Summer Session registration is now open for Session B!
Columbia University students can register through Vergil. Visiting student applications are now closed for Summer 2025.
Close alert
Course Requirements and FAQs
Course requirements information and frequently asked questions about the program are listed below. Students should contact the departmental representative with course-related questions.
Please note: the University reserves the right to withdraw or modify the courses of instruction or to change the instructors as may become necessary.
All summer courses must be taken for credit.
Course prerequisites are specified in the individual course descriptions.
Departments and individual instructors place prerequisites on courses to indicate the information or capabilities they will take for granted in the course. Students should take prerequisites seriously to prevent encountering academic difficulty in courses too advanced for them. Students without the stated prerequisites but with some equivalent coursework may apply to the departmental representative or the instructor for permission to take the course.
Students must obtain the appropriate signature on the registration form, a signed letter, or receive permission by email before they can register.
While making some adjustments in course material to allow for the summer format, instructors try to approximate the work of a normal semester.
Plan to spend two to three hours of study outside class for every hour spent in class. A three-hour class session could require up to nine hours of preparation.
Because summer courses are more intensive than academic-year courses, students are expected to attend every class meeting, including the first meeting.
The instructor should be notified in advance of any absences. If unforeseen circumstances cause a student to miss more than two class meetings, the student should consider withdrawing from the course. Individual instructors may impose their own more rigorous attendance requirements.
Students may not attend class unless they are officially enrolled, and a class cannot be added to a student's program after it has been completed.
Students are expected to attend their classes and laboratory periods. Instructors may take attendance into account in assessing a student's performance and may require a certain level of attendance for passing a course. Students are held accountable for absences incurred owing to late enrollment.
It is the policy of the University to respect its members' religious beliefs. In compliance with New York State law, each student who is absent from school because of his or her religious beliefs will be given an equivalent opportunity to register for classes or make up any examination, study, or work requirements that he or she may have missed because of such absence on any particular day or days. No student will be penalized for absence due to religious beliefs, and alternative means will be sought for satisfying the academic requirements involved.
Courses for Summer 2024 will be available in mid-December, with new offerings being added throughout the winter into early spring. Please check back for updates.”
Some classes have an enrollment cap. If you see a maximum number under the enrollment column and a number that matches that maximum number, the class is currently full. As the enrollment numbers fluctuate through the last day of Change of Program Period, we recommend checking this number periodically to see if there are changes. The system updates overnight to reflect the most up-to-date numbers.
Columbia cannot determine if a visiting student’s credits will transfer to their home institution. The student’s home institution is responsible for determining if the Columbia Summer Session credits will transfer to their degree requirements.
Waitlists are available for the summer term. If a preferred class is full, we encourage students to add themselves to the waitlist and enroll in an alternate course.Often students will change their courses through the last day of Change of Program and students can get into their first choice course.
Please reach out to the SPS Advising team at spsadvising [[at]] columbia [[dot]] edu. You may also contact the listed instructor to request a syllabus, if needed.
To speak with a Summer Session Admissions Counselor, email summersession [[at]] columbia [[dot]] edu (summersession[at]columbia[dot]edu) or call 212-854-9666 . To speak with an advisor, please email spsadvising [[at]] columbia [[dot]] edu.
