Tel Aviv University, Columbia Launch Dual Degree Program

Tel Aviv University (TAU) and Columbia University announced on Thursday the launch of a dual undergraduate degree program.

The program’s inaugural class will begin in Fall 2020.

Students who complete the joint four-year program will receive a Bachelor’s degree from each of the universities. For the first two years, students will study in Tel Aviv, where they will be able to take courses in the Humanities and Life Sciences, as well as Innovation and Entrepreneurship, before completing the liberal arts degree at the Columbia University of General Studies in Manhattan.

The dual degree program will be open to Israeli and American students, as well as students from all over the world.

“This is the first time that an Israeli university is collaborating with an elite American institution to offer a dual undergraduate program of this kind,” said TAU Vice President Prof. Raanan Rein, “I am very happy about this opportunity for students from Israel, the USA and other countries, to enjoy cross-cultural learning at two leading universities, enriching their learning experience, and giving them different perspectives on the main challenges faced by humanity today, and a real advantage in planning their professional lives.”

Columbia University said that while their undergraduates have many opportunities to study in Israel, at institutions like Ben-Gurion University of the Negev and Hebrew University in Jerusalem, the program “transcends traditional study abroad opportunities by providing the opportunity to pursue a rigorous undergraduate liberal arts education spanning two continents.”

“I am especially excited about our partnership with Tel Aviv University, which is consistently ranked among the best academic institutions worldwide,” said Prof. Lisa Rosen-Metsch, dean of the Columbia University School of General Studies, “By giving students the opportunity to study full time at a top-tier university in the Middle East before bringing them to study in the Ivy League, they will not only benefit from being immersed in a wide range of cultures and experiences, but will also make an immense contribution to the Columbia undergraduate classroom.”