Columbia University Libraries is one of the top five academic research libraries in North America. The collections include over 13 million volumes and 160,000 journals and serials in addition to extensive electronic resources, manuscripts, rare books, microforms, maps, and graphic and audio-visual materials. The Libraries employs more than 400 staff members and hosts over 4.7 million visitors each year. 

SIPA students enjoy access to two dozen Columbia and affiliated libraries and associated centers—including Lehman Social Sciences Library in the International Affairs Building. Lehman Libary supports the research and teaching needs of the School of International and Public Affairs and selected academic departments. The facility was renovated in 2007 to add study space and contemporary technology learning tools, rendering it all but unrecognizable to students of previous eras. Read about Lehman Social Sciences Library.

 See More

E-Resources

CIAO (Columbia International Affairs Online)

Columbia International Affairs Online (CIAO) is the most comprehensive source for theory and research in international affairs. It publishes a wide range of scholarship from 1991 onward that includes working papers from university research institutes, occasional papers series from NGOs, foundation-funded research projects, proceedings from conferences, books, journals and policy briefs.

CIAO is also widely-recognized source for teaching materials including original case studies written by leading international affairs experts, course packs of background readings for history and political science classes, and special features like the analysis of a bin Laden recruitment tape with video.

CIAO Website

CU Numeric Data Collection

The CU Numeric Data Collection includes a wide range of social science topics, including over 7000 data studies and the ability to filter by author, time, geography, and more.

CU Numeric Data Collection Website

 

Columbia University Spatial Data Catalog

The CU Spatial Data Catalog is a joint effort by the Columbia University Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Working Group who maintain and contribute data, creating easier access to geospatial data for the Columbia University community.

CU Spatial Data Catalog Website

 

Economist Intelligence Unit

The Economist Intelligence Unit helps business leaders prepare for opportunity, empowering them to act with confidence when making strategic decisions.

Success when operating internationally means understanding how tomorrow will differ from today. From such insight comes opportunity. Our forecasting and advisory services have informed entrepreneurs, financiers and government figures around the world since 1946. Our coherent and impartial assessment of the future can be depended on to deliver the insight needed to succeed in a complex and changing world.

Economist Intelligence Unit Website

 

Libraries and Library Resources

Digital Humanities Center

Located in Butler Library, the Digital Humanities Center (DHC) is a research and instructional facility of the Columbia University Libraries designed to help Columbia faculty and students incorporate computer-based textual and bibliographic information into their research, study, and teaching.

Digital Science Center

The Digital Science Center in the Science & Engineering Library fulfills the vision of Columbia Libraries to consolidate and redefine library spaces for the 21st century. Working with the University Science departments, the Libraries have defined a set of services to meet the research and teaching needs of University science programs, with a focus on Biology, Chemistry, Physics, and Psychology.

Digital Social Science Center

Located in Lehman Library , the Digital Social Science Center (DSSC) brings together people, equipment, and information resources in an environment where users can work collaboratively, individually, or in consultation with a librarian and/or technology specialist. The DSSC also supports instruction and research that involve numeric and geospatial data resources.

East Asian Library (Starr)

Located in Kent Hall, the C. V. Starr East Asian Library is one of the major collections for the study of East Asia in the United States, with nearly 750,000 volumes of Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Tibetan, Mongol, Manchu, and Western-language materials and over 5,000 periodical titles.

Geology Library

Located in Schermerhorn Hall, the Geology Library's collection of over 93,000 volumes and 1,200 serial subscriptions is particularly strong in the areas of traditional terrestrial geology. Extensive collections of state and foreign geological surveys and societies go back to the 18th century. Subject areas collected include mineralogy, petrology, sedimentology, hydrology, stratigraphy, and paleontology.

Global Studies (formerly Area Studies)

Distributed throughout various libraries, Global Studies at Columbia consists of the following individual collections (see each library for region-specific information on collections, services and resources): African Studies , Jewish Studies , Latin American & Iberian Studies , Middle East & Islamic Studies , Russian, Eurasian & East European Studies , South & Southeast Asian Studies .

Health Sciences Library

Located in the Hammer Building on Columbia's Medical Center campus, the Augustus C. Long Health Sciences Library serves Columbia University's schools of medicine, dentistry, nursing, and public health, as well as other health care, instructional and research programs at the Columbia University Medical Center and the New York Presbyterian Hospital. The Library is one of the largest academic health sciences libraries in the country.

Jewish Theological Seminary Library (Columbia University Affiliate)

The Library contains a collection of core classic Judaic texts, standard works, commentaries, discourse, encyclopedias, concordances, dictionaries, atlases, indexes, festschriften and an extensive section of bibliographies in all fields of Judaica. It also houses over 1,000 periodicals, a music collection, and other educational resources.

Journalism Library

The Journalism Library features a small collection of reference books, circulating books, and current periodicals, as well as the most recent five years' of Master's projects completed by graduates of the School. Reference works include dictionaries, guides, handbooks, directories, atlases, and style and usage manuals.

Law Library

Located in Jerome L. Green Hall, the Arthur W. Diamond Law Library holds over one million volumes, including books, serials, and microforms. 200+ computers or LAN jacks and several wireless nodes facilitate access to extensive online subscription content.

Pages