Admissions

Qualifications

U.S. bachelor’s degree or international equivalent.
If your post-secondary credentials are from an institution outside the United States, the Office of Admissions requires you to submit all post-secondary credentials (undergraduate and graduate) to World Education Services, Inc. (WES), a third-party verification agency for a course-by-course evaluation for admission consideration. The Office of Admissions will use the credential evaluation provided by WES to determine if your undergraduate degree is the equivalent of a U.S. bachelor's degree.
Students must be comfortable with rapid and idiomatic spoken English.
Please review the English language proficiency details under the Application Requirements section to determine if proof of English language proficiency is required. Applicants who are required to provide test scores must submit a current TOEFL iBT or IELTS score report and have a minimum score of 100 on the TOEFL iBT or receive a 7.0 or higher on the IELTS. If you have TOEFL paper scores, please contact apply [[at]] sps [[dot]] columbia [[dot]] edu (apply[at]sps[dot]columbia[dot]edu) to discuss their use.
Demonstrated ability for critical thinking and analysis.

As admissions to our programs are highly competitive, you are strongly encouraged to submit your application as early as possible to ensure it is reviewed before the program has reached capacity.

Application decisions are delivered on a rolling basis, typically 6-8 weeks after an application is submitted with all materials.

Please read through the admissions policies and application requirements carefully.

Spring 2025 Deadlines
Category	Details	Deadline
All Applicants	Completed applications are reviewed on a rolling basis.	November 1
Applicants With International Documents	Students who require an F-1 visa or who have international transcripts are encouraged to apply by the recommended date. This date is suggested to ensure you have enough time for student visa processing. You may refer to this website to review the current visa appointment wait times.	Recommended Application Deadline: October 1

Please note: only the Hybrid Format of the Negotiation and Conflict Resolution program has a Spring 2025 intake.

Spring 2025 Deposit Deadlines
Admit Date	First deposit due	Second deposit due
If admitted by October 1	$2000 30 days from letter date	$1000 by November 1
If admitted on or after October 2	$3000 30 days from letter date	N/A
If admitted between November 1‑November 15	$3000 14 days from letter date	N/A
If admitted between November 16‑November 24	$3000 7 days from letter date	N/A
If admitted after November 25	$3000 2 days from letter date	N/A

Application Process

Review the Application Process in our Master's Degree Applicants section.

LEARN MORE

Application Requirements

Apply here.

You must submit all materials directly, not through an agent or third-party vendor, with the sole exception of submissions by the U.S. Department of State’s Fulbright Program and its three partner agencies IIE, LASPAU and AMIDEAST, and by the Danish-American Fulbright Commission (DAF), Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst (DAAD), and Vietnam Education Fund (VEF). If you have any questions about this requirement, please contact the admissions office at apply [[at]] sps [[dot]] columbia [[dot]] edu (apply[at]sps[dot]columbia[dot]edu).

In the Academic History section of the online application, you must list and upload unofficial transcripts for all post-secondary institutions where you obtained (or are obtaining) a degree. The transcript should include all completed and in progress coursework, summer program(s), study abroad program(s), or transfer coursework at the time that you are applying unless:

You did not earn academic credits;
You completed 11 credits or less (on a traditional US credit scale) outside of your home institution. If you completed more than 11 credits outside of your home institution, then you must provide us with unofficial transcripts/ the coursework must be included on your WES evaluation.

If requested, you may be required to provide transcripts or mark sheets from any and all post-secondary institutions.

Applicants who attended a U.S. institution:

You must submit unofficial transcripts for each institution attended where you completed academic study.

Applicants who attended an international institution:

You must submit an official ICAP course-by-course evaluation* by World Education Services, Inc. (WES), a third-party verification agency, if the following are true:

You earned (or are earning) a degree at an institution accredited outside of the United States;

AND/OR

You completed 31 or more post-secondary credits (31 or more US Semester Hours) at an institution accredited outside of the United States.

Please note that the WES fulfills the requirement for the Official Transcript.

*This is required for your application to be reviewed.

* Please note that if you completed 30 credits or less abroad, instead of submitting a WES evaluation, you may submit an unofficial transcript for admissions consideration. If admitted, you must order an official transcript to be sent to SPS directly from the institution abroad.

Two recommendations are required as part of your application. Recommendations should be submitted from academic and/or professional sources. Please note:

If you are in your last year of undergraduate study at the time of applying, you are required to submit at least one academic recommendation from a faculty member with whom you have completed an academic credit-bearing course. The second recommendation may be academic or professional;
If you received a bachelor’s degree within 2 years of the date you are submitting your application, you are strongly encouraged, but not required, to submit an academic recommendation;
If you received a bachelor’s degree more than 2 years prior to the date you are submitting your application, you are not required to submit an academic recommendation.

