Summer Session (2026)
Summer Session (2026)
Summer Session (2026)
Summer Session (2026)
During Summer Session at Barnard, students can complete 3-credit or 4-credit courses across two 6-week periods.
| Session | Dates | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Summer Session A | May 26 – July 3, 2026 | Classes begin Tuesday, May 26 (Memorial Day observed May 25). |
| Summer Session B | July 6 – August 14, 2026 | Classes begin Monday, July 6. |
Registration opens March 3.
Students have the opportunity to take advantage of small class sizes, foster close relationships with faculty and peers, and experience summer in New York City. Participants may choose to live on campus (limited housing available) or commute to Barnard.
Session A: Course Offerings
| Course Number: | AFRS2005BC |
| Instructor: | Maja Horn |
| Schedule: | Monday and Wednesday, 9:00am - 12:10pm |
| Credits: | 3 pts |
| GER Requirements: | Satisfies Arts and Humanities; Thinking About Social Difference; Thinking Through Global Inquiry" Requirement |
| Course Description: | This course offers a chronological study of the Anglophone, Hispanophone, and Francophone insular Caribbean through the eyes of some of the region’s most important writers and thinkers. We will focus on issues that key Caribbean intellectuals--including two Nobel prize-winning authors--consider particularly enduring and relevant in Caribbean cultures and societies. Among these are, for example, colonization, slavery, national and postcolonial identity, race, class, popular culture, gender, sexuality, tourism and migration. This course will also serve as an introduction to some of the exciting work on the Caribbean by professors at Barnard College and Columbia University (faculty spotlights). |
| Note: | All Barnard students must register for Section 001 of the corresponding course. All Columbia students must register for Section 002. |
| Course Number: | AFRS3101BC |
| Instructor: | Monica L Miller |
| Schedule: | Tuesday and Thursday, 9:00am - 12:10pm |
| Credits: | 3 pts |
| GER Requirements: | Satisfies Arts and Humanities; Thinking About Social Difference; Thinking Locally - New York City; Thinking with Historical Perspective |
| Course Description: | This course explores the cultural contexts and aesthetic debates surrounding the Harlem or New Negro literary renaissance, 1920s to 1930s. Through fiction, poetry, essays, and artwork, we will consider the movement within the context of American modernism and African American cultural history, focusing on the relationship or tension between art/literature and socio-political change. Topics considered include: patronage, passing, primitivism, and the problematics of creating a “racial” art in/for a community comprised of differences in gender, class, sexuality, and geographical origin. In the summer of 2026, we will work with the Alexander Gumby Collection of Negroiana at the Columbia Rare Book and Manuscript Library to think through the era’s cultural history and the impact of different archival media on its historiography. |
| Note: | All Barnard students must register for Section 001 of the corresponding course. All Columbia students must register for Section 002. |
| Course Number: | AHIS2001BC |
| Instructor: | Jozefina Chetko |
| Schedule: | Monday and Wednesday, 9:00am - 12:10pm |
| Credits: | 3 pts |
| GER Requirements: | Satisfies Arts and Humanities Requirement |
| Course Description: | This course delves into drawing as an expansive, exploratory practice that underpins all forms of visual art. Designed primarily as a hands-on workshop, the class is enriched with slide lectures, video presentations, and field trips. Throughout the semester, students will engage in individual and group critiques, fostering dialogue about their work. Beginning with still life and progressing to drawings of artworks, artifacts, and figure studies, the course investigates drawing as a dynamic practice connected to a wide array of visual cultures. |
| Note: | All Barnard students must register for Section 001 of the corresponding course. All Columbia students must register for Section 002. |
| Course Number: | ARCH1010UN |
| Instructor: | Michael Schissel |
| Schedule: | Tuesday and Thursday, 1:00pm - 4:10pm |
| Credits: | 3 pts |
| GER Requirements: | Satisfies Arts and Humanities; Thinking Locally - New York City; Thinking Technologically and Digitally |
| Course Description: | How does design operate in our lives? What is our design culture? In this course, we explore the many scales of design in contemporary culture -- from graphic design to architecture to urban design to global, interactive, and digital design. The format of this course moves between lectures, discussions, collaborative design work and field trips in order to engage in the topic through texts and experiences. |
| Note: | All Barnard students must register for Section 001 of the corresponding course. All Columbia students must register for Section 002. |
| Course Number: | ARCH2013UN |
| Instructor: | Kadambari Baxi |
| Schedule: | Monday and Wednesday, 9:00am - 1:00pm |
| Credits: | 4 pts |
| GER Requirements: | Satisfies Arts and Humanities; Thinking Technologically and Digitally |
| Course Description: | This architectural design summer studio course explores modes of visualization, technologies of mediation, and spaces of environmental and material transformations. These explorations will be used as catalysts for architectural analysis and design experimentation. Introducing design methodologies that allow us to perceive and reshape spatial and material interactions in new ways, the studio will focus on how architecture negotiates, alters or redirects multiple forces in our world: physical, cultural, social, technological, political etc. The semester progresses through two projects that examine unique atmospheric, spatial and urban conditions with the aid of multimedia visual techniques; and that employ design to develop critical and creative interventions at different scales. Learning analog and digital drawing techniques, physical model-making, and multimedia image production, students will work in the studio and digital architecture lab. The course includes site visits and field trips in the city. NOTE: The course may be used to fulfill major requirements. It can replace: ARCH 2101 Architectural Design: Environment Mediations OR ARCH 2103 Architectural Design: Systems and Materials. OR students may use it as an additional optional studio course to complement their overall studies in the major. Preference will be given to students who have completed one studio course or Design Futures course. |
