In addition to the primary components of the Common Application and Coalition Application, applicants are asked to respond to Columbia-specific questions to tell the Admissions Committee more about their academic, extracurricular and intellectual interests. We review the responses to these questions very carefully in order get a full sense of each unique individual beyond his or her transcripts and test scores.

We encourage you to familiarize yourself with these questions before beginning your application:

In 150 words or fewer, please list a few words or phrases that describe your ideal college community.

For the four list questions that follow, we ask that you list each individual response using commas or semicolons; the items do not have to be numbered or in any specific order. No narrative or explanatory text is needed. It is not necessary to italicize or underline titles of books or other publications. Author names may be included, but are not required. You do not need to fill the entire space or use the maximum number of words; there is no minimum word count in this section, so please respond to the extent that you feel is appropriate.

Please list the following (150 words or fewer for each question):

• the titles of the required readings from courses during the school year or summer that you enjoyed most in the past year;
• the titles of books read for pleasure that you enjoyed most in the past year;
• the titles of print or electronic publications you read regularly;
• and the titles of the films, concerts, shows, exhibits, lectures and other entertainments you enjoyed most in the past year.

Please answer the following short answer questions (300 words or fewer for each question):

• Please tell us what you value most about Columbia and why.
• If you are applying to Columbia College, tell us what from your current and past experiences (either academic or personal) attracts you specifically to the field or fields of study that you noted in the Member Questions section. If you are currently undecided, please write about any field or fields in which you may have an interest at this time.
• If you are applying to The Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science, please tell us what from your current and past experiences (either academic or personal) attracts you specifically to the field or fields of study that you noted in the Member Questions section.