Throughout the week, students also participated in both GS-specific and University-wide Orientation events, including sessions on educational financing and academic support services, a speed-meeting event, city-wide neighborhood tours, and ice skating at Rockefeller Center.
Overview of the Spring 2015 Entering Class
Summary
The School of General Studies continues to be one of the most diverse undergraduate colleges in the Ivy League. The presence of GS students in the Columbia classroom enables the University, already one of the most ethnically and economically diverse undergraduate communities in the Ivy League, to define diversity on much broader terms—a truly global diversity of socio-economic backgrounds, ages, life and career experiences, and perspectives.
- 17% of the incoming students are international students.
- 38% of the incoming students are first-generation college students.
- 26% of the incoming students are eligible for a Pell Grant
- 22% of the incoming students are U.S. military veterans
Enrollment
- 161 total new undergraduate students
Demographics
- Age range: 19 to 62 years old
- Women: 43%
- Men: 57%
- Marital status: 14% of new students are married
- Dependents: 8% of new students have children
- US residents hail from 18 states
Citizenship
- 17% of the incoming students are international students
- 38 foreign countries are represented
- New international students come from as close as Cuba and as far away as Senegal, Singapore, and South Korea
Educational Paths
- Enrolling at GS to earn a second bachelor's degree: 6%
- First-generation college students: 38%
- At least one person has a 42-year break in their educational path
- 94% of students are enrolling with transfer credit
Occupations
This year’s class includes: professional dancers and musicians, small business owners, fashion models, tutors, CEOs, nannies and au pairs, theater professionals, administrative assistants, financial advisors, bartenders and servers, a real estate agent, a Starbucks barista, and a military dog handler, to name a few.
We are also pleased to welcome 42 new students who have served in the armed forces in either the U.S. or their own countries.
- U.S. Military: 35 (11–Marine Corps, 15–Army, 3–Navy, 4–Air Force); 31 new students are expected to be supported by the Yellow Ribbon Program
- Foreign Armed Forces: 7 (4–Israeli Defense Forces, 2–Republic of Korea Armed Forces, 1–Singapore Army)
