenient international airports. Students coming from abroad who want to be able to go home are often surprised to learn how far many top universities are from a major airport with any chance of offering regular direct flights. For many, it’s hours of driving, or a mix of trains and busing, to even start getting home. From the Columbia Campus on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, it’s as little as 30 minutes to your terminal.