Key differences on Getting in

1
Columbia's yield is 21 pts higher than U. Southern California's
Yield rate
2
Columbia is 2.3× more selective than U. Southern California
Acceptance rate
3
Columbia's SAT midpoint is 34 points higher than U. Southern California's
SAT midpoint

Admissions

Getting in, fall 2024

Acceptance and yield, test score ranges, test policy, and what each college weighs.

The funnel

Acceptance rate

U. Southern California11%

Columbia4.9%Most selective

Applicants

U. Southern California83.5KMost

Columbia59.6K

Admitted

U. Southern California9.3KMost

Columbia2.9K

Yield rate

U. Southern California40%

Columbia61%Highest

Quad's selectivity

U. Southern CaliforniaHighly selective
ColumbiaUltra selective

Men and women

Acceptance rate for men and women who applied, where a college reports admissions by sex.

Women admitted

U. Southern California9.1%

Columbia3.8%

Men admitted

U. Southern California11%

Columbia4.2%

Test scores

SAT total,

U. Southern California

1470–1540

Columbia

1510–1560

Axis runs 1400–1600. The dark tick marks the national median midpoint.

ACT composite,

U. Southern California

32–35

Columbia

34–35

Axis runs 28–36. The dark tick marks the national median midpoint.

Submitted SAT

U. Southern California33%

Columbia50%

Submitted ACT

U. Southern California12%

Columbia17%

Test policy

U. Southern CaliforniaTest-optional
ColumbiaTest scores recommended

How they read a record

U. Southern California
and GPA are both very important; tests are important; class rank is considered. 80% of first-years had a 3.75 or higher, so and rarely sets an applicant apart; the courses behind it carry more of the weight.
Columbia
, GPA, and class rank are all very important; tests are important. This college reports (average 4.25), which pile most students into the top band; the bands can't show how crowded unweighted GPAs are.

What they look at

Factor	U. Southern California	Columbia
High school GPA	Very important	Very important
High school record	Required	Required
Class rank	Considered	Very important
College-prep program	Required	Required
Recommendations	Very important	Very important
Essay	Very important	Very important
Legacy status	Important	Important
Work experience	Important	Important
Demonstration of competencies	Required	Considered
English proficiency test	Required	Considered
Other tests	Not considered	Not considered

All admissions numbers in the table

Sources:University of Southern California (Fall 2025), Fall 2025;IPEDS Admissions survey, Fall 2024;University of Southern California Common Data Set 2025–26, Entered fall 2024;College Scorecard, most recent release;Columbia University in the City of New York (Fall 2025), Fall 2025;Columbia University in the City of New York Common Data Set 2025–26, Fall 2027 applicants;Columbia University in the City of New York Common Data Set 2025–26, Entered fall 2024About the data(retrieved 2026-10-12)

Figures are the newest each college has published; years can differ between colleges. Each value's ⓘ shows its source and year. Why