Columbia 2014 Applicants

[Ovsanna]

@Ovsanna Don't loose your hope. As just three applicants announced their admission, I guess they didn't send out all notifications. Additionally, all of them are from the US. I guess they usually send out the decisions of international applicants via Email. BTW we'll see tomorrow. I can't sleep tonight!

I wrote to Garette and he told me that decisions will be sent from early to mid april.

 

[almilife]

It sounds like they made their first initial phone calls yesterday. Which, if you think about it, calling all the accepted students in one day sounds like a lot of work. So I am sure they are spreading out all the phone calls at least that is what I am telling myself.

Good luck to everyone and congrats to all the people who got their phone calls!

 

[C. Anna Belly]

Wow congrats to those who got the call! Are you all accepting?

Well almilife, calling everyone in one day sure isn't the most fun a person can have but it is possible, which is why i'm pissed off at Columbia for not putting us out of our misery and just have one day where everyone can find out whether it has worked out or not haha! That again, with time difference and everything we know that all phonecalls aren't made in one day, it takes up about 1 week for all candidates to find out.
Keep cool everyone, that's what I'm doing, only got an interview invite last week and before that I was convinced I'd been rejected... patience

 

[cadencotard]

Again, last year people were still getting acceptance calls one week after the first call had been made.

Fightclub I'm a US citizen but I'm based in Brussels, so it was an "international call". But I don't think they make that distinction when calling applicants?! I hope you guys get the answer soon, really.

 

[ganbare112]

Don't know if this will help (I hope!), but I was feeling really antsy after my interview. Even though the conversation lasted a while, there were a couple of situations where I thought I might have said or expressed something that gave the interviewers a reason to question my fit for the program. My mentality going in was to be myself and be as completely honest and transparent about what I wanted to do at Columbia, what I was passionate about and my approach to filmmaking and to present that. If you felt communicated well who you are as a unique individual/filmmaker in the interview then I would hold onto that and not think about it too much!

I would say if Dan and Eric said they liked your work that's a big plus because that's what they're basing their decision upon (this is what he told me). It also sounded like he'd be really busy up until Monday, so I think there should be calls and whatnot going out up until then and likely after.

Best of luck to everyone!

 

[jnoel]

Just read through a couple of the threads and it's great how supportive everyone is on here. I was accepted into NYU & Columbia's MFA directing program. I was wondering if anyone is in the same position/had any insight on the pros & cons of each program. If so I would love to hear from you:jacynoel@gmail.com

 

[Fightclub]

Just read through a couple of the threads and it's great how supportive everyone is on here. I was accepted into NYU & Columbia's MFA directing program. I was wondering if anyone is in the same position/had any insight on the pros & cons of each program. If so I would love to hear from you:jacynoel@gmail.com

@jnoel Congrats!!! I got a rejection from NYU. I know both programs completely and I believe NYU is the best.
When did you receive your call from Columbia?

 

[jnoel]

Fightclub Thank you! I received a call from Eric on Wednesday.

 

[Ovsanna]

Got an email a minute ago. Placed on the waiting list

Do you guys know what are the chances to be accepted?

 

[almilife]

I just got wait-listed too. Better then a flat out rejection.... But still pretty unsettling. I heard from forum that 30% of people who got into the school were wait-listed, but I don't know how true that is. I'm not going to hold my breath, so I'll move on plan B.

 

[GMF]

Got wait listed as well. Had a feeling after hearing that most of you guys had interviews double the length of mine. I'm lucky enough that I got in NYU, but Columbia was my top choice.

Best of luck to the rest of you on the waiting list. And again congrats to those of you who got admitted.

 

[Ovsanna]

When usually the waitlisted person knows he's been accepted or rejected?

they said they will inform me till the end of summer, but that's a plenty of time, I'll definitely go mad

 

[rjames]

When usually the waitlisted person knows he's been accepted or rejected?

they said they will inform me till the end of summer, but that's a plenty of time, I'll definitely go mad

Accepted students have until April 14th to make their decisions, so I'm assuming a good amount of wait-listers will hear pretty quickly! Maybe the late-summer notice is just in case someone puts in a deposit, and then changes their mind later?