* Personal references are not appropriate.

If you are still enrolled in your undergraduate studies, at the time of submitting your application:

At least one of your recommendations must be from a faculty member with whom you have completed an academic credit-bearing course who can assess your academic work, intellectual ability, and academic potential for graduate work. Research supervisors or instructors are appropriate if you took their research course for academic credit. The recommender should have instructed you directly, academic advisors are not appropriate.

AND/OR

You may obtain a professional recommendation from an internship supervisor if that internship was completed for credit as part of your undergraduate degree or at your degree-granting institution.

If you have already completed your undergraduate studies at the time of submitting your application:

Your recommendations may be from a faculty member with whom you have completed an academic credit-bearing course who can assess your academic work, intellectual ability, and academic potential for graduate work. Research supervisors or instructors are appropriate if you took their research course for academic credit. The recommender should have instructed you directly, academic advisors are not appropriate.

AND/OR

Your recommendations may be from a current or former supervisor (preferred) or work associate/project leader from a Full-Time or Part-Time employment experience. Research supervisors are appropriate if you were employed as a full-time or part-time employee. Recommendations from volunteer work, internships, and externships are not acceptable. If you manage your own business and are your own supervisor, you may select a client as your recommender.

IMPORTANT NOTE: All recommendations must be submitted using a professional or academic email domain. References submitted from personal or anonymous email domains (e.g. Gmail, Yahoo, 123.com, 163.com, qq.com etc.) may result in your application being considered ineligible for admission. If you are unable to provide a professional email address for your recommender, please email us at apply [[at]] sps [[dot]] columbia [[dot]] edu (apply[at]sps[dot]columbia[dot]edu) with an explanation of why a professional email address cannot be provided.

Your statement of academic purpose (300–500 words) should clearly and concisely address the following:

Your purpose and interest in pursuing the M.S. in Negotiation and Conflict Resolution
How the degree program fits into your overall professional growth, focusing on the connection between the program and your academic and/or professional experience
Your anticipated contribution to the program

They are not required upon application submission; however, standard exams are a useful indicator of academic ability and applicants are strongly encouraged to consider submitting scores to further support their candidacy and strengthen their application.

All official standardized test scores must be received in the SPS Office of Admissions within two weeks of the application deadline for the program to which you have applied. Your application cannot be reviewed until official test scores are received.

GRE test scores can be ordered at www.gre.org. Our school report code is 3602.

For complete information regarding the GMAT, go to www.mba.com/exams/gmat. To send your scores, please choose "Columbia University - School of Professional Studies."

After you have submitted your application and fee, you will be required to submit a 1-minute video essay. You will be given time to create test videos to ensure that your system is working properly. When you are ready, you will be given a randomly selected prompt for which you will have one minute to prepare and one minute to record a response. You will not be able to re-record your video. Please note that the video essay response should be your own thoughts and should not be rehearsed or prepared beforehand.

If your first and native language* is not English, you must provide official scores on the TOEFL or IELTS Academic unless both of the following are true:

the language of instruction of your undergraduate degree conferring institution is English, and
you completed your entire undergraduate degree in English.

*Your first and native language is the language that you learned first or speak best.

Applicant total scores must meet the Columbia SPS minimum requirement of 100 (TOEFL iBT) or 7.0 (IELTS Academic) to be admissible. You will be required to enter your test scores or your anticipated testing date within the online application, and official test score reports will be required for your application to be considered complete and ready for admission review. TOEFL and IELTS Academic scores are valid for two years after your test date. Applicants receiving scores below the posted minimums may be advised to apply directly to the American Language Program.

To submit TOEFL iBT scores: Visit www.ets.org and send your official score to our school code 2594. Please note: we do not accept TOEFL best scores.
To submit IELTS scores: Please include your TRF number on the English Language Requirements section of the application. Alternatively, you can also send us your official score through your testing center.

Applicants whose primary language is not English may be required to complete an intensive course with the American Language Program (ALP) prior to beginning their studies in the degree program as a condition for admission.

Applicants may also be asked to complete an interview using a video conferencing tool.

International students are responsible for ensuring they have read and understand the University’s student visa application eligibility and requirements. Please note that it is not permissible to enroll while in B-1/B-2 status. Since the Actuarial Science program offers a full-time study option, international students enrolled in a full-time course load—registered for at least 12 points of credit-bearing courses a term—are eligible for a student visa.