| Note: | All Barnard students must register for Section 001 of the corresponding course. All Columbia students must register for Section 002. |
| Course Number: | DNCE2665BC |
| Instructor: | Paul Scolieri |
| Schedule: | Tuesday and Thursday, 10:00am - 1:10pm |
| Credits: | 3 pts |
| GER Requirements: | Satisfies Global Core Requirement (Columbia College and General Studies); Arts and Humanities; Thinking Through Global Inquiry; Thinking with Historical Perspective |
| Course Description: | A survey of the major dance traditions of Africa, Asia, Europe, India, the Middle East, and the Americas. Lectures and discussions address primary written and visual sources, ethnographic and documentary films, workshops, and performances. |
| Note: | All Barnard students must register for Section 001 of the corresponding course. All Columbia students must register for Section 002. |
| Course Number: | EESC1007BC |
| Instructor: | Sedelia Rodriguez |
| Schedule: | Tuesday and Thursday, 1:00pm - 4:10pm |
| Credits: | 3 pts |
| Course Description: | In responding to the environmental issues we face today, it is critical to recognize the science behind them. This course will teach students the basic concepts in earth science/geology essential to understanding the mechanisms of our current climate crisis. These foundational concepts are crucial for any student who is interested in not only the natural sciences, but for those who wish to pursue careers related to environmental justice, sustainability, and other social science fields. Students will explore how and where natural resources form, as well as how we are rapidly depleting these reserves. Students will also learn about natural disasters and how these affect certain communities more than others. Students will gain an understanding of the formation of rocks and minerals and their economic significance. Students will be able to use the cumulative knowledge they gained during the first weeks of class to have a better understanding of the global climate issues we face and to use this information to conduct presentations on an environmental topic of their choice. The format of the course will be as follows: Primarily lecture, followed by class discussions, group activities and at least one lab component. |
| Note: | All Barnard students must register for Section 001 of the corresponding course. All Columbia students must register for Section 002. |
| Course Number: | ENGL1068BC |
| Instructor: | Penelope Usher |
| Schedule: | Monday and Wednesday, 9:00am - 12:10pm |
| Credits: | 3 pts |
| GER Requirements: | Satisfies Arts and Humanities; Thinking with Historical Perspective |
| Course Description: | Over the centuries, readers have been drawn to accounts of “true” crime—violent narratives involving real people and real events. And yet, as with any literary object, the notion of “truth” is always unstable—stories and their tellings are always shaped by the motivations, values, and choices of those who tell them, often with an eye toward the audience that will consume them. Whether constructed in order to moralize, to enforce or critique social or political ideologies, or purely to sell copies, “true crime” is a literary genre that reveals attitudes about gender, race, and class; that illustrates—and sometimes calls into question—cultural norms and mores; that calls on readers to reflect on their own morbid curiosity and assumptions and fears. In this class we will engage with a diverse selection of literary texts—spanning from the Middle Ages to the present day and from a range of genres, including pamphlets, plays, novels, and more—as well as contemporary films, a tv series, and a podcast. Through close reading and critical analysis, we will examine the evolution of the “true crime” genre and the cultural and societal contexts that shape the portrayal of crime for popular consumption. We will explore the ways in which texts and authors sensationalize, moralize, and convey the complexities of crime. We will analyze point of view: who’s telling the story, whom we sympathize with, and what insights we get into the minds of those committing crimes as well as those who fall prey to them. We will consider justice and policing— the role played by the law and its enforcers in shaping narratives about crime and punishment, right and wrong. Finally, we will reflect on the ethical implications of representing real-life crimes in literature, and how “true crime” narratives shape social perceptions, fears, prejudices, and notions of justice and morality. |
| Note: | All Barnard students must register for Section 001 of the corresponding course. All Columbia students must register for Section 002. |
| Course Number: | ENGL3106BC |
| Instructor: | Alex Watson |
| Schedule: | Tuesday and Thursday, 1:00pm - 4:10pm |
| Credits: | 3 pts |
| GER Requirements: | Satisfies Arts and Humanities |