 

[cadencotard]

Total budget is $84,500 (minus $10,000 = $74,500) so I'm probably going to have to give up my spot, the costs are just way higher than I had imagined. Both my parents make minimum wage so I'd need to win the lottery to be able to attend Columbia. It's pretty ridiculous.

 

[almilife]

Total budget is $84,500 (minus $10,000 = $74,500) so I'm probably going to have to give up my spot, the costs are just way higher than I had imagined. Both my parents make minimum wage so I'd need to win the lottery to be able to attend Columbia. It's pretty ridiculous.

You are so lucky to be accepted, I wish I was in your shoes rather then being on the wait-list. The cost is pretty crazy yes, but try to apply to grants or see what scholarships you can apply too. Maybe you can lower the cost a little bit? You have a little bit of time to figure it out, but try every outlet before rejecting. I wish you luck cadencotard and hope you can find a way to go.

 

[cadencotard]

You are so lucky to be accepted, I wish I was in your shoes rather then being on the wait-list. The cost is pretty crazy yes, but try to apply to grants or see what scholarships you can apply too. Maybe you can lower the cost a little bit? You have a little bit of time to figure it out, but try every outlet before rejecting. I wish you luck cadencotard and hope you can find a way to go.

Thanks, that's very nice of you to say considering the fact that me not going might mean a chance for you to go.
Not having a safety net is very scary. $160,000 spent in just two years, I could make a feature length with that money! I will wait to get an answer from Eric about scholarships but the thing is that I would need the total costs to be $25,000 to be able to attend (so I would need $60,000 in scholarships... that doesn't sound reasonable). Anyway maybe a miracle will happen, otherwise I hope you get my spot.

 

[almilife]

Thanks, that's very nice of you to say considering the fact that me not going might mean a chance for you to go.
Not having a safety net is very scary. $160,000 spent in just two years, I could make a feature length with that money! I will wait to get an answer from Eric about scholarships but the thing is that I would need the total costs to be $25,000 to be able to attend (so I would need $60,000 in scholarships... that doesn't sound reasonable). Anyway maybe a miracle will happen, otherwise I hope you get my spot.

I would never wish any bad luck for anyone, even if it means it will hurt my chances.

You could make a feature length with that 160,000 yes, but the connections at Columbia and what that school is producing right now is priceless. Just look at Jennifer Lee, she hit the 1 billion mark with Frozen, and the top three grossing films in 2013 were all Columbia alumni (and female directors too). There was even a 2nd year grad student who sold a feature script. I say find every possible way to go. The work that is coming out of that school right now is amazing.

 

[TheRealSV]

Waitlisted too..I figured as much as the email sent just said a decision was made check the website. I'm assuming and I feel if one was to get accepted they would have received a call or a "Congratulations You've been accepted" type of email not just a random email generated from Columbia to check the website for admissions decision. Ah well. AFI was my first choice anyway and waiting for that decision to come out Tuesday so we'll see. Congrats to all those that got accepted and man! I did not know it was going to be that expensive for C.U.

 

[NedNYC]

I received my email a short while ago, and have been waitlisted as well. Luckily, it seems I'm in good company I'm due to hear back on my other application early next week, so this weekend will be pretty nervewracking. Best of luck to everyone still in the waiting game with me!

 

[cadencotard]

I would never wish any bad luck for anyone, even if it means it will hurt my chances.

You could make a feature length with that 160,000 yes, but the connections at Columbia and what that school is producing right now is priceless. Just look at Jennifer Lee, she hit the 1 billion mark with Frozen, and the top three grossing films in 2013 were all Columbia alumni (and female directors too). There was even a 2nd year grad student who sold a feature script. I say find every possible way to go. The work that is coming out of that school right now is amazing.

That's very honorable of you.

I am not Jennifer Lee, though. I make films that will never be that successful, and I don't want to/can't compromise that. I'm already attending film school here in Brussels. I hate it, and I hate Brussels but tuition is....... entirely free (actually technically I make money while attending the school since tuition is $700 and I got a $850 scholarship - and I could have gotten another scholarship but I rejected it because I know there are people who are even poorer than I am). Professors here always tell me "You'll probably never make money with your films.... but we admire your integrity".

But I truly appreciate your words of encouragement.