Eligible international students who wish to apply for a student visa should do so immediately after they have received their letter of admission to Columbia University. This should be done by completing the Application for Visa Certificate (AVC). Applicants should be aware that after admission into a program it may take up to four weeks to receive the documents needed from Columbia to obtain a student visa, so please plan accordingly.

International students who require a student visa to study at Columbia are required to pay an International Services fee. See Tuition and Fees for more information.

You can find the online application for visa certificate by clicking here: http://isso.columbia.edu/. While you are not permitted to submit the application until you have gained admission, we strongly encourage you to read the instructional information provided.

For questions about individual cases, please contact:
International Students and Scholars Office (ISSO)
212-854-3587
isso [[at]] columbia [[dot]] edu (isso[at]columbia[dot]edu)
http://www.columbia.edu/cu/isso

Credentials Verification

Columbia University requires all incoming students to complete a credentials verification process before enrollment. The process includes verification of letters of reference and of all post-secondary transcripts and degrees awarded. Upon submission of the application, applicants must provide written consent to participate in the verification of all academic, professional, and reference information provided during the application process.

The School of Professional Studies has contracted with Re Vera Services to assist with the verification of letters of recommendation. If letters of recommendation are provided, recommenders will be contacted by a Re Vera representative to confirm authorship of submitted letters. The recommendation verification is conducted concurrently while the application is being reviewed for admission. Admissions decisions will only be released to applicants who have uploaded their consent form within the online application system.

Admitted students must submit final, official transcripts of all academic studies and proof of award of all degrees earned prior to enrollment in the School of Professional Studies.

Detailed information about each part of the credentials verification process appears below.

The first step in the credentials verification process requires that an applicant provide consent to participate in the verification process. This consent is granted by completing the Authorization and Release Form, which is administered by our contracted vendor, Re Vera Services. A link to this form will appear within the application system upon submission of the application. Applicants are required to upload the PDF of the signed consent form within the online application portal before an admissions decision will be released. Applicants should encourage their recommenders to respond promptly to Re Vera’s outreach.

All enrolling students must provide official final transcripts from each post-secondary institution attended even if a degree was not awarded. Among these must include a transcript showing the conferral of your bachelor’s degree and the completion of any in-progress study reflected on transcripts provided for admissions consideration. Transcripts must include course names and grades for all work completed. Any documents to which a student has had access, including any transcripts uploaded as part of the application, are automatically considered unofficial.

Submission of these documents is required in the manner outlined here.

For Domestic Institutions

All students who have attended a college or university in the United States must submit certified and secure electronic transcripts directly from their school or via the vendor that provides that service for their institution to transcripts [[at]] sps [[dot]] columbia [[dot]] edu (transcripts[at]sps[dot]columbia[dot]edu).

The School of Professional Studies will not accept as official any transcript submitted directly by an applicant, either in person, via email, or by mail.

If a paper transcript is the only option, it must be sent directly from the institution to Columbia and not delivered or forwarded by the applicant. Please have the institution send the approved paper transcript to:

Office of Admissions

School of Professional Studies

203 Lewisohn Hall

2970 Broadway, Mail Code 4119

New York, NY 10027-6902

For International Institutions

Official transcripts from prior academic institutions outside the United States must be submitted through World Education Services, Inc. (WES) as a course-by-course evaluation. If a WES transcript was provided reflecting in-progress study, a follow-up WES course-by-course evaluation showing the complete academic record and degree conferral is required.

Application Policies

Undergraduate Study: To be eligible for admission, applicants must have earned a degree equivalent to a US bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution by the date on which they enroll in Graduate School.
You may not apply to more than one program offered by the School of Professional Studies in any one semester. If an applicant submits applications to more than one program offered by SPS in the same semester, both applications may be denied automatically on that basis alone.
If you apply to a program and are denied admission to that program, you may not submit another application for admission to that same program or another SPS degree program for a year. For example, if you were denied admission to a program for Spring 2023, you are not eligible to apply again to that same program or another SPS degree program until Spring 2024.
If you have been denied admission to SPS program(s) three times, you are no longer eligible for admission and any further application will not be considered.
All admissions decisions are final. There is no appeal process. The Admissions Committee reviews each application thoroughly and with great care.
Enrollment in another degree program while enrolled in an SPS master’s or certificate program is strictly prohibited by the School of Professional Studies. Violations of this policy will lead to the revocation of an offer of admission, or termination for a current student.
You must submit all materials directly, not through an agent or third-party vendor, with the sole exception of submissions by the U.S. Department of State’s Fulbright Program and its three partner agencies IIE, LASPAU and AMIDEAST, and by the Danish-American Fulbright Commission (DAF), Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst (DAAD), and Vietnam Education Fund (VEF). If you have any questions about this requirement, please contact the admissions office at apply [[at]] sps [[dot]] columbia [[dot]] edu.
Application materials become property of Columbia University upon submission and cannot be returned.

