The origin story
Columbia in Tech started with a San Francisco brunch group of a dozen attendees in 2017. Six years later, we’ve grown to an all-volunteer organization that aims to connect, inform, and amplify alumni & current students interested in technology, across Columbia College, Columbia Engineering, Barnard College, and General Studies.
What do we do?
- Build a volunteer team of alumni and students dedicated to the cause, who serve as network “nodes” to connect individuals seeking specific expertise or opportunity
- Organize events and initiatives for alumni and students in the industry to build awareness and connection with each other
- Help our community to discover new opportunities, accelerate learning, and magnify each other’s needs and achievements.
Some of our programming and events include:
- Monthly newsletters with profiles of alumni, job opportunities, and community news
- Reunions in SF & NYC, bringing together 120+ alumni at each event
- Panels & speaker events
- Virtual alumni office hours
- Social events, from picnics and hikes, to brunches!
How we’ve grown
Today, Columbia in Tech has over 800 newsletter subscribers, roughly doubling from the year prior, and regularly hosts events in New York, San Francisco, and Boston attended by 120+ community members.
Our culture
At our best, we aspire to be entrepreneurial, collaborative, and human-centric.
- Collaborative (vs. Competitive) – We care most about the group’s success, and are willing to roll up our sleeves, irrespective of formal role, to contribute as needed
- Entrepreneurial (vs. Deliberative) – We learn quickly, ask for help, and have a history of taking action independently to make things happen
- Human-Centric (vs. Optimized for Volume) – We care about making the extra effort to help people connect and get to know each other in a meaningful way
- Community-First (vs. Leadership-Centric) – Our volunteer leadership is focused on being the most active members of an engaged community, not a separate community in ourselves