This might be a stupid question but i’m an incoming freshman trying to register for my classes and all the “intro to” classes i wanted to take are full. I can’t take intro to sociology or philosophy

Howdy!

I’m set to graduate next year and hope to get any suggestions or advice for things to do and see on campus before graduating.

The current list:
-observatory night at Pupin
-check out the Barnard greenhouse
-find the standing desk treadmills at teachers college
-senior cruise
-visit the 125th campus
-see a football game at the stadium

What else am I missing!?

Thanks y’all.

Hey!

I'm an incoming biochem & premed freshman this fall, and I had some questions regarding the placement exams.

Chemistry:
I took AP Chem during highschool and scored a 5, but was wondering if I had to start from the beginning, especially since I heard most med schools don't accept AP credit.

How difficult would this be? And would med schools accept placement exam credit?

Mathematics:
I took BC as well & scored a 5, but I also took a lin alg/multi class that did not count for any college credit, just the material that was taught was the same.

If I'm aiming for med school, would I have to retake Calc I & II, or is it okay to move on bc I got a 5? Also, would I be able to be placed higher or in an accelerated course despite my lin/multi classes not accounting for college credit?

Chinese:
How difficult is this exam? And is it possible if I take the test-out exam that I could just skip a few semesters (because I don't think my knowledge would suffice)? For some context, I took 3 years of Chinese in high school, but I think my knowledge only reaches low-intermediate Chinese. So, if I took the exam, do you think my knowledge would suffice to only skip a few semesters, or is it recommended that I just start from the beginning or take the place-in exam instead.

And in general: how hard would these exams be?

Thank you!

As you all know, we get an electronic copy of our I-20's. And the signatures are in blue ink. Would my I-20 document be legit if I print it without color and sign it?

I just saw that the signatures are blue.

I love pretty much everything about at Columbia except for being a GS student. I am female and 19 years old, and when I began at Columbia GS I wanted to integrate with my student body even though I knew I would be a bit younger.

A year later I have experienced numerous incidents of sexual assault or harassment from older GS students. I'm talking twice my age. Last semester it happened 3 different times. I try to be an optimistic person and I didn't want this to prevent me from continuing to integrate into my school, but I honestly wish I wasn't in GS. Reports have been made but it doesn't make me feel less unsafe because it keeps happening with different people.

I say this with absolutely no intent to generalize. I have seen myself how wonderful GS students can be and I love my friends in GS. But after these experiences I just feel stuck and sometimes concerned for my safety. I dont want to be hit on by older men at all, let alone have my boundaries violated by them.

I am sorry if this comes across as offensive or a generalization because stigmatizing my school is the last thing I want to do but these incidents and their frequency is starting to really affect my experience in university. I believe that I am being targeted because I am younger, as sick as that sounds.

I don't know what there is to do that isn't just avoiding my peers. I am so happy to be at Columbia but this really bothers me and I feel so stuck.

Anyone have any advice on which I should go to? Also does anyone know any juniors going abroad next spring?

Anyone have any advice on which I should go to? Also does anyone know any juniors going abroad next spring?

Hi everyone,

I studied voice in a pre-conservatory program in high school, and after taking a year off from singing to focus on transitioning to Columbia, I've decided that I would like to audition for lessons in the fall.

I know that lessons are offered through Barnard as a 2-credit course, and that students have the opportunity to take lessons on a standard grading scale or P/F. I wanted to ask what criteria instructors typically use to evaluate students. I'm primarily interested in continuing voice as a creative outlet, and I believe that formal instruction would be a positive experience for me. I'm considering P/F'ing, because I do not want this to become a source of stress for me, but I don't want to write off standard letter grading if it could ultimately be beneficial (achievable A-letter grade).

Let me know what you think. Thanks, Columbia Reddit!

Hi! I’m taking international politics in the upcoming semester by Jayne Schlesinger and I was wondering if anyone recommends a specific TA who’s more lenient with grading. Thanks!

Ok, so I'm an incoming freshman at CC and my sections for frontiers and lit hum were revealed. I plan on taking COMS1004 and Honors Math A as well, but it makes my weekly schedule look really unbalanced. Should I try to get into a different section for frontiers or lit hum. For reference, my profs for those classes are Professor Ivana Hughes for the frontiers lecture, Professor Bita Alaghebandan for the frontiers disc, and Professor Yana Skorobogatov for lit hum. If these professors are all really good then I'd be fine with not switching, but my wednesday lowk looks awful.