| Course Description: | Writing sample required to apply for this course. For the application form and full instructions, please refer to the department page. In this workshop, we will practice taking creative risks, writing fiction and nonfiction. We will examine four key craft areas: voice, characterization, imagery, and arrangement, both in contemporary published writing and in the writing of the people in this class. In small and large group workshops, we will consider each writer’s work with care and attention to the writer’s vision. By discussing each work-in-progress on its own terms, we will help our fellow writers deepen the meaning and impact of their work. Through risk-taking, and building a creative community, we will also grow and deepen our personal relationships to craft. Model readings will be contemporary short stories or personal essays, mostly written in the first person, including work by Kali Fajardo-Anstine, Tony Tulathimutte, K-Ming Chang, Cleyvis Natera, Melissa Febos, Ling Ma, and Deesha Philyaw. |
| Note: | All Barnard students must register for Section 001 of the corresponding course. All Columbia students must register for Section 002. |
| Course Number: | HIST2321BC |
| Instructor: | Lisa Tiersten |
| Schedule: | Tuesday and Thursday, 1:00pm - 4:10pm |
| Credits: | 3 pts |
| GER Requirements: | Satisfies Arts and Humanities; Social Science; Thinking through Global Inquiry; Thinking about Social Difference; Thinking with Historical Perspective |
| Course Description: | Examines the shaping of European cultural identity through encounters with non-European cultures from 1500 to the post-colonial era. Novels, paintings, and films will be among the sources used to examine such topics as exoticism in the Enlightenment, slavery and European capitalism, Orientalism in art, ethnographic writings on the primitive, and tourism. |
| Note: | All Barnard students must register for Section 001 of the corresponding course. All Columbia students must register for Section 002. |
| Course Number: | HIST3508BC |
| Instructor: | Andrew Lipman |
| Schedule: | Monday and Wednesday, 1:00pm - 4:10pm |
| Credits: | 3 pts |
| GER Requirements: | Satisfies Social Science; Thinking Locally -- New York City; Thinking with Historical Perspective |
| Course Description: | This class is not a “pre-history” of the modern metropolis, but rather a stand-alone story of Gotham’s growth from a tiny Dutch trading post in the midst of hundreds of Native villages into a key port of the first British Empire. We will close at the dramatic moment when the colonial society at the tip of Manhattan was torn apart and partially destroyed in the inter-imperial civil war we know as the American Revolution. Even when its skyline was made of wooden masts and steeples, New York City was a diverse and dangerous place. Major topics will include frontier wars, slave conspiracies, religious revivals, and conflicts between the legitimate and contraband economies. All along, we will try to balance local and global perspectives, and blend social, cultural, political, and economic analyses. The course will also consider this colonial town’s place in American national memory, and critically approaching the many self-congratulatory and silly stories people like to believe about this long-lost island town. The central texts in this course are a combination of secondary sources and primary texts. Our weekly meetings will mostly focus on the assigned reading, with each student submitting six (6) short reading responses on Courseworks before 9 am on the day of class. Students will also develop an original fifteen-to-twenty-page research paper on a colonial New York topic of their own choosing, and will be strongly encouraged to use archival resources held at Columbia or one of the city’s other major archives (NYPL, N-YHS, NMAI, Schomburg Center, Municipal Archives). |
| Note: | All Barnard students must register for Section 001 of the corresponding course. All Columbia students must register for Section 002. |
| Course Number: | MATH1301BC |
| Instructor: | Lindsay Piechnik |
| Schedule: | Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, 4:30pm - 6:05pm |
| Credits: | 3 pts |
| Course Description: | Material includes the study of limits, derivatives, and applications of derivatives, as well as an introduction to integrals. Success in this course requires intense commitment to study and collaboration both in and out of class, along with active participation during class, and the ability to follow both written and verbal directions. The overarching objective of the course is for students to develop conceptual fluency and computational competence working with limits, derivatives, and their applications. Students will enhance their quantitative reasoning, particularly through interpreting/analyzing charts and graphs in the study of limits and derivatives. Problem solving skills will be augmented through applied word problems, particularly relating to optimization, related rates, and graphing. Writing justifications/explanations for answers on all graded work will expand students' ability to clearly communicate mathematical ideas in writing. While collaborative projects will advance their ability to do so orally and visually. |
| Note: | All Barnard students must register for Section 001 of the corresponding course. All Columbia students must register for Section 002. |
| Course Number: | MATH1303BC |
| Instructor: | Chris Ivanov |
| Schedule: | Tuesday and Thursday, 5:30pm - 8:40pm |
| Credits: | 3 pts |
| Course Description: | Prerequisite for Calc III is Calc I. For exam placement, refer to the department page. To develop a conceptual understanding of the fundamental principles of multivariable differential calculus and explore their practical relevance to other branches of natural and social sciences. Students will enhance their critical thinking by using 3D graphical tools and engaging with three dimensional representations of curves, surfaces and solids. Writing justifications/explanations for answers on all graded work will expand students' ability to clearly communicate mathematical ideas in writing. Problem solving skills will be augmented through applications in physics and real world problems involving the dynamics of movement, and optimization problems involving multiple inputs (parameters) The sequence of topics covered is as follows.
