Joint Degree woes

[EFehlau]

I applied for a joint degree from SIPA and Columbia Business School...and got rejected by Columbia business school (I didn't even interview) and into SIPA. I was accepted to SAIS/Tuck's program, but Columbia is by far my first choice and now I'm considering starting at SIPA and reapplying for the business school. Any advice for a joint degree reapplicant? I'm a little nervous about the extra recommendation since my SIPA professors won't know me very well by the early October deadline. I'm not sure how much I can improve my application since I won't be taking on additional responsibilities at work since I'll be back in school, and I got a 740 and 6.0 on my GMAT. Any advice? Is it worth it to talk to the admissions office?

[Lisa Anderson]

Dear EFehlau,

Congratulations on your admission to SAIS/Tuck! What a great option to have and one to strongly consider. As for Columbia, I don't think your GMAT score is the reason for your rejection, so the only way to know why the admissions committee passed on your application is to get feedback from the admissions office. It is probably worth a phone call (or two) to figure out your chances of getting in on a re-application if your preference for Columbia is significant over SAIS/Tuck. Depending on what you find out, then you will know how likely your chances are based on how much you can really improve your application in those areas in the next six months.

Best of luck,
Lisa