Residential Campus courses will primarily be held fully in-person. There will be a minimal number of Residential Campus courses held via Zoom (indicated with a “Z” prefix in the section code, e.g., Z01). No courses will be offered in a Hybrid format. All Residential Campus students are expected to live in the NYC/tri-state area this academic year in order to take some, if not all, classes in person at the Columbia campus.

The Online Campus will continue to offer fully online courses via Adobe Connect (indicated with a “D” prefix in the section code, e.g., D01).

Yes, residential students who are unable to move to New York City must be enrolled in the Online Campus to continue taking all their courses and pursuing field education remotely. Selecting a campus (Residential or Online) indicates that you are opting into that campus for the full academic year. The deadline to switch campuses is June 1, 2021.

Note: International students should refer to the INTERNATIONAL PROGRAMS section below.

Please refer to the Academic Calendar for registration dates. The Directory of Classes and registration information can be found at this link. Please contact our Office of Student Affairs (swstudentaffairs@columbia.edu) with any questions.

Entering students may take waiver exams to satisfy the requirements for the following courses: Research Methods, Social Welfare Policy, and Statistics. The minimum passing score is 70%. Note that information regarding the waiver exams is shared in the weeks prior to Orientation.

Students must fulfill the Statistics requirement in 1 of 3 ways:

Option #1: Complete T6505 (0 credits) Introduction to Statistics at CSSW (5-week course)

Students are required to complete this 0-credit course prior to their second year of study. In the course, students acquire the language of statistics and learn the basics of descriptive and inferential statistics. The emphasis of the course is on a conceptual understanding of basic concepts to aid in interpretation. Specific topics include descriptive statistics, standard errors, type I and type II errors, t-test, chi-square, and analysis of variance.

Students who will matriculate in the Fall (September) typically enroll in the section offered in September. However, students also have the option to enroll in the summer course that takes place in August, prior to the start of the fall term.

**Advanced Standing students MUST enroll in the course offered that begins in July.**

All students will be able to use their designated registration appointments to access the summer term and enroll in the summer statistics course.

Option #2: The Completion of Approved Prior Coursework

Students who have completed an approved Statistics course in their previous undergraduate or graduate studies may apply for a waiver of the Introduction to Statistics requirement. Students must have received a grade of B or greater in an approved course taken within four years of one’s first semester of matriculation at Columbia School of Social Work. Please complete the TRANSFER CREDIT FORM to have a course evaluated.

Option #3: Pass the Statistics Waiver Exam

The minimum passing score is 70%. Note that information regarding the waiver exams is shared in the weeks prior to Orientation.

(IMPORTANT: You must utilize your Admissions Application Login Information to access this form, NOT your Columbia UNI, and Password. If you have forgotten these credentials, please click “Forgot your Password” on the login page.)

Placements for the upcoming year may be in-person, remote, or a hybrid of the two. Please note: As in the past, practicum assignments for incoming fall students will be expected to continue for one year, whether remote or in-person.

All international students planning to be enrolled during the 2021-2022 academic year must be physically located in the NYC/tri-state area to enroll and engage in coursework and Practicum Learning.

If international students are not able to come to NYC/tri-state area for the Fall 2021 semester:

• New incoming students should reach out to the Office of Admissions (cssw-admit@columbia.edu) to inquire about deferral options.
• Continuing CSSW students should reach out to the Office of Advising (swadvising@columbia.edu) to inquire about taking a leave of absence.

Coursework

International students (i.e., not U.S. citizens or permanent residents) must enroll in in-person classes. Classes taking place fully online in Zoom or in Adobe Connect do not qualify as in-person classes. Per federal guidelines, international students are limited to enrolling in a maximum of one fully online course per semester.

Practicum Learning

practicum placements for international MS students will be in-person.

Our Office of Financial Aid is working with all incoming students to help them create plans for covering direct and indirect expenses associated with attending CSSW. We recommend students begin applying for loans in July for the 2021-2022 academic year in order to leave enough time for processing and adjustments prior to the beginning of the term. If you have any questions about your financial aid package, please get in touch with the Office of Financial Aid at swfinaid@columbia.edu.

Absolutely. The School will continue to review COVID-19 related appeals for emergency funds and tuition support. We encourage you to contact the Financial Aid team for guidance and help by email at swfinaid@columbia.edu.

Remote opportunities continue to be available for students receiving funding for Federal Work-Study positions. We encourage students to look for jobs throughout the university and not just at CSSW, in order to give themselves the greatest number of remote opportunities. Work-study positions that require in-person work are expected to increase during the 2021-2022 year.

If your admissions package included a Federal Work-Study award, you may seek research opportunities with CSSW faculty. Many of these positions will allow students to work remotely. Please contact the Office of Financial Aid (swfinaid@columbia.edu) for more information about FWS opportunities.

Yes; you may seek on-campus employment. Many opportunities will allow students to work remotely.

The School is not in the position to offer housing to all students, but we do provide housing guidance and/or resource referrals. For more information, please see https://housing.columbia.edu/.

Columbia’s Off-Campus Housing Assistance (OCHA) office assists Columbia students and affiliates in their search for rental housing in the metropolitan area. Office staff manage a database known as the Off-Campus Housing Marketplace which includes available rooms and apartments in non-Columbia-owned buildings as well as sublets of units in Columbia-managed housing. We encourage you to register here.

As in years past, students admitted to CSSW may request to defer their matriculation for one year. Students contemplating deferring are encouraged to reach out to a member of the Admissions team to discuss options.