You must disclose on the application for admission all colleges and universities you have attended for at least one term, regardless of the number of credits received, including professional schools and summer study from which you have received academic credit, and provide transcripts from each institution.
Official transcripts are required to complete the admissions process for every SPS program, and you are therefore strongly encouraged to arrange for the submission of official transcripts at the earliest possible stage. While you must upload unofficial transcripts at the time of application, any decision granting admission on the basis of an unofficial transcript will be provisional only and subject to the receipt of official transcripts directly from the issuing institution.
If offered admission, before being permitted to enroll, you must provide official verified transcripts from all post-secondary institutions attended for academic credit in the manner outlined here.

For Domestic Institutions

For each institution attended, you must provide an electronic transcript directly from the institution to transcripts [[at]] sps [[dot]] columbia [[dot]] edu (transcripts[at]sps[dot]columbia[dot]edu). If your prior institution does not offer electronic transcript transmission, you must write to transcripts [[at]] sps [[dot]] columbia [[dot]] edu (transcripts[at]sps[dot]columbia[dot]edu) with the link to your prior U.S. institution’s webpage concerning transcript orders to confirm that paper is the only option and obtain permission to submit a paper transcript.

If a paper transcript is the only option, it must be sent directly from the institution to Columbia, and not delivered or forwarded by you. Please have the institution send the approved paper transcript to:

Office of Admissions
School of Professional Studies
203 Lewisohn Hall
2970 Broadway, Mail Code 4119
New York, NY 10027-6902

For International Institutions

Under no circumstances should you upload a letter on behalf of a recommender. Any person who writes a letter of recommendation must submit that letter themselves. 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.
When entering contact information for recommenders, you must use their institutional or professional email address. References submitted from personal or anonymous email accounts (e.g. Gmail, Yahoo, 123.com, 163.com, etc.) will be subject to additional review and may result in your application being considered ineligible for admission.
If the current supervisor, former supervisor, or faculty member writing a letter of recommendation for you is a family member, this MUST be disclosed in the letter of recommendation as well as in the recommendation request section of the application. Your second letter of recommendation must be from a non-family member. If the affiliation is not disclosed OR you lack a second non-familial letter of recommendation, you will be considered ineligible for admission. Please email apply [[at]] sps [[dot]] columbia [[dot]] edu to inquire about your specific situation.
Under the guidelines of the Federal Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), all letters of recommendation are confidential during the admissions process, even if you have not waived your right to view them. This policy applies to both domestic and international applicants. If you did not waive your right to see one or more of the letters, you may view them only after you are enrolled in Columbia SPS. Students who do not receive an offer of admission, or those admitted who do not enroll, are not permitted access to the letters at any time. A complete explanation of the FERPA policy can be found here.

Before being permitted to register, you must provide written consent to participate in a verification process of all academic, professional, and reference information provided during your application process. For us to proceed with this verification, you must sign and date an authorization and release form. We will provide the link to do so once you have submitted your application.
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.

Admitted Students

Visit our Admitted Students section to learn important instructions, including Enrollment Next Steps and Housing and University Resources.

If you have any questions, please contact your admissions counselor.

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Apply

We encourage you to apply as soon as possible.

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Admissions

Qualifications

Please note: only the Hybrid Format of the Negotiation and Conflict Resolution program has a Spring 2025 intake.

Application Process

Application Requirements

Completed online application form

$150 nonrefundable application fee (U.S. currency)

Transcripts from all post-secondary institutions attended

Your Résumé

Two letters of recommendation

Statement of academic purpose (300 to 500 words)

Supplemental essay (250 words maximum)

Optional: Official scores on the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) general test or the Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT)

Video Essay

An Admissions Interview

Students whose primary language is not English must include proof of English proficiency

International students must fulfill visa requirements

Credentials Verification

Re Vera Authorization Form

Final Official Transcripts

Application Policies

General

Educational Background and Transcripts

Letters of Recommendation and References

Application Verification/Authenticity

Admitted Students

Apply

Request Information