Welcome to the Slavic Department
Slavic Studies
"I'm not sure there's another department here that also offers the combination of translation competitions, close-knit holiday parties with authentic cuisine, its very own Slavic folk band, dedicated professors that feel like family, and trips to art museums, plays, and musical performances."
- Sarah Wallstrom, Barnard Slavic Major Class of 2019
"Every class I've taken in the Slavic department has opened up a new world for me. Beyond even the immense practicality of learning the Russian language – there are hundreds of thousands of Russian-speakers in NYC alone...The contextual approach that Slavic literature courses take has provided me with the skills necessary to interact with a variety of disciplines."
- Greta Schatz, Barnard Slavic/Linguistics Major Class of 2020
"Majoring in Russian Language and Literature is one of the best choices I have ever made. I get to work with professors who are not only brilliant but profoundly moved and inspired by what they study. My major helped me to discover who I am both in and out of the classroom, to connect to my culture, and to pursue my passion (with a little help from my friends Tolstoy and Dostoevsky)."
- Anya Konstantinovsky, Barnard Slavic Major Class of 2020
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Our Mission
The Slavic department prides itself on giving students a strong foundation in language study, which serves as invaluable preparation for future graduate work in literature, history, economics, or political science, as well as for careers in government, business, journalism, or international law. The Barnard-Columbia Slavic Department offers academic instruction in six Slavic languages and literature (Russian, Bulgarian, Czech, Polish, Serbian/ Croatian/ Bosnian, and Ukrainian), with particularly extensive offerings in Russian. Four majors are available to students in the Barnard Slavic Department.