Columbia University's wording, checked October 26, 2026“Tell us about an aspect of your life so far or your lived experience that is important to you, and describe how it has shaped the way you would learn from and contribute to Columbia's multidimensional and collaborative environment.”
How to approach it
- 1Name the aspect in your first sentence.
- 2One example of how it changed the way you work with others.
- 3End on Columbia: what you would bring and what you would want to learn from others.
A structure that works
One way to shape this answer. It describes moves, not sentences: the words have to be yours.
- 1The aspect of your life, named plainly.
- 2One moment that shows how it shapes your learning or teamwork.
- 3What you would contribute to Columbia's collaborative environment because of it.
Where the 150 words go
| Part | Words |
|---|---|
| The moment or example | about 60 |
| What it shows or changed | about 50 |
| Why it matters, or what you bring | about 40 |
Mistakes to avoid
- Background with no effect on how you learn or contribute.
The checklist our grader uses for this question
When you check your Columbia answers, this answer is read against these 5 areas. Each comes back Met, Partly or Missing with a quote from your draft as evidence, and together with the 150 words limit they set its readiness verdict.
| Area | What a reader looks for |
|---|---|
| Answers the question | The opening sentences answer what was asked, plainly, before background or a hook; every part of a multi-part question is answered. |
| One lived experience | It focuses on one specific aspect of the applicant's life or background, shown through a moment or detail, not a list of labels. |
| How it shaped you | It shows how that experience changed what the applicant thinks, does or notices, with evidence rather than a claim. |
| What classmates will gain | It makes clear what the applicant would bring to conversations, classes or campus life because of it. |
| Columbia's ask | Says how the experience shaped the way the applicant would learn from AND contribute to a collaborative environment. |
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Questions
More on Columbia and this kind of question
- Harvard: Life experiences you will contribute · 150 words
- Yale: Essay: your personal experience · 400 words
- Princeton: Your voice: lived experience · 400-500 words
- Brown: An aspect of your growing up · 150-250 words
- Dartmouth: Let your life speak · 250 words
- Stanford: Your distinctive contribution · 100-250 words