The Columbia campus is a majestic, park-like, self-contained urban village, designed by McKim, Mead and White at the turn of the 19th century. First-time visitors to Columbia often marvel at how Columbia’s breathtaking college campus exists in the middle of Manhattan. Butler Library was modeled on the Parthenon in Greece while the steps of Low Library served as a recent backdrop for numerous Hollywood films. The glass and steel atrium of the architecturally arresting Alfred Lerner Hall provides a spectacular vista for all the action on campus, whether it's an intramural lacrosse game on the green lawns of South Field, the King’s Crown Shakespeare Troupe reciting the Bard on the sundial or George Clinton and the P Funk All Stars performing on the steps of College Walk.
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Both Hitch & Ghostbusters were filmed on the columbia campus. |
| Columbia’s Crew Teams are members of the Ivy League and have rowed competitively in both the Head of the Charles and Henley Royal Regattas. |
A fully residential undergraduate experience. Almost all undergraduates live on campus all four years. All first-year students are expected to live on campus in one of five first-year residence halls at the heart of the historic campus, forming a close-knit community within the larger campus community.
Located in the Morningside Heights neighborhood of Manhattan, the energy found on Columbia's campus is striking and is virtually unrivaled when comparing urban institutions of its size. Consider that Columbia has:
- Nearly 500 clubs and organizations;
- 29 varsity athletics, nearly four dozen club sports and dozens of intramural teams;
- Several dozen community service organizations;
- A robust and avante garde creative and performing arts community;
- A politically, environmentally and socially conscious and active student body.