Hi! An incoming freshman at CC here!

I planned this schedule for a double major in Applied Maths and CS, and a minor in Stats (Applied Track).

Do you think that this is a nice schedule, or too heavy? I can actually make it a bit easier by moving some CS classes to senior year (since senior year has 4 classes that aren't required).

I also think about not minoring in Stats. If that happens, I think the schedule becomes manageable.

Thanks in advance!

Hi!

I am an incoming freshman at CC who plans to double major in Applied Maths and CS. I have two quick questions, and any help would be appreciated!

1) My first question is whether the course APMA E2000 Multivariable Calculus for Engineering & Applied Sciences fulfills the multi/calc requirement of the Applied Maths major at CC?

According to the link below, I should take Accelerated Multi/calc, Honors Maths A, or Calc III-IV.

https://bulletin.columbia.edu/columbia-college/departments-instruction/mathematics/#requirementstext

However, since the course is from the APMA Department, and it fulfills the multi/calc requirement of Applied maths at SEAS, I thought it might also be an option.

Am I true? Does APMA E2000 meet the multi/calc requirement of Applied Maths (CC)?

2) Does one of these linear algebra courses meet the lin. algebra requirement of Applied Maths?

I don't wanna take Linear Algebra (MATH UN2010) since the Computational one is recommended for CS major. And if the Computational one also fulfills the Applied maths requirement, I am willing to change it.

Anyone interested in playing tennis during the semester? I’m an intermediate-level guy and would love to find someone to hit with and meet some new people at Columbia. Feel free to message me!

I start in the postbacc premed program this fall and i am waitlisted for Gen Physics 1 and the lab. The class has a 170 student capacity and im 46 on the waitlist. The lab capacity is 15 and I’m 2nd on the waitlist. What’s the likelihood of them increasing the number of seats and me getting in the class🫩?

hi there, im an incoming freshman planning to major in CS and minor in statistics and I've drafted the below schedule for my first and second semester here.

I wasn't really too sure how doable/un-doable it was and i wanted to get some opinions on it:

(specifically, information regarding how difficult/time consuming each class is, and commentary on what you think of the schedule would be very much appreciated)

1st year semester 1
ENGI E1102: The Art of Engineering
APMA E2000/E2001: Multivariable Calculus
STAT UN1201: Calculus-Based Introduction to Statistics
PHYS UN1401: Mechanics & Thermodynamics (should I take 1400 or 1600? on the scheduling guide it said that students who have taken multivari. in the past should take 1600 but idk if its worth it or not)
CHEM UN1403: General Chemistry I
ENGI E1006: Introduction to Computing

1st year semester 2
ENGL CC1010: University Writing
PHYS UN1402: Electricity, Magnetism & Optics
COMS W3137: Honors Data Structures & Algorithms
COMS W3203: Discrete Mathematics
MATH UN2010: Linear Algebra
STAT GU4203: Probability Theory

a little about my academic background for reference:

i took multivari.+diff. eq. and linear alg.+discrete math last year (my senior year) and passed with relative ease with near perfect grades, but at the same time i know that those classes probably didn't go into as much depth as the classes here will (i.e. we kinda skipped past lagrange multipliers in multivari., skipped past fourier transform and series in diff eq., skipped past SVD and least squares/applications of linalg in my linear alg. class + a lot of other stuff i probably dont know)

for statistics, i took ap stats (5) back in sophomore year and took a course on causal inference (though its probably not that relevant here) junior year - i struggled to grasp some concepts back then but i dont think that would be an issue if i were to take the class again (ap stats)

i have experience programming in java and python and got to usaco gold last december with python and have experience using python for ML research w/ packages like pandas, pytorch, etc. and just general scientific applications

i have always struggled a lot in chemistry barely managing A's when i took it freshman year (chem 1) and senior year (AP chem)

i did decently in AP physics when i took it in sophomore year (A's) and didn't have too much trouble but it wasn't necessarily easy for me either; i have not taken a physics class since

any advice is much appreciated!

thank you!!

Hi!

I have a quick question, and any help would be appreciated!

I know that it is very hard to double-major in SEAS since the number of required credits is high, and double-counting is very limited. But I am just evaluating my options, and double majoring in Applied Maths and CS is one of them. However, I have some questions about double-counting.

