48 Columbia Essay Examples

Prompt: Why are you interested in attending Columbia University? We encourage you to consider the aspect(s) that you find unique and compelling about Columbia.

Through personal, academic, and professional ventures, I have synthesized a vision for my future: implementing Artificial Intelligence in assistive devices for the disabled. Such aspirations are not possible without a strong foundation, however. 

The diverse intellectual communities at Columbia will foster my programming skills, vision for Artificial Intelligence, inclination to problem-solving, and innovative engineering. The robust research opportunities at the recently launched Center of AI Technology, for example, will allow me to collaborate with peers from SEAS and professionals from Amazon to perform interdisciplinary research that contributes to the vibrant AI tech ecosystem in [Place Redacted]. In Columbia’s Artificial Intelligence and Robotics Lab, I will regurgitate knowledge from courses like “Software Engineering for AI Systems” or “Human-Computer Interaction,” engaging in enlightening projects while surrounding myself with like-minded peers that will continuously inspire me to perform with excellence. By nurturing myself in these communities, and with the support of the Columbia Startup Program (CSF), I will traverse the path of founding a firm for A.I. developed disability aids, universalizing the technology that I birth in their labs and giving the underprivileged access to personalized assistive devices.

Essay by Rose

Programmer and performer @ Yale!

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Prompt: List the titles of the books, essays, poetry, short stories or plays you read outside of academic courses that you enjoyed most during secondary/high school.

Environmental Books: “Silent Spring”, Rachel Carson “The End of Nature”, Bill McKibben “The Sixth Extinction, An Unnatural History”, Elizabeth Kolbert “This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs. The Climate”, Naomi Klein “An Inconvenient Truth: The Planetary Emergency of Global Warming and What We Can Do About It”, Al Gore

Youtuber Books: “In Real Life: My Journey to a Pixelated World”, Joey Graceffa “A Work in Progress”, Connor Franta “Selp-Helf”, Miranda Sings “Rhett & Link’s Book of Mythicality: A Field Guide to Curiosity, Creativity, and Tomfoolery”, Jake Greene, Link Neal, and Rhett James McLaughlin “How to Be a Bawse: A Guide to Conquering Life”, Lilly Singh

Essay by Erick Angelo Ramirez

CS Major, Bio Minor, FGSS Honors Thesis, FLI @ Stanford

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Prompt: We’re interested in learning about some of the ways that you explore your interests. List some resources and outlets that you enjoy, including but not limited to websites, publications, journals, podcasts, social media accounts, lectures, museums, movies, music, or other content with which you regularly engage.

Vietnam Museum of Ethnology, Al Jazeera, Financial Times, VNExpress, Council on Foreign Relations, St. Louis Fed Data,

TLDR News, Voice of North Korea by Yeonmi Park, Economics Explained, 12Tone, VSauce, NileRed, Entiende Tu Mente podcast, Counter Arguments, Philosophy Tube, Ana Psychology, Lessons from the Screenplay

Hamilton: An American Musical, Legally Blonde, La La Land, El laberinto del fauno, 1917, Blackfish, 

The Dying Poet (jota aragonesa), Impromptu Op.90 No.2 in E-flat, I Lived, It’s On Us, 

Women Deliver webinars, Girl Up’s Girl Talks, OutRight Action International, World Wide Life, DECA, Debate Drills, Project Gutenberg, Mythcreants, TV Tropes, Rhyme Zone, Genius, Poetry Foundation, Art of Composing, Science Direct, Brilliant, CyberStart America, Crypto Zombies, Soundation, Photofocus, Fitness Blender, Goodreads, 18 Under 18 Vietnam

Essay by Rosie

Statistics & Data Science + Ethics, Politics & Economics (and Musician?) @ Yale :D

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