it's a relatively small program so they accept a small amount of applicants... plus the reputation and the location, which make it even harder to get in...
Columbia is on my current school list, but I am not sure yet...
and the application process is really subtle... it seems that every school claims that they want students with strong academic accomplishments/ potential and in the mean time, they want you to be a fit.... so it's really hard to tell what kind of students they are looking for...and it may vary from year to year...
Interestingly though, it's almost true that one can get an offer from all those top-notch schools or none of them... this is just something i notice... consider it as a personal opinion... It's not a FACT....
wo shen le ge da de tong ji xi, jie guo tian zai xian shen qing biao de shi hou hai gei tian cuo le, mei xuan PHD, xuan de MD. Feng le. Wo jiu mo ren ta yi jing gei wo ju le, lian kan dou bu kan le.