Welcome to the official Columbia Graduate School of Business Ask Admissions Thread! The Columbia MBA Admissions Team would like to welcome everyone to this thread and offer an opportunity to ask questions about our leading MBA program. If there is anything we can help with, please let us know. Fall 2013 Columbia GSB Application Discussion Columbia GSB MBA Guide Columbia GSB Real Time 2016 Application Statistics on GMAT Club https://images.businessweek.com/ss/09/10/1008_columbia_school_tour/image/exterior.jpg Rankings US News 2012 #8 Executive MBA #5 Finance #4 International #5 Management #10 Marketing #9 Nonprofit #8 Production/Operations #8 BusinessWeek #9 Historical GMAT Club Applicant Threads Fall 2012 - Calling All CBS Applicants Fall 2011 - Calling All CBS Applicants Fall 2010 - Calling All CBS Applicants Fall 2009 - Calling All CBS Applicants Fall 2008 - Calling All CBS Applicants Fall 2007 - Calling All CBS Applicants Popular Links Programs Offered at CBS CBS Employment Reports Notable Alumni

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ColumbiaMBA

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13 Sep 2013, 07:31

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deacoW

Good Morning,

I have a quick question regarding the application. Under the employment section, I'm in project management so have extensive experience supervising a number of people but technically do no have any one that reports to me. What to you recommend putting in the Direct/Indirect reports field?

Thanks!

Hi deacoW,

Thank you for your question. If you do not have currently have direct reports you should list this as zero. In the "duties/responsibilities" section you can explain further your experience as a supervisor.

Best of luck,

TechTeam55

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13 Sep 2013, 10:56

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Hello,

I was wondering whether those applying with GRE scores should submit their unofficial GRE score report where it says "Please upload your unofficial GMAT score report:" on the Test Scores section.

Thanks!

Adam

ColumbiaMBA

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17 Sep 2013, 14:38

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TechTeam55

Hi TechTeam55,

Thank you for your question. You are welcome to e-mail this information to us and we will add it to your file.

Best of luck!

Regards,

nextstopmba

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Concentration: Strategy, General Management

Schools: Kellogg '16 (D) CBS '16 (D) Tuck '16 (D) ISB '15 (WD) Darden '16 (M) Ross '16 (WL)

GMAT 1: 690 Q50 V32 Verified score

GMAT 2: 710 Q49 V36 Verified score

GMAT 3: 730 Q49 V40 Verified score

GPA: 3.76

WE:Supply Chain Management (Pharmaceuticals and Biotech)

Schools: Kellogg '16 (D) CBS '16 (D) Tuck '16 (D) ISB '15 (WD) Darden '16 (M) Ross '16 (WL)

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22 Sep 2013, 05:05

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Hi Matthew,

I had a few questions regarding the application and it would be really helpful if you can answer them at the earliest as I plan to send in my application for the Early Decision Round:

1) Under the Employment section it mentions that : "Do NOT include bonuses, housing or relocation allowances, cost of living adjustments, tax exemptions, combat or hazardous duty pay, etc. as part of your salary. You may include these as a separate notation in the "Job Duties" section"

My company pays 15% on top of my base salary as part of the Pension plan which I will be receiving in bulk once I leave the company. I wanted to check where I should be mentioning this in the application as I don’t find any “Job Duties” section?

2) There is a space provided for Description in the Employment section for each employer. Just wanted to understand what kind of information we should be filling in here? As we will be covering most of the Job Description through our resume and essays, hence is there anything additional we should be filling in here? Is there any word limit?

3) I have successfully cleared CFA level 1 and 2, hence wanted to check where should I upload my CFA scores?

Regards,
Vivek

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24 Sep 2013, 07:40

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nextstopmba

Hi Vivek,

Thank you for your questions!

1.) When you "Add Employer" please include this information where we ask you to describe your position. This should not be listed as a bonus.

2.) There will be some overlap between this section and the resume, but it is also a place to include anything that does not necessarily fit on a resume like additional compensation that you mentioned earlier. I also encourage you to list any honors and awards here.

3.) You can mention that you passed the CFA level 1 and 2 in your resume and in the optional essay. It is not necessary to upload your scores.

Best of luck,

rjmba

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24 Sep 2013, 20:59

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Hi,

I am an Indian student planning to apply to Columbia in the coming round. Columbia is my dream school and I am committed to apply in the early round and take the offer. However, I am worried about the fact that CBS does not offer non-US co-signer loans to international students. I did look up GSLC, but they also do not cover India.

I have a couple of questions for the forum:

1. What are the options that I have? Are there any organizations that will help?
2. CBS specifically asks for financing in its application. Does not having firm financing affect my chances of getting in?

Help will be really appreciated.

Thanks a ton,
R

Jamon

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GMAT 1: 750 Q49 V42 Verified score

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25 Sep 2013, 17:41

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Hi,

I am applying RD because my recommender is not able to submit the LOR until next month due to work obligations. If I submitted my RD application before the ED deadline, would CBS think that I am "not committed" or not fully interested in their program? Would my application be viewed any differently than if I waited until November to submit? Columbia is without a doubt my first choice, but some things are out of my control, and I hope my early RD submission is not viewed negatively.

