Columbia University Archives: Alumni Search

University Archives

Butler Library postcardColumbia University Archives
Rare Book & Manuscript Library
Butler Library, 6th Floor
535 West 114th Street
New York, NY 10027

Phone: (212) 854-3786
Fax: (212) 854-1365
E-mail: uarchives@columbia.edu

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Related Collections

Barnard College
The Barnard Archives and Special Collections serves as the final repository for the historical records of Barnard College, from its founding in 1889 to the present day. For more information, please contact archives@barnard.edu.

Health Sciences Library
The Archives and Special Collections at the Augustus C. Long Health Sciences Library of Columbia University can help you find information about the schools of the Medical Center: College of Physicians & Surgeons, School of Nursing, College of Dental Medicine (formerly the School of Dental & Oral Surgery), Mailman School of Public Health, and the College of Pharmaceutical Sciences. For more information, please contact hslarchives@columbia.edu.

Alumni Search

How to find former students

If you are looking for a former student at Columbia University, here are the most popular sources available online.

  • Columbia University Alumni Register 1754-1931
    Containing 99,721 names of both graduates and non-graduates from 1754 through 1931, the Alumni Register of 1932 lists for each former student: name, academic connection with Columbia (degree, class, school), and often one address and occupation as of 1931. For earlier editions of the register and related resources, see the Alumni Directories and Registers finding aid.
     
  • Student Directories
    Staff and student directories, from 1893-1894 to 1943-1944, can be found in the back of the yearly Catalogues of Officers and Students. The Catalogues often include student registers (list of students in each division or school) and lists of degrees conferred.
     
  • Columbia Spectator
    The student newspaper, from 1877 to 2015, has been scanned and is easily searchable online. For other student and alumni publications, visit our Publications page.
     
  • Columbia Alumni News
    Published by the Alumni Federation of Columbia University, this alumni magazine was published from 1909 to 1957. CAN included class notes, obituaries, features on alumni (including short Who's Who bios), information about class reunions and the latest news about life on campus, from academics to sports. Issues from 1910 to 1948 are available online.

For additional information, see our selection of websites and documents available online in the Columbia History Resources page.

Here are some additional sources readily available online to help you find information about former Columbia students:

If you are looking for a former student at Columbia University, here are the most popular sources. Please note that these are non-circulating materials available only at the Rare Book & Manuscript Library (RBML) reading room.  In order to use the University Archives collections at the Rare Book & Manuscript Library (RBML), visitors are required to register their own Special Collections Research Account before their visit and to validate the account in person with government-issued photo identification or Columbia ID card. Once you have created your Special Collections Research Account, you will be able to request the boxes directly from the finding aid or from the CLIO online library catalog record. For more information on how to access our collections, check out our Research & Access website.

  • Historical Biographical Files
    Compiled by the Columbiana curators and University Archives staff, this collection contains information on alumni, faculty, officers and other notable Columbians. You can request materials directly from HBF Finding Aid: click the check box located on the right for the box(es) you need, and then scroll back to the top of the container list document and click “Submit Request” button in the red-rimmed box at top. This should lead you directly to your Special Collections Research Account to complete the request form.
     
  • Directories of Officers and Students
    The University Archives has paper copies of the staff and student directories from 1893-1894 to 2005-2006. When requesting the Directories from CLIO, the online library catalog, look for the University Archives holdings on the right, and click on "Request: Special Collections." This should lead you directly to your Special Collections Research Account to complete the request form. When requesting the directories, please specify the academic year and/or summer session.
     
  • Yearbooks, Facebooks and Class Books
    You can find the University Archives holdings for all the years and all the Columbia schools in the Yearbooks, Facebooks and Class Books finding aid. To request any of these publications, you will need to use your Special Collections Research Account.  
    • Yearbooks are published every year and include information about the students enrolled and the activities students engage in such as athletic teams, debating societies, publications, performing arts groups, fraternities and other social organizations. Early yearbooks provide only lists of names. You can find both digital and paper volumes in the Yearbooks, Facebooks and Class Books finding aid. 
    • Facebook is the more common name of the freshman student directory. This publication is similar to a yearbook with photographs of the individual students, short biographical sketches (high school and hometown), and campus directory information; but it is created to familiarize new students with their fellow classmates when they are still relatively new to campus. You can find facebooks for Columbia College, Engineering, Barnard and SIPA in  Yearbooks, Facebooks and Class Books finding aid. 
    • A Class Book summarized the class's progress and adventures during their four years at Columbia. These are sometimes called class books, class histories, and even senior year books. These volumes can also include student lists (e.g., student organization rosters), commencement speeches, class poems and songs, biographical sketches of individual class members, and, in some, photographs. There are also class minutes, directories, newsletters and reunion materials in this collection, mostly from Columbia College from the 1860s to the 1920.  You can find the class books in the Yearbooks, Facebooks and Class Books finding aid. 

