Quad

Key differences on Students & campus

  1. 1

    U. Southern California has 2.3× as many undergrads as Columbia

    Undergrads
  2. 2

    Columbia has 0 pts more Pell recipients than U. Southern California (23% vs. 22%)

    Pell Grant recipients
  3. 3

    Columbia has 0 pts more first-gen students than U. Southern California (25% vs. 25%)

    First-generation students

Students

Students & campus

Who's on each campus, how many get Pell Grants or are the first in their family, and campus life.

Who's on campus

Undergrads
U. Southern California20.4K
Columbia9K
Pell Grant share
U. Southern California22%
Columbia23%
First-gen share
U. Southern California25%
Columbia25%
Diversity index
U. Southern California0.81
Columbia0.81

Who they are

Men
U. Southern California48%
Columbia50%
Part-time students
U. Southern California2%
Columbia7%
Students 25 and older
U. Southern California61%
Columbia14%

Race & ethnicity

U. Southern California
Columbia
  • White
  • Asian
  • Hispanic/Latino
  • Black
  • Two or more
  • International
  • Other/unknown

Where they're from

First-years from in state
U. Southern California42%
Columbia16%
First-years from other states
U. Southern California39%
Columbia63%
First-years from abroad
U. Southern California18%
Columbia20%
New transfer students this fall
U. Southern California1,339
Columbia710
Transfers, share of new undergraduates
U. Southern California28%
Columbia31%

Campus

U. Southern California
Large cityNCAA D-I FBS · Big Ten ConferenceROTCStudy abroadUndergrad research
Columbia
Large cityNCAA D-I FCS · Ivy GroupROTCStudy abroadUndergrad research

All student numbers in the table

Sources:College Scorecard, Fall 2024;College Scorecard, most recent release;College Scorecard, Fall 2023;IPEDS Fall Enrollment survey (part C, residence of first-time students), Fall 2024;IPEDS Fall Enrollment survey (part A, enrollment by level), Fall 2024;IPEDS directory (Institutional Characteristics: HD), 2025–26;IPEDS Institutional Characteristics survey, 2023–24;IPEDS Institutional Characteristics survey (athletics, programs, services, religious affiliation), 2025–26About the data(retrieved 2026-10-12)

Figures are the newest each college has published; years can differ between colleges. Each value's ⓘ shows its source and year. Why