Columbia University Vagelos
New York, New York · allopathic (MD) medical school, known as VP&S
Columbia University Vagelos admissions statistics
- Median or average MCAT
- 521Average
- Median or average GPA
- 3.85Average
- Applications received
- 7,6772025-2026
- Entering class
- 1382025-2026
- Applications per seat
- 55.62025-2026
- In-state share of applications
- 15.3%2025-2026
- In-state share of the class
- 11.6%2025-2026
Applications received for each seat in the entering class. Not an acceptance rate: neither source publishes the number of offers made.
Columbia University Vagelos MCAT and GPA
Columbia University Vagelos reports average MCAT of 521 and average undergraduate GPA of 3.85 for its entering class.
- MCAT521 against a median of 512 across the 152 MD programs that report it, which puts it around the 94th percentile of those programs.
- GPA3.85 against a median of 3.8 across the 155 MD programs that report it, which puts it around the 70th percentile of those programs.
- Out-of-state tuition$77,585 against a median of $69,571 across the 154 MD programs that report it, which puts it around the 87th percentile of those programs.
- Entering class size138 against a median of 139 across the 160 MD programs that report it, which puts it around the 49th percentile of those programs.
A percentile here is against the programs that report the figure, not against every medical school and not against applicants. It says where the school sits among its reporting peers and nothing else.
Columbia University Vagelos acceptance rate
PreMD does not publish an acceptance rate for individual schools. The free national sources publish applications and matriculants, not the number of offers a school made, so an acceptance rate cannot be calculated from them without inventing the missing number.
What can be published from those figures is the ratio: Columbia University Vagelos received 7,677 applications for 138 seats in the entering class, or about 55.6 applications per seat.
Who Columbia University Vagelos accepts applications from
| Applicant group | Policy |
|---|---|
| Out-of-state Applicants | All applicants |
| Canadian Applicants | All applicants |
| International Applicants | All applicants |
| DACA Status Applicants | All applicants |
- DACA applicants
- All applicants
Community college coursework: Community college courses are accepted for students who transferred into a four-year institution. Community college credits are also accepted for students who have obtained a bachelor's degree and lack one or two of the required courses.
Columbia University Vagelos tuition and cost
- In-state tuition and fees
- $77,585
- Out-of-state tuition and fees
- $77,585
- In-state cost of attendance
- $114,621
- Out-of-state cost of attendance
- $114,621
- In-state health insurance
- $5,377
- Out-of-state health insurance
- $5,377
- Students receiving aid
- 89%
- Average graduating debt
- $104,024
A blank figure here means the school did not report it to the source PreMD tracks, never that it costs nothing. Check the school's own financial aid page before budgeting against it.
Columbia University Vagelos application requirements
- Secondary fee
- $110
- Secondary deadline
- October 22, 2026
- Latest MCAT accepted
- September 12, 2026
- Oldest MCAT accepted
- January 2023
- Committee letter
- Accepted
- Letter packets
- Accepted
- Individual letters
- Accepted
- AAMC PREview
- We are not using PREview scores in the admissions process
Who receives a secondary: All applicants
Prerequisite coursework
| Subject | Required or recommended | Credits | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Biochemistry | Required | Not stated | One semester of Biochemistry, lab recommended but not required |
| Biology | Required | Not stated | One year of Biology with labs. For applicants whose undergraduate college accepted Advanced Placement (AP) credit to satisfy the requirement, we require one year of advanced study. This additional year must include at least one semester of the lab and two semesters are recommended. |
| Chemistry | Required | Not stated | One year of general chemistry with lab. For applicants whose undergraduate college accepted Advanced Placement (AP) credit to satisfy the requirement in introductory-level Chemistry, no additional upper-level Chemistry is required beyond Organic Chemistry. |
| Organic Chemistry | Required | Not stated | One year of organic chemistry with lab |
| Physics | Required | Not stated | One year of Physics with one semester of the lab. For applicants whose undergraduate college accepted Advanced Placement (AP) credit to satisfy the requirement in introductory- level Physics, no additonal Physics coursework is required. |
Columbia University Vagelos interview
Virtual, One-on-One
PreMD reads that as a one-on-one interview, held virtual, and sets up its interview practice for this school accordingly.
August
For information regarding the medical school interview day please visit: http://ps.columbia.edu/edu cation/admissions/intervie w-day
- Regional interviews
- no
- Video interview
- Yes
Columbia University Vagelos waitlist
- Typical positions offered
- The number varies each year
The waitlist is not ranked and remains open until the first day of class.
Columbia University Vagelos mission
“We aspire to transform human health by driving discovery, advancing care, and educating leaders.” We do this work in service to others and our community, both locally and globally. The mission of the VP&S MD program also includes the following statements: We are committed to fostering an environment that values civility, acceptance, respect, ethics, and support (CUIMC CARES), ensuring that our staff, faculty, and students have meaningful opportunities to put these values into action. At VP&S, we strive to educate the next generation of physician leaders who will serve neighboring, national, and global communities through the lens of health equity, promoting both well-being and state-of-the-art care of patients. Experiences at VP&S will shape the future and set the standards for medicine throughout the United States and globally. Guided exposure and training will exhibit the highest principles of humanism and professionalism in their responsibilities to their patients, to their community, and to society. The values of humanism, collaboration, inquiry, transformation, growth, and wellness—both individually and collectively—inspire our every effort in pursuit of this goal. https://www.vagelos.columbia.edu/education/academic-programs/md-program/about-md- program/schoolwide-values
Columbia University Vagelos rankings
PreMD does not publish a ranking of medical schools and does not republish anyone else's. Ranking tables are licensed products, and a number reproduced here without its methodology and its year is worse than no number at all.
What this page publishes instead is the comparison above: where the school's own reported figures sit among the MD programs that report the same figure, with the count of reporting programs stated so the comparison can be judged.
Columbia University Vagelos admissions contact
Admissions Office, Room 105New York, NY 10032 USA(212) 305-3595 · [email protected]
Where this came from
- AAMC MSAR public school report
- AAMC FACTS table A-1, 2025-2026 · 2025-2026
- calculated by PreMD from the published application and matriculant counts · 2025-2026
Figures on this page were last reviewed on 2026-08-04.
PreMD is an independent planning tool for applicants. It is not affiliated with, sponsored by or endorsed by Columbia University Vagelos, and this is not the school's official website. Marks are shown for identification.