History at Columbia
Columbia graduates about 152 history majors a year, 7% of its graduating class. That puts it 5th of 692 schools we score for history, a standout program at 96 out of 100. Its current catalog lists 111 undergraduate courses in the field, more than 74% of the schools we've counted. Graduates in the major earn a median $98,000 four years out, 1.94× what the same major pays nationally. Research spending in the field runs about $10 million a year, a rough guide to how many labs and projects undergraduates can join.
Where history happens
Buildings on campus that fit the field: Milstein Center for Teaching and Learning, Low Memorial Library, Butler Library, Heyman Center for the Humanities.
Named buildings on the campus map: Student housing 168 · Academic 66 · Dorm 21 · Chapel 8 · Library 6 · Offices 4.
Nearby in the history ranking
Other strong majors at Columbia
- Computer science 98 · #2
- Languages 98 · #1
- Economics 96 · #7
- Physics & astronomy 96 · #8
- Engineering (all) 96 · #7
- Sociology & anthropology 96 · #4
How the score works
The score is out of 100 and compares Columbia with every school we score in history. It weighs the school's overall strength; how many students graduate in the major and what share of the class they are; research spending in the field (NSF); early pay against the same major nationally; how many courses the catalog lists; and test scores. 80+ is a standout program, 65+ strong, 45+ solid. Sources: US Department of Education (College Scorecard, IPEDS), NSF HERD, each school's current course catalog, OpenStreetMap and Wikimedia Commons.