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| Note: | All Barnard students must register for Section 001 of the corresponding course. All Columbia students must register for Section 002. |
| Course Number: | NSBV BC2006 |
| Instructor: | Luca Iemi |
| Schedule: | Tuesday and Thursday, 1:00pm - 4:10pm |
| Credits: | 3 pts |
| GER Requirements: | Satisfies 3 credit Science Lecture or Lab Requirement |
| Course Description: | Mental disorders have historically been distinguished from other medical illnesses because they affect the higher cognitive processes that are referred to as the “mind”. Neuroscience offers one way for understanding mental disorders, asserting that the mind is a manifestation of brain activity, thereby categorizing these disorders as essentially brain disorders. This course explores the ongoing search for the brain correlates of mental disorders and the significant impact this search has had on our contemporary understanding of mental health. Engaging with review and research papers on schizophrenia, autism spectrum, and mood disorders, students will learn to interpret experimental evidence in Neuroscience and to evaluate known theories through both supporting and non-supporting evidence. While the course acknowledges neuroscience's progress in understanding mental disorders, it also considers some of the problems encountered in viewing them as essentially biological phenomena: Can brain-based explanations capture the lived experience of mental disorders? Could these disorders also originate from outside the brain? How should they be treated, and should they be always treated? |
| Registration Note: | All Barnard students must register for Section 001 of the corresponding course. All Columbia students must register for Section 002. |
| Course Number: | POLS2001BC |
| Instructor: | Kian Tajbakhsh |
| Schedule: | Tuesday and Thursday, 1:00pm - 4:10pm |
| Credits: | 3 pts |
| GER Requirements: | Satisfies Social Science; Thinking through Global Inquiry |
| Course Description: | This course introduces students to international relations through the lens of world order— how it emerged, how it operates, and why it is now under strain. Students examine how power, institutions, law, domestic politics, and leadership shape cooperation and conflict among states. Rather than treating international relations as abstract theory, the course emphasizes concrete puzzles: why wars occur despite their costs, why democracies rarely fight one another, and why rules sometimes constrain powerful states and sometimes fail, and international law is often weaker than many might expect. The course also explores competing visions of world order, including American, European, Chinese, Islamic, African, and Non-Aligned perspectives, especially in the context of deglobalization. In the final weeks, students apply these ideas to the U.S.–China rivalry and to existential challenges such as nuclear war and environmental stress. The course is designed for students from all majors and emphasizes analytical reading, clear argumentation, and informed discussion of contemporary global politics. |
| Note: | All Barnard students must register for Section 001 of the corresponding course. All Columbia students must register for Section 002. |
| Course Number: | POLS3011BC |
| Instructor: | Marjorie Castle |
| Schedule: | Monday and Wednesday, 1:00pm - 4:10pm |
| Credits: | 3 pts |
| GER Requirements: | Satisfies Social Science Requirement; Thinking Through Global Inquiry |
| Course Description: | When is violence used against noncombatants for political purposes and what is the impact of such violence? This course focuses on political violence by individuals and groups, whether or not is sanctioned by a state. We will examine a variety of explanations for such violence, including rationalist, psychological/emotion-based, and organizational approaches. We will also discuss the impact of political violence: Does it get the job done, so to speak? Does violence move terrorist groups closer to their goals? Does indiscriminate violence by the state spur rebellion or suppress insurgencies? Does insurgent violence against civilians make them more or less effective? Our focus on just two questions—why does this violence happen and what is its impact?—allows us to explore how social scientists explore such questions. Students will learn how to approach academic journal articles and book chapters—identifying the authors’ purposes and the different sections, and figuring out what they may gain from their reading. They will distinguish between critiques of a theoretical claim based on its logic and premises and critiques based on empirical evidence. They will understand what it means to evaluate theoretical tools on the basis of their usefulness for understanding how things work. They will practice explaining new cases (and predicting their outcomes) using these theoretical tools. |
| Note: | All Barnard students must register for Section 001 of the corresponding course. All Columbia students must register for Section 002. |
| Course Number: | POLS3730BC |
| Instructor: | Michael Miller |
| Schedule: | Tuesday and Thursday, 5:30pm - 8:40pm |
| Credits: | 3 pts |
| GER Requirements: | Satisfies Social Science; Thinking Quantitatively and Empirically; Thinking Technologically and Digitally |
| Course Description: | This course explores techniques to harness the power of ``big data'' to answer questions related to political science and/or American politics. Students will learn how to use R--a popular open-source programming language--to obtain, clean, analyze, and visualize data. No previous knowledge of R is required. We will focus on applied problems using real data wherever possible, using R's ``Tidyverse.'' In total, in this course we will cover concepts such as reading data in various formats (including ``cracking'' atypical government data sources and pdf documents); web scraping; data joins; data manipulation and cleaning (including string variables and regular expressions); data mining; making effective data visualizations; using data to make informed prediction, and basic text analysis. We will also cover programming basics including writing functions and loops in R. Finally, we will discuss how to use R Markdown to communicate our results effectively to outside audiences. Class sessions are applied in nature, and our exercises are designed around practical problems: Predicting election outcomes, determining the author of anonymous texts, and cleaning up messy government data so we can use it. |
