Two Colleges, One Mentality

By Wileen Zeng

One is a bear, and the other’s a lion. On the inside, they are essentially the same creature. That’s the relationship Barnard College and Columbia University have with one another.

The schools are located on adjacent campuses in Morningside Heights, but one is women’s liberal arts college while the other is coed and more geared towards research. Through their affiliation, Barnard and Columbia students flow through each other’s schools like osmosis.

Columbia sophomore Georgie Koepke confirmed this phenomenon, by saying, “Socially and academically, Barnard is very much integrated within the greater Columbia community. Because the relationship is so fluid, I think that many people in the Columbia community are confused as to what truly defines the relationship and distinguishes the two schools from one another.”

Both schools utilize the 22 libraries and sports facilities, and there is a Columbia- Barnard Athletic Consortium, which provides opportunities for Barnard students to participate in the Columbia University-wide team. During graduation, the diplomas are virtually the same, except that the Barnard’s one has signatures from both presidents, and includes official seals from both colleges.

Columbia students also take humanities and arts based classes at Barnard, such as dance, theater, architecture, and urban studies.

Studying at an all-girls’ school is not as extreme as it seems, especially when Barnard students could easily take the classes offered at Columbia. Girls at Columbia could join the sororities at Barnard and vice versa. Through the Barnard/Columbia housing exchange, Barnard girls are allowed to live in Columbia University residence halls.

Madison Murray, who attended the Barnard summer program last summer and is currently a rising freshman at Emerson refers to herself as “more of a guy kind of girl.”

She stated, ”I felt so comfortable in my skin and because all the girls wanted to be there, there was no sense of competition and everyone was so enthusiastic and happy for everyone. I made a lot of friends who are girls and learned to trust them more.”

The main difference appears to be the stronger sense of feminism at Barnard.

“Barnard’s whole thing is that it wants to make young women feel inspired by their fellow young women. It’s more feminist in a long term way: that women should work together…” said Murray. She believes that Columbia seems to be more of a prestigious university, but not as focused on feminism.

The bottom line is, Barnard is not bereft of any of Columbia’s assets. Financially and legally, Barnard is a separate entity, but there is not too much distinction between the two colleges.

Koepke replied through email, “I don’t think there is a different dynamic between girls at Barnard and girls at Columbia. It’s all about preference!”