If you have any questions on how to request any of the yearbooks, please reach out to uarchives@columbia.edu

For more information about our complete yearbook holdings, see our Collections Overview description on yearbooks, facebooks and class books. To learn more about how to access our collections, check out our Research & Access website. If you have any questions about how to find materials, please contact uarchives@columbia.edu.

Here are some additional sources for finding former students.  Please note that these are non-circulating materials available only at the Rare Book & Manuscript Library (RBML) reading room

In order to use the University Archives collections at the Rare Book & Manuscript Library (RBML), visitors are required to register their own Special Collections Research Account before their visit and to validate the account in person with government-issued photo identification or Columbia ID card. Once you have created your Special Collections Research Account, you will be able to request the boxes directly from the finding aid or from the CLIO online library catalog record. For more information on how to access our collections, check out our Research & Access website.

  • Alumni Directories 
    Over the years, the University Archives has collected a number of alumni registers and directories, both from the University as a whole and from the individual schools (Architectures, Business, Columbia College, Engineering, General Studies, Journalism, Law, etc.) . To see the complete listing with instructions on how to request each of these volumes, see the Alumni Directories and Registers finding aid.
     
  • Alumni Federation Cards
    A collection of index cards kept by the Alumni Federation, these records contain degree and year for alumni as well as information about their lives after Columbia: occupation, addresses, milestones, etc. There are two alphabetical sequences in this collection: those alumni who were still living and those whom the Federation was notified that they had passed away. If the last name can be found in two boxes (one from each sequence), request both. You can request materials directly from Alumni Federation Cards Finding Aid: click the check box located on the right for the box(es) you need, and then scroll back to the top of the container list document and click “Submit Request” button in the red-rimmed box at top. This should lead you directly to your Special Collections Research Account to complete the request form.
     
  • Central Files
    If the alum you are researching received an honorary degree from the University or was a significant donor, you will likely find related correspondence in this collection of administrative files emanating from the Office of the President. If you do not find a folder under the name of the individual, you will need to look for relevant correspondence in a box containing the appropriate letter(s) and the date range you need to look at. For example, if an honorary degree was received in June 1939, you will want to look in a folder dated 1938-1939 for the name you are seeking.  Keep in mind, each letter of the alphabet is divided into chronological groups.  For example, files labeled A-Az for 1930-1931 are followed by the A-Az files for 1931-1932 and so on. You can request materials directly from Central Files Finding Aid: click the check box located on the right for the box(es) you need, and then scroll back to the top of the container list document and click “Submit Request” button in the red-rimmed box at top. This should lead you directly to your Special Collections Research Account to complete the request form.
     
  • Class Photograph Albums Collection, 1856-1902
    A collection of photo albums representing the faculty and graduating classes of Columbia College (now known as Columbia University in the City of New York), and more specifically, the School of Arts (the undergraduate college now known as Columbia College). While the majority of the albums represent Columbia College, there are a few from other Schools including: the School of Law, the School of Mines, and the School of Music. You can request materials directly from Class Photograph Albums Finding Aid: click the check box located on the right for the box(es) you need, and then scroll back to the top of the container list document and click “Submit Request” button in the red-rimmed box at top. This should lead you directly to your Special Collections Research Account to complete the request form.
     
  • Columbia College Today records, 1954-2022
    This collections contains the photographs and some research files kept by the Columbia College Today staff and used for the production of the alumni magazine. There are photographs of former students (not from their student days), class reunions, faculty and administrators, and Columbia campus views and events. This collection includes a series of alumni files, which may include photographs, articles, newspaper clippings, press releases, memorial invitations, obituaries, and correspondence.
     