| Note: | All Barnard students must register for Section 001 of the corresponding course. All Columbia students must register for Section 002. |
| Course Number: | PSYC1101BC |
| Instructor: | Mariel Roberts |
| Schedule: | Monday and Wednesday, 1:00pm - 5:00pm |
| Credits: | 4 pts |
| GER Requirements: | Satisfies Thinking Quantitatively and Empirically |
| Course Description: |
Prerequisites: PSYCBC1001 Introduction to Psychology or its accepted equivalent. An introduction to the study of abnormal behavior and various psychological disorders such as depression, schizophrenia, anxiety disorders, eating disorders, and personality disorders. The course broadly reviews scientific and cultural perspectives on abnormal behavior with an emphasis on clinical descriptions and diagnosis, etiology, treatment, and research methods. The following Columbia University course is considered overlapping and a student cannot receive credit for both the BC course and the equivalent CU course: PSYC UN2620 Abnormal Behavior. |
| Note: | All Barnard students must register for Section 001 of the corresponding course. All Columbia students must register for Section 002. |
| Course Number: | PSYC2141BC |
| Instructor: | Michael Wheaton |
| Schedule: | Tuesday and Thursday, 9:00am - 12:10pm |
| Credits: | 3 pts |
| GER Requirements: | Satisfies 3 credit Science Lecture or Lab Requirement; Social Science Requirement |
| Course Description: |
Prerequisites: PSYCBC1001 Introduction to Psychology or its accepted equivalent. An introduction to the study of abnormal behavior and various psychological disorders such as depression, schizophrenia, anxiety disorders, eating disorders, and personality disorders. The course broadly reviews scientific and cultural perspectives on abnormal behavior with an emphasis on clinical descriptions and diagnosis, etiology, treatment, and research methods. The following Columbia University course is considered overlapping and a student cannot receive credit for both the BC course and the equivalent CU course: PSYC UN2620 Abnormal Behavior. |
| Note: | All Barnard students must register for Section 001 of the corresponding course. All Columbia students must register for Section 002. |
| Course Number: | PSYC2177BC |
| Instructor: | E'mett McCaskill |
| Schedule: | Tuesday and Thursday, 5:30pm - 8:40pm |
| Credits: | 3 pts |
| GER Requirements: | Satisfies 3 credit Science Lecture or Lab Requirement |
| Course Description: | Prerequisites: BC1001 or permission of the instructor. The aim of this course is to critically examine the complex interaction of biological, psychological and environmental factors which impact the etiology, symptoms, and treatment of substance abuse and dependence. The course focuses on those drugs which have abuse and dependence potential with specific emphasis on Alcohol and the Depressants, the Psychostimulants, and the Opiates. A primary objective is to provide insight into factors which contribute to challenges with substances for some individuals and to better understand their felt and lived experience with drugs. The course begins with a review of theoretical perspectives including disease, behavioral, cognitive, social learning, psychodynamic, and neurobiological models. The physical, psychological, and socio-cultural effects/impact of each major class of drug will then follow. Within each category, we will also discuss controversial issues related to each drug for example: methadone maintenance, needle exchange programs, Ritalin/Adderall abuse, the “opiate epidemic.” Throughout the course, case histories, film documentaries and memoirs will provide personal accounts of the drug experience. We conclude the course with an overview of treatment interventions. |
| Note: | All Barnard students must register for Section 001 of the corresponding course. All Columbia students must register for Section 002. |
| Course Number: | THTR2200UN |
| Instructor: | Kara Feely |
| Schedule: | Monday and Wednesday, 1:00pm - 4:10pm |
| Credits: | 3 pts |
| GER Requirements: | Satisfies Arts and Humanities; Thinking Locally -- New York City; Thinking with Historical Perspective |
| Course Description: | This course explores the history and practice of Site-Specific Performance in New York City from the 1960’s to the present, focusing on theater, but also touching on the fields of music, dance and interdisciplinary performance. How have artists been inspired by New York City’s architecture, street life, natural environment, and rich cultural history to make performances that reach outside traditional performance venues? What practical, artistic, economic, and social concerns shape this kind of impulse? In what ways have artists repurposed existing spaces for artistic activity, and in some cases, permanently transformed a site? This is a studio course in which students gain inspiration from notable examples of site-specific artworks in New York City, while also engaging in a series of hands-on activities and site-specific performance assignments which will be presented on the Barnard campus. Throughout the six-week session, students will venture off campus to view ongoing site-specific artwork, visit spaces claimed and permanently transformed by artists, and attend a site-specific performance. A secondary, but equally important goal of the course is to give students agency in creating their own performances within limited means, and turning the chronic limitations of space, funds, and personnel into strengths and creative opportunities. |
| Note: | All Barnard students must register for Section 001 of the corresponding course. All Columbia students must register for Section 002. |
| Course Number: | URBS2003UN |
| Instructor: | Kian Tajbakhsh |
| Schedule: | Tuesday and Thursday, 9:00am - 12:10pm |
| Credits: | 3 pts |
| GER Requirements: | Satisfies Social Science; Thinking through Global Inquiry |
| Course Description: | Urbanism reflects the global shift from agricultural to predominantly urban societies, in which people’s primary relationships are increasingly shaped by proximity to one another rather than proximity to land. This course examines the political and economic forces that shape cities and evaluates how urbanization affects human welfare in both the Global South and Global North. The course is designed as an intensive summer seminar meeting six times for extended sessions. |
| Note: | All Barnard students must register for Section 001 of the corresponding course. All Columbia students must register for Section 002. |
