Complaints Regarding Distance Education

Students enrolled in both the Online or NYC-based campuses follow the same policies and procedures for addressing student grievances, should any such issues or concerns arise while studying at Columbia. Information on how to file grievances, either academic or non-academic, can be found here.

Additional information on Distance Education Complaints can be found here.

Student consumer complaints against an institution operating under SARA must first go through the institution’s own procedures for resolution of grievances. Students should first address complaints to the school within Columbia where they are registered.

Student consumer complaints regarding programs at Columbia School of Social Work should be directed to [email protected].

Complaints regarding student grades or student conduct violations are governed entirely by institutional policy and the laws of New York state. If a person bringing a complaint is not satisfied with the outcome of the institutional process for handling complaints, the complaint (except for complaints about grades or student conduct violations) may be appealed, within two years of the incident about which the complaint is made, to the SARA Portal Entity in the home state of the institution against which the complaint has been lodged.

Andrea Richards
Supervisor, Higher Education Programs
New York State Education Department
89 Washington Avenue
Albany, NY 12234
518.474.1551
[email protected]

Additional information about complaint procedures can be found here: