C R.
Yelp
In the beginning, Columbia University was called King's College, it was the FIRST university to offer a Medical Degree (M.D.) and is the 2nd ranked university in the world for winning the most Nobel Prizes. I graduated from Columbia University, but I was up at the Medical Campus on 168th street; however, I think that the downtown campus is a lot nicer. This was my most memorable academic experience.
I LOVE New York City. Before I moved to NYC, I was told that New Yorkers were mean and rough, but I NEVER met a mean New Yorker. They were simply in a hurry, and didn't want to waste time. I took the subway and explored everywhere in NYC (I loved not having a car). The subway system takes some time to get used to, but is very entertaining and functional. New Yokahs are very civil, cool, confident, and classy, which made my time at Columbia University so pleasant.
Out of all the universities that I have attended (I have multiple graduate degrees), Columbia is by far the most superior. The students at both the Medical Campus and downtown campus think very highly of themselves, but when you speak to them, they are polite and respectful. Columbia's acceptance rate this year (2017) is 5.8% and it's the 3rd hardest university to gain admissions to.
The Columbia professors that I encountered were laid back, confident, supremely knowledgeable, and genteel. They didn't have anything to prove, because they were confidently accomplished. They never talked down to me nor were they condescending. I loved that at their level, they were humble and cool. I guess when you're a professor at Columbia and live in New York, you have practically nothing to be insecure about.
I met several Physicians while I was at Columbia Medical Center for my lower back problems (I had a herniated disc), and all of them were cool, confident, and classy. I absolutely loved that Columbia doctors just spoke to me like a normal person. I loved the subtle confidence that they possessed.
The Columbia students in my graduate program were singularly independent, intelligent, and polite. It was almost intimidating how impressive they were. I lived in the dorms at the Medical Center, and it was the best dorm experience I have ever had. Our dorm was like a hotel. There was security, someone to hold our mail, a pool, a gym (although not a nice gym), and I was surrounded by Columbia graduate students, so I felt safe at all times.
In my classes, when students shared their opinions regarding different topics, everyone was very mature in that they never attacked one another's argument or opinions, which I greatly appreciated. How classy is that? I chose Columbia because of its reputation, its location in New York City, and the fact that I always wanted to attend Harvard/Yale/Columbia. Let's face it, New York is the best location, and that's why so many Harvard and Yale alumni want to come to NY to find jobs and live. Columbia was everything that I imagined and more. Everyone in my program at was doing something remarkable, and I knew they were all going places. They are people I would love to stay in touch with.
I loved that on the weekends, I could take the A or 1 train to downtown, and see shows, have dinner, and visit countless fancy stores that I have never seen in California. I loved that New York City has businesses that only operate in Manhattan, and only ship to residents in Manhattan. It's so elitist. It's like Manhattan was its own little world. I guess when you have the best of the best on one small island, you really don't need to travel elsewhere. But of course, city life gets tiring, and it's nice to take a break sometimes.
New York was truly my most memorable experience, and it'll always be my favorite city in the world. Before I moved to New York, I would always hear people say that "there's no place like New York," and I thought that was such a cliché, but TRUST ME, after living in New York, and experiencing everything, that phrase is everything BUT a cliché. It couldn't be closer to the truth. There is truly NO PLACE like New York. It IS and will ALWAYS be the center of the earth, and the best city in the world. I feel so privileged to have had the opportunity to live in New York, attend Columbia, and meet the people that I did. I can see why 3 former Presidents, several Supreme Court Justices, high profile prosecutors, Directors of C.D.C., and countless other influential people attended Columbia.