| Course Number: | URBS3253BC |
| Instructor: | Noah Allison |
| Schedule: | Monday and Wednesday, 1:00pm - 4:10pm |
| Credits: | 3 pts |
| GER Requirements: | Satisfies Social Science; Thinking About Social Difference; Thinking Locally - New York City |
| Course Description: | Culinary practices are intricate to how urban spaces are experienced in everyday life. This course explores the nuanced ways food practices transform global cities worldwide. It investigates how personal preferences of food shape social, cultural, and spatial boundaries. Throughout the course, students will analyze urban spaces in global cities from an intersectionality theory of capitalism lens to consider how power structures shape culinary practices in terms of race, gender, sexuality, citizenship, class, ethnicity, language, religion, caste, ability, and diet. For instance, immigrant cooking and eating practices help define ethnic enclaves. And gourmet food trucks for the middle-class can become tropes for spurring gentrification. Analyzing global North and South cities, course themes focus on the politics of street food, food trucks, restaurants, markets, farmers’ markets, food deserts, food assistance programs, urban farming and agriculture, gastronomic gentrification, and food delivery services. This course comprises a mixture of active teaching strategies, short lectures, a film, and several field trips throughout New York City. By the end of the course, students will garner a deep understanding of how food and societies influence, and are shaped by, contemporary global cities. |
| Note: | All Barnard students must register for Section 001 of the corresponding course. All Columbia students must register for Section 002. |
Session B: Course Offerings
| Course Number: | ENGL1022BC |
| Instructor: | Ross Hamilton |
| Schedule: | Monday and Wednesday, 1:00pm - 4:10pm |
| Credits: | 3 pts |
| GER Requirements: | Satisfies Arts and Humanities |
| Course Description: | This seminar reads stories of love gone bad, of romances that end catastrophically, that damage lovers or leave victims along the way. We will illuminate the consuming fantasy of the romance genre in its quest for “true love,” as well as a range of emotions – rage and revenge, narcissism and self-protection, obsession and oblivion – that surface in its wake. We will also look at shifting interpretations of “bad love,” from Plato, to the Galenic theory of the humors, to the sociology of court-culture, to Freudian and finally contemporary neurobiological explanations of feelings. Students are welcome to propose texts of their own interests to open this course to the widest range of interests. In addition to seminar discussion, there will be weekly individual tutorials with Professor Hamilton as well as zoom interviews with a neurobiologist and a psychologist if it can be arranged. |
| Note: | All Barnard students must register for Section 001 of the corresponding course. All Columbia students must register for Section 002. |
| Course Number: | AHIS2017BC |
| Instructor: | Jozefina Chetko |
| Schedule: | Monday and Wednesday, 9:00am - 12:10pm |
| Credits: | 3 pts |
| GER Requirements: | Satisfies Arts and Humanities; Thinking Locally - New York City; Thinking Technologically and Digitally |
| Course Description: | Today’s cell phones are equipped with cameras that far surpass those used by the pioneers of digital photography, offering superior resolution and multi-sensor capabilities that revolutionize how we capture and process images. This course explores the creative and technical potential of smartphone photography, focusing on accessible tools and workflows that empower students to produce compelling digital works. The curriculum emphasizes post-production and digital media techniques over traditional camera mastery. Students will develop foundational skills in Adobe Suite applications, including Lightroom and Photoshop for photo editing and After Effects and Premiere for video production. We will also discuss the integration of artificial intelligence in modern photography, examining how AI enhances editing processes and opens new creative possibilities. A significant part of the course will address fundamental questions of light in photography, the use of RAW formats—offered by many smartphones but seldom understood—and the structure of digital image files. Students will also learn about post-production techniques for preparing images for print, as well as for projection or display on digital screens, ensuring a comprehensive understanding of the end-to-end digital photography workflow. Thinking Locally: Street photography serves as a central theme in this course, encouraging students to document the vibrant life of New York City through weekly assignments. A guided photo walk in Harlem will provide hands-on experience in capturing unique, candid moments. Ethical considerations will be a key focus, addressing topics like consent, privacy, and best practices for interacting with subjects. Discussions will be complemented by readings, critiques, and a guest lecture from a professional street photographer. By the end of the course, students will have transformed their understanding of smartphone photography, creating works that push the boundaries of accessible technology while building a strong foundation in contemporary digital media. |
| Note: | All Barnard students must register for Section 001 of the corresponding course. All Columbia students must register for Section 002. |
| Course Number: | BIOL3359BC |
| Instructor: | JJ Miranda |
| Schedule: | Tuesday and Thursday, 9:00am - 2:00pm |
| Credits: | 4 pts |
| GER Requirements: | Satisfies Science; Science with Lab; Thinking Quantitatively and Empirically; Satisfies Thinking Technologically and Digitally |
| Course Description: | This is an intermediate lecture plus laboratory course focusing on using virtual reality to study human anatomy. Selected topics will emphasize physiological function and cellular mechanisms. The course is organized around a systems-based framework to the study of human anatomy. Lectures will also emphasize the clinical correlates and case studies of disease. All anatomical systems will be explored using a virtual reality laboratory. Potential examples include the skeletal, muscular, arterial, venous, lymphatic, nervous, respiratory, digestive, urinary, endocrine, reproductive, and integumentary systems. This course engages students with the contemporary and emerging field of virtual reality. Students will use and critically analyze advanced virtual and augmented reality technologies through scientific analysis and experimentation. This course will also expose students to empirical analysis and structural models of anatomy for problem solving. Students will develop basic competence in the use of deductive methods involving biological mechanisms of clinical disease. |