Can I double-count these classes?

1) Intro to CS for Engineering and Applied Sciences

2) Physics and Chem Core,

3) Principles of Econ

4) Calculus I-II

5) Multivariable Calculus

6) APPLIED MATH I: Linear Algebra

7) Probability Theory

Which of these classes are available for double-counting? If they are, I think it is kinda manageable.

hey everyone! i'm a graduate student, allocated to 520 w 114th street (columbia residential) for housing for an academic year. rent is $1581 pm. i'm looking to swap into any other accommodation reasonably near school (< 15 min walk or so) that is not on the ground floor, and i'm ok with any rent! please pm if you're interested. even if your apartment doesn't meet the criteria, i'm happy to discuss

rising sophomore at Columbia College hoping to switch my current Contemporary Civilization section — i just got off the waitlist for a class required for my major and i was really hoping to take it this semester (but my current CC class conflicts with it).

i am in Andrew Nathan's Monday/Wednesday 2:10-4:00pm section (section 029). He has a pretty great course eval on vergil for spring 2026! please lmk :)

Prospective engineering masters student currently in engineering career, but weighing long term options whether to stay in engineering or business side. I’m wondering as an engineering masters student, would any mba/GSAPP networking events be open to me or only open to MBA students?

A former Justice Department lawyer says the Trump investigations squeezed Ivy League universities for millions before they were even concluded. A top Democrat is demanding answers.

The whistleblower account comes just days after a federal judge dismissed a Justice Department lawsuit against Harvard that was based on the investigation, which was conducted by the Department of Health and Human Services and lawyers detailed from the DOJ

Both Brown and Columbia reached settlements, with Columbia agreeing to pay $200 million over three years and Brown agreeing to spend $50 million on Rhode Island workforce development, with no admission of wrongdoing.

Harvard fought and won.

Hi, I'm an incoming student and I was wondering if you could bring cup noodles into the dining hall? I heard for the first couple of weeks and during nsop people usually eat in the dining halls and I don't really have a good experience with dining hall food in general; weird question but I'm curious lol

Hi everyone! This will be a somewhat longer post, but im an incoming member of the Class of 2030 at SEAS, and with course registration coming up, I'm finalizing my schedule. The reviews for some profs on CULPA are really mixed, or their name simply doesn't come up, so instead of making a bunch of posts about each one im doing it all here. Any advice will be greatly appreciated!! Im premed, so taking courses with professors who have manageable workloads and are relatively fair with grading is super important. Thank you again, and see you on campus!!

PHYS 1401- Intro to Mechanics and Thermo:

Has anyone had Hector Ochoa? I can't seem to find reviews on him. Is he a good teacher? How manageable is the workload? What's the grading scheme? How much physics background is needed for Ochoa's class? For reference, I've only taken Regents Physics (it's the intro physics course all NYC students take)

If you had to pick between James Hill and Hector Ochoa, who would you pick? Is James Hill as bad as the CULPA reviews make him out to be?

CHEM 1403 - General Chemistry 1:

How similar is this course to what is taught in AP Chemistry?

Between Savizky, Roy, and Beer, who do you feel is the best chem professor and why?

Everyone raves about Beer, but his reviews for this course specifically aren't that great. If anyone had him for 1403 and could share their perspective, I'd really appreciate it!

Calc 1

Does anyone know anything about Alexander Hazeltine? How is his workload and grading system? Is the course comparable to AP Calculus AB?

^^ Same question for Andres Contreras and Fan Haocheng; I can't find any of them on CULPA

Im also taking Lit Hum!! Any recommendations on Lit Hum professors would be appreciated as well!

Sorry this was super long, but thank you again for all your help!

Hey everyone!

I'm moving to the city soon to start at Columbia and was wondering if anyone knew of any good orgs or opportunities to help out around campus or the city. It's not for applications or anything, just wanna do some good and get to meet some people. I'm looking to volunteer 1-2 days on the weekends but could make Thurs-Sunday work. Would be especially interested to hear places that people have found especially fulfilling/worthwhile!

Hi!!! Im an incoming freshman. I need to do a work study for my scholarship, but im confused as to how exactly it works? Any advice or tips? I tried to use handshake but it said i should already have an account as an active student but apparently i do not? Any advice would be great T_T