Rumor has it that to get into one of these Ivy League institutions, you have to be kind of smart. But no matter how smart you are, everyone has to hit the books every once in a while (even if you are one of those annoying people who gets an A in Calculus without ever going to class). Proof? On a Friday night the local campus bars might feel a little empty, but some establishments around here (namely Butler, Avery, and Uris) are always throwing ragers in their main reading rooms.
For some of us, this whole 24-hour library party can seem a little foreign (personally, the only 24-hour party I’ve ever been to is Tom’s Restaurant). Lucky for you I’ve done the research, taken stock of the crowd, and even written a paper or two in the library in order to give you the lowdown on a few of Columbia University’s best study spots, Barnard-style.
Name: Butler Library
Location: Columbia Campus
Food: Java City Café. Desperate times call for desperate measures. You can’t study until 3 a.m. on an empty stomach. Java is a Starbucks-meets-gas-station-meets-packaged-sushi-meets-veggie-wraps kind of place.
Description: The biggest and the grandest. Butler definitely gives you that thrill of “I’m so collegiate”, and has a lot of old manuscripts that lead you to believe that the knowledge of past philosophers and historians might sink into your tired, overworked brain.
Scene: Almost everyone caves at some point in the school year and finds him or herself in Butler. Everyone. Columbia, Barnard, grad students, athletes, frat bros, mathletes, one time I swear I saw a homeless guy. It usually hosts a good mix because its central location makes the journey there short enough to bear in any weather, but long enough to give yourself a pep talk about how it’s totally fine that you haven’t started those three essays due tomorrow until tonight.
Name: Wollman “Lehman” Library
Location: Barnard Campus
Food: Vending machines in basement, so you probably want to bring your own snacks unless a salty bag of calories is your thing.
Description: Quaint and homey. The lack of marble floors and high ceilings makes Lehmann seem more high school than some of Columbia’s grandest study locations, but its manageable size makes tasks like printing and locating shelved books a lot easier.
Scene: Barnard women in Barnard sweatpants. The lone Columbia male who accidentally wanders into Lehmann usually vacates within the hour and we can go back to being hungover and cranky and revel in the fact that we scored a total win by choosing an all women’s institution.
Name: Uris Library
Location: Columbia Campus
Food: Café and deli. What says study snack better than a latte and turkey sandwich?
Description: Business casual. Uris is more modern than any of the original university buildings with lots of plasma screens that flash information in tiny letters so that only mutants with super-powered vision can see it without a magnifying glass.
Scene: Uris is the official library of the Business School, so a lot of grad students study there. Even though they mostly keep to themselves, there is always the hope that you’ll meet a totally hot future partner at McKinsey. There is the added bonus of being allowed to talk without fear of being knifed by an overworked Orgo student, so if oppressive silence makes you nervous and unable to concentrate, the background noise of Uris is a nice change.
Name: Diana Center
Location: Barnard Campus
Food: Liz’s Place Café, which now conveniently sells Starbucks coffee (can you say world domination? That stuff is everywhere) and upstairs cafeteria. Individual thin crust pizzas are always (a.k.a. once in a while) worth the wait!
Description: Big…and orange. When Columbia students ask which one is the Diana, I don’t even bother (how can you miss it?). The Diana Center is modern and bright and environmentally friendly and you can feel cool studying there because it won an architectural award for how awesome it is.
Scene: All of us who would rather die than sit in a real library, but need to get out of our dorm rooms enjoy the Diana. It is first and foremost a student center, so it has all these comfy chairs to study in that are soothing on your back that is sore from strutting around NYC in 5-inch stilettos all weekend.
Name: Northwest Corner Building (NoCo)
Location: Columbia Campus
Food: Joe Coffee. Great, except for when they run out of caffeine. Which apparently happens. Decaf coffee should just be illegal.
Description: The big, shiny one that blocks the sun from touching you on 120th St., NoCo is Columbia’s newest building and is definitely modern and state of the art. The coffee shop is bright and sunny and they usually play nice music in the background.
Scene: NoCo seems to attract of SEAS students, particularly wanna-be engineers. If you’re looking for someone to help you with your Calc problem set, these kids are probably your best bet. Also present in NoCo are the students who needed an extra far walk from their dorm rooms (doubtful if any 110th St. residents venture this far), and people who live in Plimpton, because it is the only place that is actually more convenient for them.
I hope this short guide is helpful as we approach midterms (already???) and that everyone stays calm and caffeinated in this time of stress. Hopefully you will be able to find your favorite spot and become friends with a maintenance staff member who will save you a seat during finals!