Through the generosity of individual, corporate, and foundation donors, Columbia Business School offers full- and partial-tuition fellowships to a number of exceptionally gifted students based on a variety of criteria, including academic excellence, geographic and personal background, and professional experience.
There is no separate application for merit-based fellowships; the School identifies those MBA applicants who demonstrate outstanding potential. . If you are awarded a fellowship, you will receive a status change email from the Admissions office with information about your award and whether or not it is renewable for your second year. Only August-entry MBA students are considered for merit-based fellowships in the first year.
Highlighted below are some of the numerous Columbia Business School's fellowships offered.
Perelman Scholarship Fund
The Perelman Scholarship Fund provides full tuition awards for students from underrepresented racial, ethnic, and socio-economic groups, with the aim of expanding a more diverse generation of business leaders. The permanently endowed fund, which is made possible by generous contributions from Ronald O. Perelman, Chairman and CEO of MacAndrews & Forbes Incorporated, will also contribute to underwriting activities of the Perelman Scholarship alumni and will support the Columbia Student Support Initiative.
Robert F. Smith Scholarship Fund
The Robert F. Smith Scholarship Fund offers financial support to CBS students who have graduated from HBCUs, overcome systemic hardships or challenges in their academic pursuits, or who have demonstrated a strong commitment to engaging diversity. The fund, which will offer full or partial scholarships, is expected to support approximately 200 students over a 10-year period. Robert F. Smith '94, founder, chairman, and CEO of Vista Equity Partners, is known for his industry leadership and commitment to the community and is the recipient of the 2017 Distinguished Leadership in Business Award and the Columbia BBSA Distinguished Alumni Award.
CBS Board Fellowship
The CBS Board Fellowship is awarded by the School's Board to incoming students who exhibit exceptional academic and professional promise. The Board is composed of approximately 80 accomplished individuals — each a global leader in one of a wide range of industries, from financial services to manufacturing to technology to the arts. The Board Fellowship, which brings with it a full-tuition award, is renewable for the second year.
Meyer Feldberg Distinguished Fellowship Program
One of the School's most prestigious awards, the Feldberg Fellowship is given each year to select entering students who have demonstrated extraordinary leadership potential, as well as academic excellence. Ambitious and energetic, these entering students will have a proven record of success in areas as diverse as entrepreneurship, finance, military, and social enterprise. Selection as a Feldberg Fellow provides full tuition and lifelong membership in an elite group of similarly driven students, alumni, and donors.
Professor Meyer Feldberg '65 ended his 15-year tenure as dean of Columbia Business School in June 2004. Henry R. Kravis '69, founding partner of Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. and a member of the School's Board of Overseers, led an effort by alumni and supporters of the School to honor Professor Feldberg by establishing a $10 million fellowship program in his honor. Their gift ensures a continued tradition of leadership at Columbia Business School.
By their generosity, these donors — many of them leaders in their own fields who will serve as an ongoing resource to the Feldberg Fellows — underscored their dual commitment to Columbia Business School and excellence in business.
Professor Meyer Feldberg served as dean of Columbia Business School from 1989 to 2004. He is a director of Federated Department Stores, Inc., Primedia Inc., Revlon, Inc., Sappi Limited, Select Medical Corporation, and UBS Funds. Before joining Columbia, he served as dean of Tulane's A. B. Freeman School of Business and as president of the Illinois Institute of Technology.
Sponsors of the Meyer Feldberg Distinguished Fellowship Program →
R. C. Kopf Global Fellowships
R. C. Kopf endowed the first R. C. Kopf Global Fellowship and the R. C. Kopf Professorship in International Marketing in 1980. A 1927 graduate of Columbia Business School, Kopf credited the School's international business focus for much of his professional success, including the establishment of the Kobrand Corporation. Today, Kopf's children and their spouses carry his commitment to enhancing the international character of Columbia Business School. Thanks to their generosity, the School offers several Kopf Global Fellowships each year. The Kopf Global Fellows are diverse and highly accomplished, not only in the academic realm but also in the breadth of personal, professional and highly international experience that they contribute to the School's community.
Ela Lemelbaum Scholarship
The Ela Lemelbaum Scholarship provides partial financial support to Columbia Business School students from Israel. The scholarship is awarded with special consideration given to students living in Israel or those who have studied at the Interdisciplinary Center (IDC) in Herzliya, Israel.
Students under consideration for the Lemelbaum Scholarship may be contacted to submit additional materials.
Project Charity Trust Fellowship
The Project Charity Trust (PCT) Fellowship Program provides partial financial assistance to admitted Columbia Business School students from the European Union. Assistance is awarded to students who have not only demonstrated past success in academic and professional endeavors but also a significant commitment to philanthropy. The PCT Fellowship aims to create a community of people dedicated to improving the lives of others. Special consideration is given to those students who are pursuing career plans in Europe. This fellowship is funded by PCT, a charitable trust under the law of England and Wales.
European Union citizens are eligible for the PCT Fellowship.