  • Commencement Collection, 1758-
    The Commencement Collection contains primarily printed material, such as programs, tickets, and pamphlets concerning the Columbia University graduation ceremonies. You can request materials directly from Commencement Collection Finding Aid: click the check box located on the right for the box(es) you need, and then scroll back to the top of the container list document and click “Submit Request” button in the red-rimmed box at top. This should lead you directly to your Special Collections Research Account to complete the request form.
     
  • School of Engineering biographical records, 1926-1927
    In 1926 a questionnaire was mailed to all graduates and former students of the engineering schools: School of Mines, Engineering and Chemistry. The questionnaire asked for biographical information and a professional record. The biographical section asked about education (high school, college and professional courses and degrees) and their college record (athletics, publications, societies, class offices). For the professional record, respondents were asked to complete a work history to their current position, including years, character of work, field of work, organization and notable achievements for each entry. About 3,500 questionnaires were sent to graduate and former students and yielded 1,203 replies. The forms are organized alphabetically by the last name of the former engineering student and are bound into 9 volumes. You can request materials directly from the School of Engineering biographical records finding aid: click the check box located on the right for the box(es) you need, and then scroll back to the top of the container list document and click “Submit Request” button in the red-rimmed box at top. This should lead you directly to your Special Collections Research Account to complete the request form. The surveys were compiled into the Schools of Mines, Engineering and Chemistry, Columbia University : alumni catalogue (1928) also available at the University Archives.

  • Intercollegiate Athletics and Physical Education records, 1890-2015
    This collection includes the Athletic Information Cards, which are sets of index cards with student-athlete information, from the 1940s to the 1990s. Organized roughly by date, each set contains cards with the students' biographical details (hometown, school and class year) and a record of their participation in Columbia Athletics. There are also game rosters and statistics from the 1910s to the 1980s.

  • Columbia Oral History Archives
    The Columbia Center for Oral History (CCOH) was founded by History professor and journalist Allan Nevins in 1948 and is credited with launching the establishment of oral history archives internationally. At over 15,000 interviews, the Oral History Archives is one of the largest oral history collections in the United States. You can find interviews with individuals who are or were Columbia alumni, faculty and staff in their research guide or use the library catalogue CLIO to search their collections.

To learn more about how to access our collections, check out our Research & Access website. If you have any questions about how to find materials, please contact uarchives@columbia.edu.

For Employment Verification

Columbia University has authorized the National Student Clearinghouse (703-742-4200) to respond to requests for degree and non-degree verifications for students from 1910 to the present. Clearinghouse is Columbia's contractual third-party vendor for this type of service.

Dates of Attendance and Degree Information

The University Registrar's Office can confirm attendance dates and graduation information via e-mail at registrar@columbia.edu but are unable to provide information about what classes students took or what grades they received while enrolled at Columbia. Please note that the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) (20 U.S.C.  1232g; CFR Part 99) is a Federal law that protects the privacy of student education records. For living students, schools must have written permission from the parent or eligible student in order to release any information from a student's educational record. For deceased students one usually has to show legal proof of a familial relationship or be the executor of the estate.

Release of Academic Information for Deceased Students

The following requirements protect the confidentiality of academic information upon the death of a former student or alumnus of the university. The Office of the University Registrar will evaluate each request for the release of a transcript or other academic records of a deceased student on the individual merits of that request and reserves the right to deny the request in whole or to release only part of the academic records that are requested. The Office of the University Registrar does not release academic records of deceased students to the news media or for research purposes.

The closest living next-of-kin may submit a written request along with the following notarized documents in English:

  1. Birth certificate of requestor
  2. Death certificate of former student or alumnus

If there is no living next-of-kin, academic records may be requested by the executor of the estate or holder of power of attorney for the deceased. A written request along with a notarized copy of the executor statement or power of attorney in English is required. Documents must be mailed to:

Columbia University
Office of the University Registrar
205 Kent Hall, Mail Code 9202
1140 Amsterdam Avenue
New York, NY 10027 

Teachers College
If you are looking a former Teachers College student, please contact Sandra Afflick, Assistant Registrar for Operations and Records at  Teachers College (sa2623@columbia.edu) and request that the office confirm attendance dates, graduation date, degree earned and the subject area of the degree for the individual.

About the image

Students at the College Library Reading Room (Scan #3069). Historical Photograph Collection, University Archives, Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Columbia University Libraries.