Columbia UniversityAI Policy for Admissions

• “

  “Columbia expects that all submitted application materials are the applicant's own original work and reflect their authentic voice.”

  First-Year Applicants | Columbia Undergraduate Admissions

  Verified 2025-12-01
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  “Applicants are encouraged to familiarize themselves with Columbia's Honor Pledge & Honor Code and Generative AI Policy.”

  First-Year Applicants | Columbia Undergraduate Admissions

  Verified 2025-12-01
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  “Students may utilize a wide range of resources, tools, and support during the college admissions process.”

  First-Year Applicants | Columbia Undergraduate Admissions

  Verified 2025-12-01

• Graduate School of Arts and Sciences (GSAS)

  P4 • AI use prohibitedD0 • No disclosure requiredC2 • Uses screening tools

  “Artificial intelligence programs may not be used to produce any application materials or responses.”

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  Applies to: application materials, responses

• School of the Arts (Graduate)

  P4 • AI use prohibitedD3 • Must attest no AI usedC3 • Formal verification required

  “Forbids the use of any generative artificial intelligence platforms in the creation of application materials.”

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  Applies to: application materials, creative materials

• Columbia Law School (JD, LLM, JSD)

  P4 • AI use prohibitedD3 • Must attest no AI usedC2 • Uses screening tools

  “No artificial intelligence tool or service has written or modified any component of the application.”

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  Applies to: application materials, essays, personal statement

• Columbia Business School (MBA, JD/MBA)

  P2 • Line-level editing allowedD0 • No disclosure requiredC1 • Manual review possible

  “Permits the use of generative AI tools for idea generation and/or to edit; using these tools to generate complete responses violates the Honor Code.”

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  Applies to: essays, application materials

• School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA)

  P4 • AI use prohibitedD0 • No disclosure requiredC2 • Uses screening tools

  “The use of generative AI tools for completing the application or any associated materials violates the policy.”

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  Applies to: application materials, essays

• 01

  LSAC CAS governs the baseline framework for law school applicants, but Columbia Law layers stricter restrictions on top, meaning LSAC's relatively permissive platform terms do not offer a safe harbor for Columbia Law applicants.

• 02

  Columbia has no single university-wide AI admissions policy — rules range from permissive (Columbia Business School) to outright prohibition (GSAS, Law School, School of the Arts, SIPA), making program-level research essential.

• 03

  Undergraduate applicants to Columbia College and Columbia Engineering are held to an authenticity standard: all materials must reflect the applicant's own voice and original work, consistent with Columbia's Honor Code and Generative AI Policy (classified (P2)).

• 04

  Columbia Business School is the clearest exception, explicitly allowing generative AI for ideation and editing assistance while drawing the line at AI-generated complete responses — aligning roughly with a (P2) permitted-with-limits stance.

• 05

  Several graduate and professional schools — including Columbia Law School and the School of the Arts — impose (P4)-level prohibitions and require formal attestation (D3) that no AI was used, creating real integrity risk for applicants who ignore program-specific rules.

Columbia University's AI admissions policy varies significantly by school. Undergraduate admissions (Columbia College and Columbia Engineering) acknowledges that applicants may use various tools and support but requires all materials to be the applicant's own original work reflecting their authentic voice, and references the university's Generative AI Policy and Honor Code — classified as (P2). Multiple graduate and professional schools have explicit (P4) prohibitions: GSAS, School of the Arts, Law School (all programs), and SIPA all prohibit AI use in application materials. The notable exception is Columbia Business School, which explicitly permits generative AI for idea generation and editing but prohibits using AI to generate complete responses (P2). The Law School and School of the Arts require formal attestation that no AI was used (D3). The top-level classification of (P2) reflects the undergraduate admissions policy; applicants to specific graduate programs should consult program-specific policies.