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Seth Low Junior College was an extension of Columbia University, which was meant to more adequately serve the educational needs of Brooklyn. Columbia had been offering pre-med courses in Brooklyn since 1916 as part of the University Extension. The courses, using the facilities of the Long Island College Hospital in Brooklyn, were offered during the day and were open to both men and women. In 1925 the University Extension started offering pre-law liberal arts courses in the rooms of the Brooklyn Law School to prepare students to join those professional schools. The Seth Low Junior College was established to meet "a growing demand for collegiate courses which would prepare students for entrance to professional schools." (Spectator, 3 April 1928) The two-year community college was named after Columbia's 11th president and former Mayor of Brooklyn, Seth Low.
The school had the same requirements for entry, the same Columbia faculty, and even charged the same price of tuition as Columbia College. While they had their own library, zoology and psychology laboratories, lecture halls and classrooms, Seth Low Junior College students still had to travel to the Morningside campus for chemistry and physics courses. By 1930-1931, students could even take Contemporary Civilization A on the Brooklyn campus. Students who completed the non-degree, two-year program could go on to enroll in the professional schools (such as Architecture, Business, Engineering, Journalism, Medicine, Law, Library Service, Optometry, etc.). Others could remain for three years and pursue the liberal arts at the Morningside campus as "University Undergraduates" (not Columbia College students). Graduates would receive Bachelors of Science degrees in General Studies (instead of Bachelors of Arts degrees). The demographic makeup of the Seth Low Junior College student body was predominantly Jewish and Italian. With the opening of Brooklyn College in 1930 (free tuition), enrollment at Seth Low dropped off. The Junior College operated from 1928 to 1936.
Identification of specific item; Date (if known); Seth Low Junior College records; Box and Folder; University Archives, Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Columbia University Libraries.
This collection was processed by Kelly Powers CC 2018. Finding aid written by Joanna Rios in October 2018.
There are additional materials in the
This collection consists of the few surviving records of the Seth Low Junior College. It includes the minutes of the Administrative Board (1928-1936), student activity photographs (possibly for inclusion in a yearbook), equipment inventories (in preparation to leave the facilities in the Brooklyn Law School and the Plymouth Institution to move to Morningside), and correspondence from administrators and alumni. There are records related to the receipt and use of tax free alcohol in the school's laboratories. There is also information about the students, in particular those applying to medical schools: test scores, class rankings, recommendations, application forms, etc. The materials also include information about closing of the school and the registration information for the remaining students.
Reproductions may be made for research purposes. The RBML maintains ownership of the physical material only. Copyright remains with the creator and his/her heirs. The responsibility to secure copyright permission rests with the patron.
Director's reports to the President of the University
Assistant to the Director in charge of Extramural courses (and formerly Acting Director of Seth Low Junior College). The correspondence, after the College closed, includes reference letters for former students, replies to information and/or bulletin requests, gift accounts, and registration/enrollment certification.