Student and Alumni Profiles

In honor of Veterans Day, GS is featuring a number of students and alumni who have served in armed forces around the world. Nearly 500 military veterans are currently enrolled at GS—21 percent of the School's student body. 

The School of General Studies traces its commitment to veterans back to 1947. Today, with nearly 500 veterans enrolled at GS, Columbia boasts the highest undergraduate veteran student enrollment in the Ivy League.

Tickets are now on sale for the 10th annual Columbia University Military Ball, the premier event uniting veterans across the University community, with discounts available for GS students through the end of the year. Proceeds support programming for veterans and military family members nationwide while strengthening support services for the 700+ veterans enrolled at Columbia.

Registration is open to all students for the spring 2020 6 week zero-point workshop in Narrative Medicine; GS UN0007, Section 001, Call Number 11428 - "Narrative Medicine Workshop" taught by Dean Andrew Sunshine.

GS students looking for an interesting spring 2020 course should consider ENGL UN3738: Philanthropy and Social Difference. Taught by GS Dean of Academic Affairs Victoria Rosner, this course is for anyone interested in how philanthropy changes the lives of both donors and recipients – for better and for worse. 

After a childhood spent in Cuba and a military career focused on combat training, Jorge Pintado took an unexpected route into an Ivy League education—a place he never thought he would end up. Today, he is exploring his personal and familial background as a Latin American and Caribbean studies major on his way to pursuing a graduate degree in international studies or law.

The School of General Studies strives to create a supportive environment that addresses the specific needs of veteran students who, in addition to acclimating to a new academic environment, are faced with adjusting to civilian life.

In 2015 the School of General Studies partnered with the Moody's Corporation to create the Moody’s Veteran Program, an initiative designed to improve opportunities for veterans and ease their transition into the workforce. Through the partnership, qualified veteran students at the School are awarded scholarships and provided mentorship, internship opportunities, and other career-related guidance that can positively impact their journey beyond the military.

GS student Rachel Ballew is no stranger to manual labor or arduous conditions, having served in the U.S. Marine Corps for nearly ten years. Last spring, a GS alumnus told her about a water infrastructure project in Morocco whose mission was to provide a sustainable, accessible water source for remote areas. Ballew immediately wanted to learn more.

At Columbia University, the support provided to veterans extends well beyond the Morningside Campus gates. And at the School of General Studies, the veteran experience doesn’t end with graduation.

Dual BA Program student Abby Edwards spent her whole life in Charleston, South Carolina. Though she focused on creative pursuits including theatre, modeling, photography, and yoga, she felt limited by her education and hometown. When she learned of the Dual BA Program, Edwards jumped at the opportunity for an international education experience.

For as long as she can remember, Quinn Houlahan has been curious about the world. Her deepening curiosity and desire to experience the world first-hand has since led her to the Trinity College campus in Dublin, Ireland through the Dual BA Program. Through immersion in the university’s community, Quinn has been able to continue pursuing hobbies of the past while discovering new interests in a different part of the world.

A difficult childhood and a learning disability led Thierry Senechal to turn away from academia at an early age. After traveling and working all over the world for several years, though, Senechal was ready to pursue an education in the United States where he discovered the School of General Studies. Senechal graduated from the School in 1992 and went on to devote his career to public service and humanitarian efforts through field work and the United Nations.

The Program, which will welcome its inaugural class in the fall of 2020, transcends traditional study abroad opportunities by providing the opportunity to pursue a rigorous undergraduate liberal arts education spanning two continents. Upon completion of the four-year program, graduates earn two bachelor’s degrees, one from each institution. 

Stephanie Hart '12CC, ’15PBPM is now a third-year medical student at the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, and is planning on pursuing a career in pediatrics. But medical school wasn’t always the plan.

The School of General Studies is seeking a student to work as a communications assistant.

After graduating from Johns Hopkins University in 2013, Jeremy Orloff found himself working for a government lobbying firm in New York City. Though he enjoyed many aspects of his work, an experience with the illness of a family member led him to conclude that his true purpose was in medicine.

Beginning in the new year, the GS Academic Resource Center will be moving to the northwest corner of Broadway and West 111^th Street.  All tutoring, coaching, and academic support sessions will take place in the new location beginning this spring. More information will be shared in the coming weeks.