When Will I Hear My Columbia MBA Admission Decision (2023-2024)

Columbia is unique amongst the M7 programs in running a rolling admissions process. What does this mean in practice? How long does it take to receive a decision? We decided to find out in our 2023-2024 refresh of the Columbia MBA decision process.

Jump down to the analysis most relevant to you:

1. How Long The Columbia MBA Admission Process Take Between Application Submission And Final Decision?

1.1. Those Who Are Accepted

On average, for those who are accepted, it takes 45 calendar days between application submission and an acceptance decision being rendered.

The admissions committee takes the least amount of time to render acceptance decisions for candidates who apply in February, March, and April as it seeks to finalize the class.

It takes the most amount of time to render affirmative decisions for applicants that apply in October, November, and December. This is likely due to disruptions caused by the Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year breaks.

Applicants in January can also expect a long wait as the admissions committee sorts through its backlog.

1.2. Those Who Are Rejected

The admissions committee lets the majority of applicants who aren’t going to be interviewed know of the decision within the first month. By the end of the second month the admissions committee typically knows if a candidate who was interviewed isn’t about to be extended an offer.

2. How Long Does It Take To Receive An Interview Invite For The Columbia MBA?

On average it takes 27 days for Columbia Business School to send an interview invite for its MBA program:

3. How Long Does It Take Interviewers To Submit Feedback For The Columbia MBA?

After the interview the interviewer submits feedback about the candidate. The candidate receives a notification email informing them once the interviewer has done so. The majority of candidates can expect their interviewer to submit feedback within a day:

Unfortunately a small number of candidates have to wait a little longer. If it’s been over a week it’s probably time to reach out to the admissions committee and to let them know.

4. How Long Does It Take To Receive A Decision After The Columbia MBA Interview?

Typically within two weeks of the interview applicants know whether they’ve been admitted to the Columbia MBA:

5. On What Day Of The Week Do Applicants Typically Hear Decisions About Their Columbia MBA Application?

For the class entering 2022 the admissions committee has preferred to send out acceptances on Fridays:

That said it’s possible for candidates to hear on any day of the week. Tuesday seems to be rejection day.

6. How Long Does It Take To Get Off The Columbia MBA Waitlist?

Only applicants who have been interviewed are waitlisted by the Columbia MBA admissions committee. On average applicants who would ultimately be accepted had to wait 42 excruciating days to find out their fate. One unlucky soul was on the waitlist for 80 days before that person found out they had been admitted.

It can be even worse for those who are ultimately rejected. On average they spend 60 days on the waitlist before being told that they won’t be welcome to the Columbia MBA class.

Candidates start hearing if they’ve been taken off of the waitlist in December. Columbia typically doesn’t keep candidates on the waitlist past May.

7. Methodology and Further Analysis

Beacon is an admissions consultancy that uses data analytics to help clients get admitted to elite business school programs. The data is sourced from Beacon clients, anonymous interviews with current and former admission committee members, third party databases, and industry expert estimates. All analysis above is based on the number of calendar days.