Academics
Columbia has the most extensive core curriculum in the Ivy League.
These courses occupy most of the freshmen and sophomore years
and cover literature, art, music, philosophy, contemporary civilization,
logic and rhetoric, science, non-Western culture, foreign language,
and physical education. The core curriculum gives all students
a strong background in the liberal arts and emphasizes a thorough
knowledge of Western civilization. Two of the most demanding
courses are Contemporary Civilization and Literature Humanities,
both of which are a year long. Those courses are often taught
by full professors in small groups.
Outside the classroom, though, many professors are difficult
to reach because they are frequently top scholars in their respective
fields and teach on the side.
Students are said to be individualistic, independent, and self-motivated
at Columbia, as well as liberal, making Columbia students’
reputation quite similar to that of New York’s own natives.
Students must possess such characteristics, because no one holds
students hands at Columbia. This student body makes for an intense
but stimulating environment.
There are ample opportunities for student research, as well
as several cross-enrollment programs offered with Julliard and
Barnard, where undergraduates can take music and politics courses.
Internships abound in Manhattan.
Columbia’s ambitious student population is very intellectual
in nature, but still has preprofessional goals, with the majority
of students going on to study law, medicine, or journalism.
The student body is also the most racially diverse in the Ivy
League, with thirty percent minorities.
Student Life
Most of the student life at Columbia revolves around the Big
Apple. Just about any weekend—or weekday for that matter—activity
is simply a subway ride away. Broadway is nearby and the city
offers a seemingly endless amount of theaters, clubs, bars,
restaurants, galleries, and shopping to name just a few things.
Living in such a large and vibrant cultural center, students
never run out of things to do.
Of course, the city has sapped away from life on campus, where
most socializing revolves around the dorms and dining hall.
The Greek scene is very minor, since students are far from isolated
and not many want to spend their weekend drinking in a frat
house when NYC is at their fingertips. The intramural program
exists, but does not receive any university funding. As for
varsity athletics, they’re OK—much better than they
were a few years back—but the Manhattan campus means that
land is limited and students must travel one-hundred blocks
away to the school’s sports complex, a major damper for
the sports program.
Campus Environment
First a brief note on dorms: Columbia guarantees housing for
all four years and few students dare to venture out into Manhattan’s
real estate market. After all, most of Columbia’s dorms
are singles.
As for the surrounding environment, one word: Manhattan.
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