| Note: | All Barnard students must register for Section 001 of the corresponding course. All Columbia students must register for Section 002. |
| Course Number: | DNCE3500BC |
| Instructor: | Paul Scolieri |
| Schedule: | Tuesday and Thursday, 10:00am - 1:10pm |
| Credits: | 3 pts |
| GER Requirements: | Satisfies Arts & Humanities; Thinking Locally--New York City; Thinking with Historical Perspective |
| Course Description: | This course explores the intertwined histories of Broadway and New York City, examining the theater as both a cultural stage and a lens for imagining urban life. By analyzing landmark musicals and plays set within the five boroughs, students will investigate how the "Great White Way" reflects shifting social landscapes and operates as a central pillar of the city's economics, tourism, and cultural identity. Students will engage with the material through traditional lectures and screenings, supplemented by immersive field experiences including museum, archive, and theater tours. |
| Note: | All Barnard students must register for Section 001 of the corresponding course. All Columbia students must register for Section 002. |
| Course Number: | ENGL2336BC |
| Instructor: | Wendy Schor-Haim |
| Schedule: | Monday and Wednesday, 1:00pm - 4:10pm |
| Credits: | 3 pts |
| GER Requirements: | Satisfies Arts and Humanities Requirement |
| Course Description: | What is this course about? Well, it’s about witches…but what are witches about? Witches are about gender, sexuality, morality, fear, and authority, among other things. For millennia, female spirituality and female sexuality have been paired in ways that reveal deep-seated anxieties about the female body and its power. From ancient Mesopotamian goddess worship to the frenzied witch hunts of early modern Europe to the child-devouring crones of folk tales from cultures around the world, we’ll delve into what the witch and those who name and pursue her reveal about deeply-held cultural beliefs, desires, and anxieties. We’ll work together to analyze the figure of the witch across time and space and develop our own ideas about why she is so constantly compelling. We’ll also look at our own sociocultural moment and connect what we learn about witches to the world around us. |
| Note: | All Barnard students must register for Section 001 of the corresponding course. All Columbia students must register for Section 002. |
| Course Number: | FILM1020BC |
| Instructor: | Ross Hamilton |
| Schedule: | Monday and Wednesday, 5:30pm - 8:40pm |
| Credits: | 3 pts |
| GER Requirements: | Satisfies Arts & Humanities; Thinking Locally--New York City |
| Course Description: |
This course will explore the representation of New York City in film. We will examine the way that film portrays social problems and either creates or responds to “social panics.” We will also examine the way in which film actively creates an idea of “New York” through cinematography, directing, acting and other aspects of filmmaking. Some topics to be considered are utopia/dystopia, race, ethnicity, class, gender, sexuality, art, immigration, houselessness, and gentrification. The course follows three main themes:
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| Note: | All Barnard students must register for Section 001 of the corresponding course. All Columbia students must register for Section 002. |
| Course Number: | PSYC3383BC |
| Instructor: | Armita Ghobadi |
| Schedule: | Monday and Wednesday, 1:00pm - 5:00pm |
| Credits: | 4 pts |
| Course Description: | This discussion-based seminar explores how bilingualism shapes the developing brain, cognitive processes, communication, and cultural identity. Students will engage with research from psychology, linguistics, neuroscience, and anthropology to understand how bilingual experiences differ across individuals, communities, and cultures. Through weekly reflections and student-led discussions, we will examine both foundational theories and contemporary debates, including the bilingual advantage, code-switching, gesture, neuroplasticity, language socialization, bilingualism in autism, and sociopolitical dimensions of bilingualism. |
| Note: | All Barnard students must register for Section 001 of the corresponding course. All Columbia students must register for Section 002. |
| Course Number: | URBS3100UN |
| Instructor: | Andreina Torres Angarita |
| Schedule: | Tuesday and Thursday, 1:00pm - 4:10pm |
| Credits: | 3 pts |
| GER Requirements: | Satisfies Social Science; Thinking through Global Inquiry |
| Course Description: | This seminar examines the social, economic, and political landscapes of Latin American cities and the Latinx urban experience through ethnographic analysis. It explores key themes such as rural to urban and transnational migration, urban poverty, theories of “marginality” and informality, violence and urban segregation, grassroots movements, urban citizenship and neoliberal urban governance. Students will read ethnographies to gain an in-depth understanding of how cities are lived and experienced, while we delve into theoretical debates important in the field of Latin American urban studies and Latinx studies. The course unsettles the category of Latin America, to introduce a discussion of the “Latinization” of U.S. cities, and engages the history and lived experience of Latinxs in New York City as a prime example of this phenomenon. We will interrogate ethnographic, audiovisual materials (included to complement the readings) and lived experience, from a postcolonial perspective. This means, discussing the politics of knowledge production and representation, the impact of colonialism in transnational flows of knowledge and labor, the contributions to urban theory from the perspective of cities located in the Global South, and the active efforts of Latinxs in New York city to transform space and carve out spaces of self-representation and sovereignty. |
| Note: | All Barnard students must register for Section 001 of the corresponding course. All Columbia students must register for Section 002. |
Registration & Enrollment
General Policies
Courses are offered exclusively for academic credit; auditing is not permitted during the summer term.
