Moved to PER – Please contact Chantel Hover (Cmh2255) for requests.

Visiting Scholars/Visiting Scientists

Faculty and researchers from other academic institutions or researchers or professionals from industry, museums, or other entities who want to use University facilities to pursue their own independent research with no collaboration with or mentorship from Columbia faculty or officers of research should be designated a visiting scholar/visiting scientist, depending on their field.

In exceptional circumstances graduate students enrolled in a degree-granting program in the Humanities, Social Sciences, or certain professional fields at another academic institution who want to use University facilities to pursue their own independent research for their Master’s thesis or doctoral dissertation without any collaboration, training, or mentorship from Columbia faculty or officers of research may be designated a visiting scholar/visiting scientist, depending on their field.

The Economics Department charges a non-refundable processing fee. The processing fee for Visiting Interns is $500 for up to 6 months and $1,000 for up to one year; these fees are not pro-rated. This fee is distinct from the $500 visa processing fee and the $3000 per month allowance for living expenses that are also required. Please note that application process can take up to 6 months.

1. Visiting Scholar/Intern Department Intake Form 
2. Scanned copy of your passport picture page (high-resolution scan, at least 600dpi)
3. Acceptable evidence to prove English language proficiency
4. Online Visiting Scholar Administration Fee Payment receipt for the $500 Columbia University J-1 Visiting Scholar fee. (Not to be paid until after provost approval)
5. Scanned wire transfer for the department’s non-refundable application fee.  Use the following bank routing information:

Bank Name: J. P. Morgan Chase Bank, Not for Profit Group

Bank Address: 270 Park Avenue, 43rd floor, New York, NY 10017

ABA#: 021000021

SWIFT: CHASUS33

Acct. Number: 091-006341

Ref: 4-30600-3600

For more information please visit:https://provost.columbia.edu/content/visitors  and https://isso.columbia.edu/content/sponsoring-and-extending-j-1-visiting-scholar

Until I have a confirmation that the wire transfer has gone through, I am unable to process any part of your application.

Recitation Scheduling Guidelines

Recitation scheduling takes place before the start of the Spring and Fall semesters. TAs must first coordinate with their course instructors and fellow TAs before submitting any scheduling requests. This coordination helps ensure accuracy and reduces the likelihood of rescheduling.

Any rescheduling will only occur after all TAs have received their room assignments.

Scheduling requests submitted by Friday at 12:00 p.m. each week will be sent to the registrar that same Friday afternoon.

• For example: If you submit a request on Monday at 2:00 p.m., it will be forwarded to the registrar that Friday.

• If you submit your request on Friday at 3:00 p.m., it will be sent the following Friday.

Please submit one form per recitation request. For instance, if you are requesting three recitation times, you must fill out and submit the form three separate times.

To reschedule a previously submitted request, you must send a direct email to EL3293@columbia.edu.

Before submitting your request:

• Ensure that all TAs are correctly listed under the appropriate course in Courseworks.

• If you are unsure of your course number, refer to your appointment letter.

• If you need assistance with any part of this process, feel free to reach out.

Once I receive the recitation assignments back from the registrar, I will distribute them promptly. Due to the high volume of submissions during this period, I’m unable to respond to individual status updates. Thank you for your understanding and cooperation.

SWIFT: CHASUS33

Acct. Number: 091-006341

Ref: 4-30600-3600

For more information please visit:https://provost.columbia.edu/content/visitors  and https://isso.columbia.edu/content/sponsoring-and-extending-j-1-visiting-scholar

Until I have a confirmation that the wire transfer has gone through, I am unable to process any part of your application.

Recruitment Candidate Reimbursements

This section is for recruitment candidates requesting reimbursement. Before your visit, please complete the PaymentWorks registration using the invitation sent to you from no-reply@paymentworks.com.

After your visit, submit your reimbursement request by completing the following form: https://forms.gle/fmY7ycD98Tv42ZRk6. Be sure to upload all relevant documentation and information.

Please note: delays may occur if the PaymentWorks process is not completed. We do not have the ability to edit or provide direct support for PaymentWorks.

Reimbursement Overview for
US Visitors to Columbia Economics
Before your Visit:

In order to be paid by Columbia, you must first become a vendor in our system. We will send you an invitation
through PaymentWorks to request a vendor ID.
● Please respond to the invitation immediately and follow the instructions, submitting the required
documents promptly.
In general, the process of becoming a vendor will take 3-7 weeks if all the information given is accurate. There
are further delays when the information presented online differs from the uploaded forms regarding the banking
information.

After your Visit:

Once your travel is complete, upload all receipts with proof of payment on the form provided above.
Receipts should include a notation of one of the following:
● “Cash Tendered”
● “Paid”
● A zero balance due
● Debit/Credit card payment (card type, last four digits of card and/or signature)
If no proof of payment is available in this form, a debit or credit card statement may also be provided. Please
black out any private or unrelated information.
Once all receipts have been submitted correctly and completely, the reimbursement process should take 2-3
weeks.

