spectrum: the shaft

After a major transition in work and living accommodations for students amidst the COVID-19 crisis, Barnard has extended its housing registration deadlines to allow students more time to form groups. Columbia housing registration dates have not been changed and registration is already in full swing. If you are planning on living on campus this year, make sure to keep the following deadlines in mind, so you do not lose your chances at housing.

The housing registration period is starting, and as you’re scrambling to figure out where and with whom you’ll be living next year, you might have overlooked that the housing registration process is completely changing this year for Columbia. Housing registration will now be online and there will not be any in-person registration appointments. To help you navigate these changes, Spectrum is here to guide you through the Shaft, which has added new features to adapt to these new rules.

Thursday marked the end of in-person housing selection for all groups of rising seniors and rising juniors. For the remaining rising juniors and all rising sophomores, the options include—but are not limited to—600 W. 113th (Nussbaum), McBain Hall, Broadway Hall, Schapiro Hall, and Wien Hall, as well as some remaining suites in Ruggles Hall and Carlton Arms.

Listen up, rising juniors! Today marked Day Two of Columbia’s in-person housing selection, with all rising seniors and some mixed groups having chosen their homes for the next year.

Housing selection for Columbia College and SEAS students officially began yesterday! Today marked the first day of in-person housing selection and the majority of seniors have already chosen their dorms for next year, mostly opting for East Campus, Hogan, Watt and Woodbridge. If you want to stay updated throughout the day, check out Shaft Live as well as the liveblog.

Happy first day of in person housing selection for Columbia! Stay updated via Shaft Live , and get the inside scoop from John Jay Lounge with the Shaft liveblog!

Finally. After three years of housing wins and woes, you’ve made it to the pinnacle of Columbia Housing Room Selection: 30 glorious, hard-earned points of selection priority. Whether you’ve had your heart set on that one East Campus townhouse you stepped foot in during September of first year or have been patiently awaiting a blissful one-bedroom in Watt Hall, it’s good to reacquaint yourself with your options before heading into the final Room Selection of your college years.

Each year, more students will be in the housing lottery than spaces available—meaning that as a sophomore, you might not find any available spaces if you have a bad lottery number. Don’t freak out yet! We can assure you that Columbia will not leave you out on the streets next year, which is why the Columbia Sophomore Waitlist and Barnard Guaranteed List were put in place to ensure housing for those unlucky sophomores stuck with no available rooms.

‘Tis the season for housing selection. After finally deciding who you want to room with next year, you and your group are probably compiling a checklist of all of the things you want in a living space. It might be a specific social scene or location, or renovated facilities. Your group may want to live in a modern NYC high-rise or a more classic, trashy college dorm. Here is an updated list of recent dorm renovations and future projects at Columbia to help your group decide.