Columbia University Pre-College Programs Introduction to Art Appreciation

Class meets Monday to Friday from 11:10 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. and again from 3:10 to 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time, with a break of about two hours in between for lunch and campus activities. Residential students eat in the dining hall, where weekday breakfast runs from 7:30 to 9:30 a.m. and dinner from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m., and they can join activities, outings and workshops throughout the day, plus weekly special events on Fridays and Saturdays.

Commuters can use the midday break and early evening for lectures by instructors and college-prep workshops, but they should leave campus by 6:30 p.m. Monday to Thursday, and Friday evening community events need a parent's permission. Columbia says to expect an hour or two of homework a night on average.

Students from rising 9th grade through current 12th grade can apply, from the US or abroad, and seniors can attend in the summer right after they graduate. To live on campus you must be at least 15, and 15-year-olds must turn 16 by 31 December 2027. Younger students can still take the course as commuters, and the commuter option also admits students about to start college.

Columbia calls admission selective, but it sets no minimum GPA and doesn't ask for SAT, ACT or PSAT scores. What the application has to show is that you have the academic background, ability, motivation and maturity to take an active part in classes and activities. TOEFL and IELTS scores aren't required either, but Columbia expects English at the level of 90 or above on the internet-based TOEFL or 6.5 on IELTS, because classes run on fast-paced discussion and you need to read everything without translation help. International students can attend on a Visitor (B) visa or, where eligible, under the Visa Waiver Program, so check the requirements and costs with the US Department of State.

• Unofficial transcript

  It must clearly show your name, your school and every course and grade.

• Teacher recommendation

  It comes from a current teacher in a related subject who has taught you, through an online form rather than a letter.

• Counselor recommendation

  Because this course is in person, you also need one from a school counselor, academic advisor, principal or headmaster at your current school.

• Two short responses

  You answer these inside the online application.

Taking the course while living on campus costs $12,838 for the three weeks. That covers your room, meals, tuition and the activities, health services and technology fees. Commuting costs $6,381, which covers the same except housing and meals. Commuters can buy meals in the dining halls but can't get a meal plan. Both figures are Columbia's estimates for summer 2027 and still need Board of Trustees approval.

On top of that comes a nonrefundable $95 application fee, and Columbia suggests budgeting about $50 for books and field-trip costs. This course isn't on Columbia's list of courses with extra fees, which is still labeled summer 2026, so no separate course fee is expected. A nonrefundable deposit of $3,500 for residential students or $2,000 for commuters holds your place and counts toward the total. The balance is due by 11 June 2027, and Columbia offers no payment plan. Paying by card adds 2.85% for domestic cards or 4.25% for international ones.

Need-based aid is only available if you commute. It covers 25% to 50% of the program cost but not the activities, health services or technology fees, and it's open to US citizens and permanent residents living in the United States or its five major territories. You have to request aid in the application before you submit it, and the aid deadline is 10 February 2027. Columbia gives awards on a rolling basis until the money runs out, so it pays to apply early.

If you withdraw by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on 24 June 2027, you get everything back except the deposit. After that, you owe the full amount.

You apply through Columbia's summer programs application. You're applying to the residential or commuter program, not to this course, so you won't have a confirmed seat until you register, and that only happens after you've paid the nonrefundable deposit.

1. 1

   Choose NYC Residential or NYC Commuter Summer, Session A. Columbia says applications open in mid-November 2026.

2. 2

   Gather your unofficial transcript, add your recommenders' details and list your top two courses, with this one among them.

3. 3

   Submit by 1 February 2027 for early registration, or by the final deadline of 1 March 2027 (residential) or 1 April 2027 (commuter). If you're commuting and need aid, tick the financial aid box before you submit.

4. 4

   Expect an email decision three to five weeks after your application is complete, because Columbia reviews applications as they arrive.

5. 5

   Pay the deposit and send in your enrollment forms, including immunization records.

6. 6

   Register for the course, with early registration from 3 March 2027 and general registration from 17 March 2027. Columbia warns that courses often fill before the application deadline.

Residential students are supervised by live-in Resident Assistants, who complete two weeks of intensive training, with professional Resident Directors on call around the clock and one staff member for every six students. Public Safety staff guard the residence hall entrances 24 hours a day, and students may only be on their own floor or suite. Curfew is 11 p.m. on weeknights and midnight on weekends, and Columbia dismisses students who break it.

Off campus, students must stay between 110th and 120th Streets and between Amsterdam Avenue and Riverside Park unless staff are with them, and they can't go into parks without supervision. Rooms are singles or doubles on single-gender floors or in single-gender suites, assigned at random, and you bring your own Twin XL bedding.

Commuters must live with family members or family friends during the program, never in a hotel, hostel or Airbnb. All staff are trained under Columbia's Protection of Minors policy and must report suspected abuse under New York State law. Columbia doesn't arrange airport pickups, and residential students can't arrive before move-in day, which is 27 June 2027 for Session A.

If you complete the course, you leave with an official Columbia University Certification of Participation and a written evaluation letter from your instructor. The letter comments on your effort, participation, assignments, progress and potential in the field and in college. You get no grades and no college credit. Columbia suggests asking your school counselor to add both documents to your recommendation, and warns that misusing them in college applications can delay decisions.

Instructors decide whether you've completed the course based on your attendance, participation, assignments and conduct, and attendance has a firm limit. Miss more than two classes and you can't get the certificate, and because this course meets twice a day, missing one session counts as missing a day. Summer certificates and evaluations are usually issued by mid-October, uploaded to your Slate account rather than mailed home.