Why You Should Consider Columbia University

Lilienne Shore Kilgore-Brown graduated from Pullman High School in 2020 and attended Columbia in University in New York City. Lilienne graduated from Columbia last year. Here’s why she thinks Columbia is worth your consideration.

Coming from the Palouse, going to a rigorous and urban school like Columbia seemed like a long-shot to me. Now, a few years later, there is a well-established lineage of Palouse students going to Columbia and similar institutions—these schools are looking for more rural students. 

Importantly, Columbia is going through a watershed moment of student activism right now, which any prospective student should consider carefully. The political scene at Columbia is vibrant and significantly shaped my time there, but not every student will respond as I did. 

Otherwise, I want other Palouse students to know that going to a school like Columbia and having the full experience is possible. I come from a low-income background, but because of my financial aid, I didn't have to take out a single loan in my four years there (including a semester and summer abroad). I worked throughout my college experience (on the student newspaper, as a resident adviser, and as an office assistant), but I was always able to easily balance those responsibilities with school. I received financial help from Columbia in emergency situations and was able to work closely with the financial aid office when there were problems with my aid package. 

I chose Columbia in large part because of their Core Curriculum—allowing me to take many classes outside of my degree's course of study—and the quality of their English department, where I majored. While I cannot speak to pursuing STEM degrees, I loved studying the Humanities at Columbia. I was able to take largely seminar-style courses, allowing me to write more in-depth essays and work closely with my professors in both of my departments, who were very invested in my success. Additionally, I really relished spending my college experience in New York City, where museums and plays and concerts proliferate.

Columbia can be a very stressful environment and a lot of the people there are not going to understand the background you come from—some people are laser-focused on their career and academics in a way that is seldom seen somewhere like the Palouse. However, you can find your people even at an institution like Columbia. You're going to need to dedicate significant time to your studies, but you can also have a really wonderful time carrying values beyond just your course load and what your eventual career might be. 

I grew a lot in my time at Columbia. Making such a big shift when I went to college had a profound and positive impact on me, and despite the turbulence during my four years there, I am very grateful that that is where I got my undergraduate education.

Why You Should Consider Wellesley College

Helena Belzer, a member of Pullman High School Class of 2019, attended Wellesley College and graduated in 2023. Wellesley is women’s college located in a suburb of Boston. Here’s why Helena thinks you should consider Wellesley.

I started working with Peggy and Palouse Pathways around my junior year of high

school at Pullman High School. At the time, I knew I loved my chemistry class, calculus, and literature–and that I wanted to challenge myself and leave home for college. Peggy introduced me to Wellesley College, where I matriculated in 2019 and graduated with a BA in Physics and a minor in Mathematics in December 2023. Today I live in New York City and work at Brookhaven National Laboratory on the Electron-Ion Collider project as part of the RF Systems team. We’re working to build a particle accelerator for new Nuclear Physics, to fulfill national energy and scientific goals. Palouse Pathways supported me through the selective college

application process and put me in contact with mentors and peers who enabled my journey to where I am today.

Why You Should Consider Georgia Tech

El Pimental, Moscow High School/Palouse Pathways Scholars Class of 2022, attends Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta, Georgia. Here’s why El thinks Georgia Tech should be on your radar!

A few things I love about Georgia Tech:

• An amazing culture of making things: Five makerspaces. Podcast recording studio. Best hackathons ever. Everybody is building a bike or making their short film or something.

• Great career prep: Every major has an intro class about careers in your major. You start major-related classes your first semester and graduate with twice as much relevant coursework as other schools. Real-world, project-based classes. Lots of internship and co-op opportunities.

• So many great and silly traditions and the sense of community that comes with them: Running the Pi Mile on Pi Day. Stealing T’s from campus signs. Finals week midnight pancakes. Homecoming tricycle race. Genuinely I think hundreds more.

College Fly-Ins

Palouse Pathways Scholar Audrey Tan, a senior at Pullman High School, shares information about a great FREE way to visit colleges, the College Fly-In.

First of all, what are fly-ins? 

Fly-ins are an opportunity to visit colleges prior to application where they “fly-in” high school students to experience life at their college. Typically, students will only get to visit a college after they’ve been admitted on the respective admitted students day. However, this can often feel too late for many students. How a college may look on paper may not encapsulate what life at the college is truly like, leading to misplaced expectations. Instead, it’s always good to visit universities firsthand before making a decision on whether or not you’d like to pour in the effort to apply. Fly-ins are usually provided by the university and they typically include a day or two of activities. The especially attractive aspect of fly-ins is that oftentimes they are fully covered by the institution. That means transportations costs, room and board, food, and sometimes even merchandise are provided by the university!

