Barnard College Columbia University

Since its founding in 1889, Barnard has been a distinguished leader in higher education, offering a rigorous liberal arts foundation to young women whose curiosity, drive, and exuberance set them apart. Ours is a diverse intellectual community in a unique learning environment that provides the best of all worlds: small, intimate classes in a collaborative liberal arts setting dedicated to the advancement of women with the vast resources of Columbia University just steps away—in the heart of vibrant and electric New York City.

1 Bachelors
2,360 Students
Private Institution Type

About

History

Founded in 1889, Barnard was the only college in New York City, and one of the few in the nation, where women could receive the same rigorous and challenging education available to men. The College was named after educator, mathematician, and tenth president of Columbia College, Frederick A.P. Barnard, who argued unsuccessfully for the admission of women to Columbia University.

Education

For over 125 years, Barnard has embraced and enhanced its original mission on behalf of young women—to thrive on the highest academic standards, to promote intellectual risk-taking and curiosity, to foster resilience, agility and creativity, to strive for diversity and inclusiveness in all its endeavors, and to prepare our graduates to flourish in the world.

GSSA 2019

The Global Student Satisfaction Awards empower students across the globe to determine the best universities of 2019. By rating institutions on a scale from 1 to 5, on multiple studies-related questions, we found the top educators in the world.

Learn more about the Global Student Satisfaction Awards

Services

Library services

Barnard Library and Academic Information Services (BLAIS) offer an extensive range of services and resources to support an outstanding liberal arts education. We provide unparalleled access to world class collections and deliver individual research assistance designed to give Barnard students a foundation for intellectual inquiry, ethical scholarship and lifelong learning.

Medical services

The safety and well being of students, faculty, staff, and guests have always been of paramount importance at Barnard. Located on Morningside Heights in Manhattan, we are a community within our neighboring communities: Columbia University and New York City. Separate from them in some ways, but very much a part of them, we have many mutual interests, including that of crime prevention.

Student Life

Campus life

Barnard College is located on the Upper West Side of Manhattan between 116th and 120th Streets along the west side of Broadway. It is easily accessible by car, bus, or subway from anywhere in New York City, including the local airports.

Student clubs

To become the inclusive community we aspire to be, we must treat each other equitably and with respect, creating an environment where no voices are silenced and all of us can thrive. Together, our commitment to diversity, inclusion, and equity has the potential to disrupt and transform entrenched practices and thinking. And as a result, it will hold Barnard accountable to its goal of graduating students who are engaged world citizens possessed of a discerning intelligence, an understanding of inequality and power, and moral courage.

Student Reviews

Challenged and Supported in an Endeavor to Know the World's Cities

Anonymous rated 5 out of 5 stars

My professors in the Urban Studies Department placed equal emphasis on subject mastery, independent research, and global inquiry. I felt challenged and supported at every step of the way. As a senior, I was required to write a 70-page thesis, and I am glad to have had the critical research experience. My only complaint is that the overall program was a bit East Coast and...

The perfect college for an ambitious woman

Anonymous rated 5 out of 5 stars

Barnard is the ideal college for any woman who is looking for a liberal arts degree in New York City. With access to Columbia's facilities and classes - and all of New York - every resource you need is available to you. Although Columbia is a large university, Barnard has the feeling of a small college where staff and faculty genuinely get to know, care about, and support...

Bachelor's programmes