ColumbiaMBA

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30 Sep 2013, 09:24

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Jamon

Hi Jamon,

Thank you for your question. We understand that many of our applicants cannot apply Early Decision. This will not negatively impact your application. It is great to hear that Columbia is your first choice!

Regards,

GetThisDone

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01 Oct 2013, 21:21

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Hi Matthew,

I am applying to CBS in ED.

While I am all set to submit my apps, I just wanted your inputs on the below.

My long term career goal is rural entrepreneurship. Just wondering if there are any specific avenues at Columbia that would allow us to explore on rural entrepreneurship. Lack of anything specific will not change my decision or interest in Columbia. I didn't find much info on this all through my research. Any info you would have on this is much appreciated.

Any help on these queries is much appreciated.

ColumbiaMBA

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03 Oct 2013, 08:02

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GetThisDone

Hi

Thank you for your question. I suggest looking at the projects on Columbia Pangea Advisors https://www.pangeaadvisors.org/projects.asp. This should give you an idea of some of the opportunities related to your interest.

Best of luck,

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08 Dec 2013, 11:27

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Hi Matthew,

While talking to one of my recommenders on the phone recently, we found out that his recommendation form was quite different from the one my boss received. Questions were different and he didn't even have a rating table to answer to. We double-checked and made sure that we were talking about the same CBS (and not Chinese Business school or something

). I was somewhat puzzled by this discrepancy, so I decided to ask you whether this is standard procedure -- such as having 2 recommenders submit two different sets of questions-- or rather due to some software fluctuation (he seems to be running an old operative system).

Any thoughts on this?
Thank you in advance

chris

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10 Dec 2013, 07:01

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fchris

Hi Chris,

Thank you for your question. Our recommendations have changed since the 2012 cycle. We no longer have the rating system and ask recommenders to consider the guidelines listed here https://www8.gsb.columbia.edu/programs-a ... irements#6.

Please let us know if you have any other questions!

Regards,

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10 Dec 2013, 09:45

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ColumbiaMBA

Hi Chris,

Thank you for your question. Our recommendations have changed since the 2012 cycle. We no longer have the rating system and ask recommenders to consider the guidelines listed here ....gsb.columbia.edu/

Please let us know if you have any other questions!

Regards,

useful hint, very appreciated. Apparently it was my boss who was looking at last year's recommendation link. After sending him a reminder link everything became clear.
Thank you again and best regards, chris

CelerIP

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Concentration: Marketing, Strategy

Schools: Sloan '16 (WL) Kellogg '16 (WA) CBS '16 (A)

GMAT 1: 760 Q50 V44 Verified score

Schools: Sloan '16 (WL) Kellogg '16 (WA) CBS '16 (A)

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17 Dec 2013, 18:21

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Hi Matt,

If we have any updates to our application (like a recent promotion or reward), what is the best way to provide this update to the Admissions team?

Thanks!

Celer

bagdbmba

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01 Feb 2014, 07:45

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Hi Matthew,
On behalf of some applicants I've a question, in the 2014 discussions thread people have posted a query on how they can expect to get the status updates on their application? Is it mandatory that the update has to be through email or can be visible on their account home page without an email notification even?

It'd be really helpful if you please shed some light on this.

Much thanks!

ColumbiaMBA

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01 Feb 2014, 09:17

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bagdbmba

Hi bagdbmba,

Thank you for your question. We update applicants about their status via e-mail and on their status page. They should receive an e-mail, but we have heard some e-mails going to junk/spam folders. This is rare and usually happens with work e-mails.

I hope this helps.

bagdbmba

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01 Feb 2014, 09:50

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ColumbiaMBA

bagdbmba

Thank you Matthew for this clarification. I'd convey this to them in the concerned thread.

Just a quick question - the status update will take place in the home page of the applicant's account. Am I right?

sarchy

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06 Feb 2014, 08:24

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Dear Columbia MBA Team,

I had a quick question regarding the format of the Letter of recommendation.

Recommenders are expected to give input to the following questions:

The applicant’s performance.
Strengths and weaknesses of the applicant.
The applicant’s interpersonal skills.
The applicant’s written and spoken communication skills.
How does the applicant accept constructive criticism or handle conflicts?
How effective are the applicant’s interpersonal skills in the workplace?
The most important thing you would like the Admissions Committee to know.

I am not sure if I understood correctly how the format should be. Shall every question be answered separately or in form of a proper letter/essay?

Many thanks in advance

ColumbiaMBA

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06 Feb 2014, 16:02

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bagdbmba

ColumbiaMBA

bagdbmba

Hi bagdbmba, Applicants login here to check their status - https://apply.gsb.columbia.edu/status.

Best,

ColumbiaMBA

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06 Feb 2014, 16:05

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sarchy

Hi sarchy,

Thank you for your question. These are guidelines we have for the recommenders, but they do not need to follow a specific format. We do not have requirements for how they should submit.

Best of luck!