“An independent women's liberal arts college affiliated with Columbia University — exceptional academics, research excellence, and NYC access.”
Barnard College is one of the nation's most selective women's liberal arts colleges, founded in 1889 to provide women with the rigorous educational opportunities that Columbia University initially denied them. Located on a 4-acre campus on Manhattan's Upper West Side directly across from Columbia's main campus, Barnard gives students unparalleled access to one of the world's great cities while maintaining a distinct institutional identity and intimate 10:1 student-faculty ratio. Through its unique partnership with Columbia University, Barnard students can cross-register for Columbia courses, participate in Columbia student organizations, and compete in Ivy League Division I athletics through the Columbia-Barnard Athletic Consortium — making Barnard the only women's college offering Division I sports. The college is one of only five women's colleges among 216 research universities to earn the top Research Activity Designation. With a $503 million endowment and 50+ undergraduate majors, Barnard combines the intimacy of a liberal arts college with the resources of a world-class research university in the heart of New York City.
Visa, OPT, H-1B alumni outcomes, and acceptance rates by country — sourced from FOIA, USCIS H-1B Hub, and DHS SEVIS.
Forbes America's Top Colleges
Forbes 2025
Test Optional — You can submit scores if they help your case, but they're not required.
Official SourceEarly Decision
Binding; notification mid-December
Regular Decision
Notification late March; reply by May 1
The deep admissions playbook beyond the headline acceptance rate — round-by-round breakdowns, nationality data, requirements, and contact paths.
Tuition & Fees (All Students)
$73,730
/yr
Beyond the sticker price — every named scholarship, the financial aid policy, need-aware notes, and a personalized net-cost estimate.
How life on campus actually feels — clubs, sports, traditions, housing realities, and how the school integrates with its city.
Strong research-active programs with modern laboratories and emphasis on faculty-mentored undergraduate research. Students benefit from access to Columbia's science facilities.
Deep engagement in literary, philosophical, artistic, and cultural studies. The Slavic Studies program is particularly distinguished, offering instruction in six Slavic languages.
Strong programs emphasizing social systems analysis, policy research, and global issues through disciplinary and interdisciplinary lenses.
4 years
An integrative program providing strong background in the biological underpinnings of behavior and cognition. Students work directly with faculty researchers in state-of-the-art neuroscience laboratories, making it one of Barnard's most popular and distinguished majors.
4 years
A unique program partnered with Columbia offering instruction in six Slavic languages — Russian, Bulgarian, Czech, Polish, Serbian/Croatian/Bosnian, and Ukrainian — with particularly extensive Russian offerings. Includes literature, history, and cultural studies components.
Where alumni go after graduation — top industries, grad-school continuation, and the qualitative outcomes story.
Sticker price (annual, out-of-state): $69,888
Net-cost estimate is US-resident-only — international applicants are typically excluded from need-based aid at most schools and should treat the sticker price as the planning baseline.
