Columbia University Requirements
Secondary School Report
This part of your application includes an official transcript, a recommendation and school profile of a high-school counselor, as well as a Mid-Year report that shows you academic advancement during the first half of your last year in secondary school.
Standardized tests
Normally, Columbia asks applicants to submit SAT or ACT scores. Keep in mind that Columbia is a very selective school, so it might be helpful to submit high scores on these exams. Your SAT score should be between 1440-1570 while your ACT score should be of 34-35. Apart from this, as Bulgarian students, you should also provide evidence for English proficiency. You can show that you are proficient in English if this has been the main language of instruction at your high school, if you scored 700 or more on the Evidence Based Reading and Writing section of the SAT, or if you scored a 29 or more on the English/Reading sections of the ACT. If not, you can take the IELTS, TOEFL or DET exams.
Coalition/Common application
When you apply to Columbia, you can either submit the Coalition application or the Common application since both would be acceptable. They include a personal essay, information about you and your life, as well as lists of your accomplishments and the activities you have engaged in during the school year and the summer.
Recommendations
Columbia requires applicants to submit recommendations from their teachers. If you want to apply to study engineering, one of your recommendations should come from a math/science teacher.
Columbia-specific application questions
Columbia-specific questions provide an insight into your academic and extracurricular interests. They are the writing component and are important since they let the admission officers get to know you as a person.
Application fee/Fee waiver
When you apply to Columbia, there is also an $85 application fee which isn’t refundable.