Computer Science

The Barnard/Columbia University 4+1 Pathways provide an option for students to make progress on graduate study while still an undergraduate, under the guidance of Barnard and Columbia advisors who help them develop their plans for accelerated completion of a masters degree. The Computer Science 4+1 pathway will enable Barnard students to obtain a BA from Barnard and an MS from Columbia in a combined five years.

Overview

Barnard students majoring or minoring in Computer Science are eligible to apply for the Computer Science 4+1 pathway during their junior year. Accepted students will be given a Barnard Computer Science 4+1 advisor and have access to Columbia MS advisors; they can work with their Barnard and Columbia advisors to determine a study plan to enable completion of the MS in their 5th year.

The Columbia CS MS requires 30 points (10 classes). The student should expect to take 24 of these points during her 5th year (8 classes). To ensure appropriate progress for completion of the MS in year 5, the student should take 6 points (2 classes) of advanced CS classes (4000-level) beyond the undergraduate requirements during her fourth year or a summer session. These should be chosen with the requirements of the CS MS in mind, ideally already focusing on a specific track within the MS.

Application requirements

To be eligible, a student must have a cumulative GPA of at least 3.50. To apply, students must submit: 

• Official transcripts 
• Personal statement Resume or CV 
• Contact information for three references 

No GRE test is required, and no application fee is required. Students apply in the Spring semester of their junior year, with an application deadline of February 15. Notifications of acceptance decisions are expected by the end of May. Students are expected to continue to maintain a GPA of at least 3.50.

Every Barnard student must learn to think technologically and digitally as part of the Foundations curriculum. Barnard’s core mission is to rigorously educate and empower women, providing them with the ability to think critically, discern, and move effectively in the world. The Foundations curriculum prepares our students to understand the innate value in testing and investigating ideas, and in building knowledge. It provides students with the breadth and depth of study central to an education in the arts and humanities and the natural and social sciences—with explorations of international and global learning; quantitative, qualitative, and empirical reasoning; and a distinct technology requirement that sets us apart.

Students can satisfy the "Thinking Technologically and Digitally” requirement through a variety of courses, including many computer science courses and courses in other disciplines.