Enrollment is processed on a rolling, first-come, first-served basis. Because seats are not reserved for specific majors or class years, we strongly encourage early registration to secure your placement. Upon the start of the term, all registered students are granted access to CourseWorks, our learning management system, to access syllabi and materials.
Registration Procedures
| Student Type | How to Register | Important Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Barnard Students | Register via Vergil. | You must register for Section 001 of your selected course. |
| Columbia Students | Register via Vergil. | You must register for Section 002 of your selected course. Note: Columbia students taking Barnard classes must follow Barnard Academic & Billing Policies during the summer term. |
| Visiting Students | Registration Link will be posted in early March. | Requires a $500 non-refundable deposit per course to finalize registration. Once registered, the Summer Team will provide your login credentials. |
| High School & Pre-Baccalaureate | Apply via the Pre-Bacc Website. | Credit-bearing courses are open to rising juniors, seniors, and incoming first-years in Summer Session B only. |
Visiting Student Deadlines & Details
Visiting students (those not currently enrolled at Barnard or Columbia) must adhere to the following registration deadlines for Summer 2026:
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Session A: Register by April 15
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Session B: Register by June 1
Housing: Limited campus housing is available for visiting students.
Course Access: If you do not have a prior affiliation with Barnard or Columbia University, our team will generate and send your login credentials directly to you upon the completion of your registration and deposit payment.
International Student Requirements
International students from Columbia University or those visiting from other undergraduate institutions may only register if they currently hold an F-1 visa or another visa status that permits study in the United States.
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Existing F-1 Visa Holders: If you are currently in the U.S. on an F-1 visa, please contact your Designated School Official (DSO) to clarify any visa questions regarding summer enrollment.
Barnard students can apply for housing through the Summer Housing application opening in the Spring of 2026. Housing cannot be guaranteed for all participants.
Tuition & Fees
Summer Session tuition is assessed at the 2025-2026 per-credit rate of $2,389.
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Cost Estimate: For a standard 3-credit course, the total tuition cost is $7,167. (Note: This calculation reflects tuition only and does not include housing, dining, or other student fees.)
Housing & Health Services
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Housing Rates: Fees for summer campus housing are established by the Office of Residential Life and Housing and will be published in late Spring.
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Health Services Fee: Access to Primary Care Health Services (PCHS) is determined by your residential status.
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Residential Students: This fee is mandatory for all students living on campus.
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Commuter Students: This fee is optional. Commuting students may choose to pay this fee to gain access to PCHS during the summer term.
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Financial Assistance
Barnard Students
Limited financial assistance is available for current Barnard students who received a financial aid award during the 2025-2026 academic year. There is no formal application process; instead, you will be automatically assessed for summer aid eligibility based on your academic year family contribution immediately upon registering for a Barnard Summer Session course.
Please note that this financial aid applies exclusively to tuition costs and is not available for expenses associated with summer housing or meal plans. If you have questions regarding your family contribution or current aid status, please refer to your most recent financial aid award letter or contact the financial aid office at finaid@barnard.edu.
Visiting Students
Financial aid is not available through Barnard for students visiting from other institutions. We encourage you to contact the financial aid office at your home institution to inquire about potential funding or consortium agreements for summer study.
Accessibility Resources & Disability Services
The Center for Accessibility Resources & Disability Services (CARDS) serves students with permanent and temporary disabilities (examples of various disability types include visual, mobility, hearing, chronic medical illnesses, learning, ADD/ADHD, psychological, and cognitive conditions).
CARDS works to support students with disabilities and ensure that reasonable accommodations are made to provide programmatic and physical access. CARDS encourages all students with visible or invisible disabilities to self-identify and register with their office. Specific information about requesting accommodation during Summer at Barnard is available on the CARDS website.
Questions? Contact cards@barnard.edu.
Dining on Campus
Barnard Dining offers two distinct dining options during the summer term to accommodate your schedule and tastes.
Locations & Hours
| Location | Hours | Experience |
|---|---|---|
| Liz’s Place (Diana Center) |
Mon–Fri: 8:30 AM – 2:00 PM | Coffee, tea, and grab-and-go snacks. Toiletries are also available for purchase. |
| Hewitt Dining (Barnard Hall) |
Mon–Sat: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner Sun: Brunch, Dinner |
All-you-care-to-eat facility. Summer students may pay at the door; no meal plan is required. |
Dietary Accommodations
Our dining options are designed to be inclusive. Hewitt Dining is a pork-free and reduced-nut facility that utilizes only Halal meats. We offer a certified Kosher in-house dining program, as well as robust vegan, vegetarian, and gluten-avoidance options (please check the dietary icons at each station).
Liz’s Place also stocks grab-and-go items suited for various dietary needs.
Contact Us
All students interested in Summer Session should email summersession@barnard.edu for assistance.