Libraries and Computing
The Columbia University Library system is one of the nation’s leading academic libraries, with holdings totaling more than 10 million volumes, 6.3 million units of microfilm, 26 million manuscript items, 144,000 current serial subscriptions and more than 979,000 rare books. The Library’s collections are housed in 22 libraries, located on both campuses, as well as at the libraries of Union Theological Seminary, Teachers College and the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory. In addition to the extensive on-campus collections, Columbia students have free access to the entire New York Public Library system. Contact the Library for information on access to New York University and Princeton libraries at http://library.columbia.edu/.
The University’s libraries are organized into three main divisions: Humanities and History, Science and Engineering, and Social Sciences. Beyond these general collections, the University is also home to a number of distinctive collections, including Avery Architectural and Fine Arts Library, which includes the Rare Book and Manuscript Library; the Bakhmeteff Archive of Russian and East European History and Culture; the C.V. Starr East Asian Library; and the Oral History Collection, which was the first of its kind in the United States.
Columbia University Information Technology (CUIT) provides centralized information delivery, computing and network services to the University. CUIT facilities include a large central cluster of networked UNIX timesharing computers for instruction and research as well as Macintosh, Windows and UNIX workstations. Over 400 workstations and terminals around campus can be used for student work or to access Columbia’s Digital Library, Internet resources, and central systems. Over 200 public network jacks allow students to connect their laptops to the University’s network. CUIT offers free electronic mail and World Wide Web space to students, faculty and staff allowing them to correspond world-wide, as well as publish on the Internet. With the Libraries, CUIT also supports the Electronic Data Service (EDS), which provides access to thousands of numerical datasets in the social and health sciences for secondary analysis. A Computing Support Center and Help Desk are available as well as student consultants in several computer labs. For more information on CUIT facilities and services, see http://cuit.columbia.edu/.
Beyond the resources of CUIT, many departments and divisions of the University maintain separate systems for academic work. Most of these systems are also accessible through the campus-wide network. For information on computing on the Health Sciences campus, see http://www.cubhis.org/.
Other Opportunities for Research and Instruction
For detailed information on institutes, centers, and other opportunities for research and instruction available to the University community, please see click http://www.columbia.edu/content/centers-institutes.html.
Regional Institutes
The seven regional institutes (Institute of African Studies, East Asian Institute, W. Averell Harriman Institute, Institute of Latin American Studies, Middle East Institute, Southern Asian Institute, The European Institute), which are staffed by Columbia faculty, have as their purpose the strengthening of University programs in international and regional studies. The institutes provide intensive training for a small number of experts and scholars who plan to devote their efforts to teaching, research or careers relating to a major world area. Each institute offers an interdisciplinary program leading to a certificate, which includes work in history, political institutions, economics and international relations, with additional work in literature, sociology, anthropology, music, art and related subjects. Each institute requires either a working knowledge of, or further training in, one or more languages relevant to its region of the world.
The Exchange Scholar Program
The Exchange Scholar Program enables a graduate student enrolled in a Ph.D. program in one of the 31 arts and sciences departments at Columbia to study at one of the following graduate schools: University of California at Berkeley, Brown University, University of Chicago, Cornell University, Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Princeton University, University of Pennsylvania, Stanford University and Yale University. Students may study at one of these schools for a limited period of time in order to take advantage of particular educational opportunities not available at Columbia. This exchange, however, is not available for summer courses.Students in free-standing master’s programs are not eligible to participate in the Exchange Scholar Program.
Inter-University Doctoral Consortium
The Graduate School of Arts and Sciences is a member of the Inter-University Doctoral Consortium, which provides for cross-registration among member institutions. Matriculated Ph.D. candidates in the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences may register for courses at the CUNY Graduate Center, Fordham University, the New School University, New York University, Princeton University, Rutgers University, Stony Brook University and Teachers College. This program, however, is not available for summer courses.Students in free-standing master’s programs are not eligible to participate in the Inter-University Doctoral Consortium.
Jewish Theological Seminary Course Exchange
GSAS students in the humanities and social sciences may take any graduate course offered by the Jewish Theological Seminary (JTS) except those which JTS places on a restricted list each year. Further information regarding the program is available in 205 Philosophy Hall.