Spring Admission Notes #3 COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY - SIPA Admissions Blog

Spring Admission Notes #3 COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY - SIPA Admissions Blog The cost of attending SIPA is something that should be treated seriously by all applicants, but especially by those applying for spring admission.   The first reason is that SIPA does not have a spring fellowship budget.   Our first year fellowship budget is spent entirely on those starting in the fall. All SIPA students qualify to apply for fellowship in the second year, however the application for second year fellowships at SIPA is due at the start of March each academic year.   SIPA fellowships for returning students are primarily based on academic performance and at the time the fellowship application is due, those that entered in the spring will not have any SIPA grades.   Thus those that started at the fall have a distinct advantage and spring applicants will not have the opportunity to apply for fellowship until the next academic year. Due to the tight time time and nature of our fellowship process, spring applicants are strongly encouraged to have their finances in order in December.   Domestic applicants for spring admission should file the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) as soon as possible (meaning now).   It can take four to six weeks to process the FAFSA and applying now will ensure that your data is in our system as soon as possible. Both domestic and international applicants should become familiar with the cost of attendance and with loan options.   Loan information and cost of attendance figures for domestic applicants can be found here (the figures noted are for a full year of attendance so cut in half to get costs for just the spring semester).   The cost of attendance is the same for both domestic and international students, however loan options are different.   International applicants should click here for loan and financial aid information. It is always wise to pursue outside funding opportunities and we have a database for this purpose.   You can access the database here.   The more time you put in, the more likely you are to earn funding that may not need to be repaid.