Admission Process and Requirements

Applications may be filed online through the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences online application

All students must submit an Official Transcript showing courses and grades per school attended, a Statement of Academic Purpose, a Writing Sample (course paper, term paper, etc.) and 3 Letters of Recommendation from academic sources.

All international students whose native language is not English or whose undergraduate degree is from an institution in a country whose official language is not English must submit scores of the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or IELTS.

Letters of Recommendation

Letters of recommendation must be submitted through the GSAS online application system. Letters of recommendation may not be sent via email, nor may paper letters be sent via postal mail. All letters must be uploaded by the recommender directly to the application system.

You may submit your online application even if your letters of recommendation have not yet been submitted. Once the letters are received, we will append them to your application.

Three letters of recommendation are required, but the Graduate School accepts up to five letters.

Reapplicants

Applicants who applied previously should log in to the application account created during the prior application season and use the same profile to create an application for the new term. Letters of recommendation from the earlier application can then be included in the new application. See the Recommendations page in the online application for more information.

Transcripts

Applicants should upload a transcript or record (e.g., web-based transcripts, mark sheets, relevé de notes) of any academic work from each university-level institution you have attended for use in review of your application. Official transcripts are required only after an offer of admission has been made and accepted. GSAS retains official documents for admitted applicants only. If an official document is sent to us by an applicant who does not enroll, the document will not remain accessible, even if an offer of admission is made at a later time.

Transcripts should be uploaded on the Educational History page of the online application. Transcripts should not be combined into one document; they should be uploaded as individual documents.

Standardized Tests

The Graduate School requires the following standardized tests:

The ETS (GRE and TOEFL) institution code for the Graduate School is 2162. The Graduate School does not use department codes; all test scores are reported to the GSAS Office of Admissions.

GRE scores are valid for five years from the date taken. For more information on the GRE General and Subject Tests, visit the GRE website.

TOEFL scores are valid for two years from the date taken. For more information on the TOEFL, see the TOEFL website.

For more information, refer to


Note that the applicant must submit all materials directly, not through an agent or third-party vendor, with the sole exception of submissions by the US Department of State’s Fulbright Program and its three partner agencies IIE, LASPAU and AMIDEAST, and by the Danish-American Fulbright Commission (DAF), and Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst (DAAD). In addition, the applicant will be required to attest to the accuracy and authenticity of all information and documents submitted to Columbia. If you have any questions about this requirement, please contact the GSAS Office of Admissions at [email protected].

Failure to submit complete, accurate, and authentic application documents consistent with these instructions may result in denial or revocation of admission, cancellation of academic credit, suspension, expulsion, or eventual revocation of degree. Applicants may be required to assist admissions staff and faculty involved in admission reviews in the verification of all documents and statements made in documents submitted by students as part of the application review process.

Application materials are available in the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences' Office of Admissions and Financial Aid. To request a Bulletin of General Announcements and an application, please call or write to:

Graduate School of Arts and Sciences
Office of Admissions
107 Low Library, MC 4303
535 West 116th Street
New York, NY 10027
(212) 854-6729
[email protected] ​​​​​​​