Why should you go and how to make the most of a fly-in? 

Fly-ins are not only a great opportunity to get a glimpse into what life as a student at a university is like but they’re also a wonderful place to get application questions answered. Typically, fly-ins are run by the admissions officers so these will be the people reading your applications. You can jot down some questions you may have before or during the fly-ins and get them answered with the assurance that the information provided is trustworthy. While at a fly-in, you’ll also get to interact with various college students who can help answer questions like “what did you do in high school to get you admitted?” Furthermore, fly-ins help introduce you to students all over the country (and sometimes all over the world!) who you already share one thing in common with. It’s a good idea to make a group chat and remain connected even after the fly-in. Utilize your resources and find a community that supports you! Lastly, it’s also good to thank the admissions officers after the fly-in and remain in contact. Once again, utilize them as a resource to get any application questions answered down the line. Do remember to always be courteous and don’t go overboard. 

How to get a fly-in opportunity?
Palouse Pathways is a fantastic resource so be sure to keep an eye out for any fly-ins posted. Some colleges may also email you about opportunities. The website Appily lists many college fly-ins. Each university has different dates for their fly-ins so be sure to mark your calendars and be mindful of when everything is due. You can also search for fly-ins online if you have a particular university you’d like to visit. Some fly-ins are available for all high school students while others are limited by grade so be sure to do your research as soon as possible so you don’t miss out on any opportunities. Lastly, lean on the community around you. Ask around about the various fly-ins people have attended or let your counselors know that you’re interested. Fly-ins are typically application-based and will usually have an essay portion. Remember, many fly-in criteria may be different so don’t feel bad if you don’t get a fly-in opportunity. There’s a ton out there! Also, I recommend opening your mind up a bit, you may discover some hidden gems that you didn’t even think of before! Happy flying!

Visiting Colleges

Palouse Pathways Scholar Jack Carper, Pullman High School Class of 2026, shares his thoughts and tips for visiting colleges.

How can you make the most out of a college visit?

First, always make sure to research the college beforehand. Learn more about what they offer, and see what programs you would be most interested in. For example, if you want to go into engineering, look more into the specific department to understand what the college experience would look like for you at that school; try to explore the department you are interested in while on the campus so you can get a better feel for it.

Pro tip: Many colleges offer tours or informational sessions about their specific programs, such as their engineering or honors programs, so definitely sign up for those if you are interested!

Also, make sure to always take a guided tour to be able to get a more in-depth look at the school and interact with a student. If you know someone who attends the school, reach out to them and see if they would be able to show you around.

Make sure to have questions prepared about the school based on your research beforehand to ask the tour guide. These should be questions about the specific college/university, about the programs or student life and such, and they should be specific and thoughtful. If Google can answer the question for you, it’s a bad question.

Finally, always tour colleges while they are in session. I understand it may be easier to go during a school break so you don’t miss time in school, but so much of the college tour is about your interactions and experience on the campus. The whole idea is to learn more about the school and envision yourself attending it. You want to be able to gauge the atmosphere: what sort of students attend this school, what is the general vibe (studious, more of a party school, etc), and most importantly, how do you FEEL about the school. What is your gut reaction? If you don’t feel positively about the school and view it as somewhere you could fit in and be happy, then it isn’t the school for you, and you cannot get a true impression of the school if the students are all away. And of course, have fun!

What was your most memorable College Visit?

My most memorable college visit was my visit to the University of Arizona. Specifically, I was impressed by the Honors program tour. An Honors program is a wonderful way to take a large school and turn it into a smaller community, allowing you to form close bonds with other driven students while also being able to take advantage of all the opportunities of a large campus. The University of Arizona, for example, has more than 45,000 students, but its honors college has just over 4,000, less than 10% of their total enrollment. I remember being extremely impressed by the structure and format of the Honors program offered at the University of Arizona–there was a dorm reserved exclusively for Honors college students, tucked away from the main campus but still well within walking distance, with special, smaller Honors classes offered on the ground floor of the dorm building! The tour allowed me to get a better understanding of what an Honors program could look like, and it allowed me to see myself attending a large school but still feeling connected to my peers.