Columbia College, the undergraduate college of Columbia University, is incredibly difficult to get into. In 2021, the overall acceptance rate was a minuscule 3.73%. If you want to get into Columbia, your best chance is to apply Early Decision, which came with a 10.10% acceptance rate in 2021 — but if you were deferred you already know this. You don’t need to know that your best shot was ED; you need to know what’s next.
Columbia doesn’t publish their deferral rate, so we can’t know how big of a pool you’re now swimming in. We do know, however, that you’re in there with other good-looking fish. Being deferred from Columbia means that you are a qualified candidate for an Ivy League institution. If you weren’t, they would have rejected you. Instead, the problem is that they’ve held you to the side because they want to compare you against the even bigger pool of Regular Decision applicants before making their final picks.
But we’re pushing this metaphor further than we meant to. The point is that you need to find ways to stand out from the school, and that means you need to take action now.
Should You Send Them Something?
Some colleges invite students to send them an update after a deferral, while others explicitly say that they don’t want you to reach out — it’s a major knock against you if you do. Lucky for you, Columbia is part of the first group. They want to hear from you, and that’s awesome.
Sending Columbia an update letter is optional, and they probably won’t make a big deal of it as an option (or even mention it at all) in your deferral notice. But optional isn’t optional. If you are a regular reader of our blog, you already know this. If sending an update is possible, you need to do it.
Columbia says, “We encourage deferred candidates to update us in the winter with mid-year grades and any significant new achievements.”
The mid-year grades will be sent by your school college counselor, which they know but it doesn’t hurt to remind them.
The “significant new achievements,” will have to come from you. This should be a formal, polished, and concise one-page letter that includes 1-3 major updates such as a new leadership position, an extracurricular success, or academic accomplishment. Perhaps a film you made was accepted for a student film festival, or a story you wrote was selected for publication by a journal. Maybe you were elected the head of a club or captain of a team, or you started a new initiative to support your fellow students. You have one chance to write and send this letter, so make sure to spell check before sending.
Second Look at Your College List
As you’re working on your update letter, you need to give your college list a second look. You weren’t rejected by Columbia, so you’re an Ivy League-caliber student, but you also didn’t get in. It’s really important that you take some time to assess whether you have a range of potential options from reaches (like Columbia — because Ivies are always reaches) to targets to safety schools. As you finalize your college list, each school on it should be a place you’d be happy saying ‘yes’ to come spring. There is no point in applying to schools you’d never be willing to attend.
Work Hard
You’re not into college yet, so it’s not time to take your foot off the pedal. You need to try to give your grades a little boost between now and when Columbia receives your mid-year report. This will show Columbia that you’re really serious about getting in.
At the same time, we need you to really dig into the supplements for your other schools. Getting into Columbia after a deferral is possible, but it’s a long-shot even if you’ve had major accomplishments since applying, so writing stellar supplements for your other options is critical. Lucky for you, we have a whole database of school-specific supplement guides to help you on your way.
Relax a Bit
We’ve given you a lot of work to do, but there’s one more thing we need you to make time for. Applying to college is super stressful, so self-care is crucial if you want to come out of this process happy and healthy. Go outside, talk to your friends, or watch that show you’ve been wanting to see. Don’t go crazy and let your academics slide, but giving yourself a little time to be a kid is a good thing. Having some fun will actually improve your performance at school and on your applications.
If a deferral has you freaking out, send us an email. We help students like you bounce back from deferrals by crafting compelling applications.