Quad
Columbia University in the City of New YorkNew York, NY · Private nonprofit

Academics

Majors and faculty

The most popular major is Computer Science (15% of graduates). 6 students for every faculty member, fewer than at 95% of colleges. 43% of faculty are full-time. Spends $110,371 a year on instruction per student.

Most popular majors

2,496 bachelor's degrees, 2024–25 graduates

The top 5 programs account for 44% of graduates; 68 programs in 17 fields awarded at least one.

  1. Computer Science 11.070115% 377
    Graduates in this field earn $188,265 4 years out
  2. Econometrics and Quantitative Economics 45.060312% 307
    Graduates in this field earn $137,710 4 years out
  3. Political Science and Government, General 45.10018.4% 209
    Graduates in this field earn $100,245 4 years out
  4. Research and Experimental Psychology, Other 42.27994.6% 116
    Graduates in this field earn $86,946 4 years out
  5. History, General 54.01013.8% 95
    Graduates in this field earn $98,079 4 years out

Fastest-growing field: Computer science, 5.2% → 16% of graduates since 2014–15 (400 graduates in 2024–25).

Source:IPEDS Completions survey (degrees awarded by field), 2014–15 to 2024–25About the data(built 2026-10-12; CPI retrieved 2026-10-12)

Bachelor's degrees awarded July through June, by federal program name (), which can differ from what the college calls a major. A double major counts once, under the ; its other field is a . Earnings are College Scorecard's median for graduates of the program's broader field (), 4 years after completion; see Top-earning majors below.

Top-earning majors here

By earnings 4 years after completion

  1. Computer Engineering$194,365 4 yrs out

    1 year after completion: $102,083

    4 years after completion$194,365
    National median: $109,015Above typical

    Median federal debt: Too few graduates to report · 50 graduates, two most recent years combined

  2. Computer Science$188,265 4 yrs out

    1 year after completion: $118,636

    4 years after completion$188,265
    National median: $107,009Above typical

    4 years out, Pell: $142,277 · Non-Pell: $196,760(an older graduating class than the figure above — see the (i) for why)

    Median federal debt: $19,594 · 748 graduates, two most recent years combined

  3. Operations Research$167,572 4 yrs out

    1 year after completion: $110,457

    4 years after completion$167,572
    National median: $122,531Above typical

    Median federal debt: Too few graduates to report · 123 graduates, two most recent years combined

  4. Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering$143,332 4 yrs out

    1 year after completion: $84,019

    4 years after completion$143,332
    National median: $100,647Above typical

    Median federal debt: Too few graduates to report · 55 graduates, two most recent years combined

  5. Economics$137,710 4 yrs out

    1 year after completion: $83,135

    4 years after completion$137,710
    National median: $82,686Above typical

    4 years out, Pell: $106,632 · Non-Pell: $138,679(an older graduating class than the figure above — see the (i) for why)

    Median federal debt: $25,000 · 687 graduates, two most recent years combined

Bachelor's programs only, among graduates who received federal financial aid and were working (not enrolled in school) in the measurement year.

Students per faculty member vs. every college6 to 1
6 to 1
← Fewer students per facultyfewer students per faculty member than 95% of 1,892More students per faculty →

The college also reports 11 to 1 in its Common Data Set (16,764 students, 1,480 faculty).

Not the average class size: faculty also teach graduate students and do research, and large lectures can sit alongside small seminars.

Class sizes

58%

of classes have fewer than 20 students; 14% have 50 or more

Under 20 students 20 or moreStudents per class section
Undergraduate class sections by number of students
StudentssectionsShare
2–952425%
10–1970433%
20–2942920%
30–39864%
40–49693%
50–992009%
100+1015%

This counts class sections, not students: a lecture of 300 is one section, so a student is more likely to sit in a large class than the share of sections suggests. Labs and discussion sections are counted separately and left out here.

Programs & curriculum

  • Accelerated program
  • Cross-registration
  • Double major
  • Domestic exchange program
  • Honors program
  • Independent study
  • Internships
  • Liberal arts/career combination
  • Teacher certification
  • Study abroad
  • Undergraduate research

Requires coursework in arts, computer literacy, English composition, a foreign language, history, physical education, humanities, intensive writing, math, philosophy, and a natural science.

Full-time faculty43%
National median: 67%Below typical
Average faculty salary

$193,642

9-month equated, all ranks combined. Pay tracks local cost of living as much as a college's generosity.

Spending and endowment

Fiscal 2023–24. Compared only against other private nonprofit colleges: public and private colleges report finances on different accounting forms that aren't comparable.

Instruction spending per student$110,371
$110,371
← Lessmore than 100% of 1,199More →
Endowment per student$438,220
$438,220
← Lessmore than 94% of 1,065More →

Sources:IPEDS Completions survey (degrees awarded by field), 2024–25 graduates;College Scorecard Field of Study data, most recent release;IPEDS Fall Enrollment survey (part D), Fall 2024;IPEDS Salaries survey (SAL, instructional staff, all ranks), Fall 2024;College Scorecard, Fall 2024;IPEDS Finance survey, derived per-student figures, 2023–24;Columbia University in the City of New York Common Data Set 2025–26, Fall 2025;Columbia University in the City of New York Common Data Set 2025–26, 2025–26;IPEDS Institutional Characteristics survey (athletics, programs, services, religious affiliation), 2025–26About the data(retrieved 2026-10-12)