TA Office Hours Scheduling

TA office hours will be held in IAB 1006A, which requires advance reservation. Each TA will be assigned two 1-hour slots per week during the first few weeks to ensure that everyone has an opportunity to reserve space.

Please coordinate with each other when adjusting schedules. If you need to switch time slots, you must contact the other TA directly to confirm availability before making any changes.

To reserve your 1-hour time slot:

1. Visit https://rooms.asit.columbia.edu/account/login and log in with your UNI and password.
2. In the left-hand toolbar, select “Rooms”.
3. Under “Weekly View” (titled “Week Schedule”), use the dropdown menu to select “International Affairs”.
4. Search for and select Room 1006A.
5. Find your preferred time slot on the calendar. Hover over the desired day and click the “+” icon in the lower-right corner of the box.
6. In the window that appears, click the “Advanced” tab in the lower left corner and fill out the required fields.
7. Under “Title”, please enter your full name.
8. Use the “Repeat” dropdown to set your reservation as recurring.

Once you have submitted your request it will be placed in the pending queue. Note all reservations are at a first come first serve basis.

Scheduling Final Exam Review Sessions

In order to provide you with a faster and more efficient way to manage these reservations, the registrar will launch the new Course-Related Activities Initiative through EMS (our Classroom Scheduling platform).

This Reservations tool, offered through Virtual EMS, will allow you to view space availability in real time and then request Registrar-managed classrooms for Final Exam Review Sessions and for informal Discussions/Recitations (those that are not mounted in Course Management and that do not require official registration). The process of assigning classrooms to formal Discussion/Recitation sections will remain unchanged.

We recently piloted this new process with the Departments of Economics, History, and the Center for the Core Curriculum, and the response has been positive. We will therefore begin offering the Reservations tool this semester as an option for Departments and Programs to manage reservations for Final Exam Review Sessions. Department administrators have already been provisioned with access to virtual EMS. Suppose you are interested in being able to reserve and book your own spaces for review sessions, in that case, we encourage you to review the training material and start using the tool as soon as you receive requests for classrooms. We are offering office hours for training and questions, detailed below.

We have also provisioned instructors with access to the EMS tool in case they choose to manage some of their classroom requests independently.  We kindly request that you share this information with instructors within your Department who would prefer to use this tool. Please note access does not extend to Students or Teaching Assistants. 

The Reservations tool has gone live today, Tuesday, March 4th, and will allow you to book Registrar-managed classrooms during Study Days (Tuesday, May 6th, through Thursday, May 8th) only.

Although not recommended, if there is a need to schedule a Review Session during the Final Exam Period, please contact our team at registrar@columbia.edu. Note that we will not be able to confirm requests for space during exam days until the official Final Exam Schedule is finalized in April.

Important Details to Note:

• We have prepared a Step-by-Step Guide to Making a Reservation on Virtual EMS to support you through this transition. You can also find a PDF version attached.

• Please review this link for steps on Navigating Virtual EMS Calendar Views.

• View this page to find information about and photos of Registrar-Managed Classrooms.

Should you have any questions or need assistance, contact our team at registrar@columbia.edu or join us during our virtual hours on Fridays from March 7th  to May 2nd.

Office Hours:

Fridays at 2:00 p.m. to 3:00  p.m.

Virtual Office Hours Link 

https://columbiauniversity.zoom.us/j/94779265867

1. Go to this Google template: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1w8bnEEei0U5fYcOJXfA7ItdyXxnUGnQGJ4vFZrZE04Q/copy
2. Click “Use Template” to create your own copy.

Step 4

1. Go back to your Google Sheet
2. Click Extensions > Mail Merge > Start Mail Merge(If the Mail Merge option doesn’t appear, click Extensions > Apps Script to run or customize the script manually).
3. The script will pull data from the sheet and send personalized emails using your draft.

Final Notes: 

• Gmail sending limit: 500/day for regular users, 1500/day for Google Workspace users.

• Make sure your draft uses exact placeholders matching the Sheet’s column headers

Microsoft Mail Merge

Step 1: Prepare Your Excel Spreadsheet

1. Open Excel.
2. Create columns like:
   • First Name, Last Name, Email Address, Company, etc.
3. Save the file (e.g., contacts.xlsx).

Step 2: Start Mail Merge in Microsoft Word

1. Open Microsoft Word.
2. Go to the “Mailings” tab.
3. Click “Start Mail Merge” > “E-Mail Messages”.

Step 3: Connect to Your Excel File

1. Click “Select Recipients” > “Use an Existing List”.
2. Choose your Excel file.
3. Select the sheet that contains your data.

Step 4: Write Your Email in Word

1. Type your message.
2. Insert placeholders using “Insert Merge Field” (e.g., <<First Name>>, <<Company>>).

Example: