Begun in the early part of the 20th century, the Core Curriculum is one of the founding experiments in liberal higher education in the United States and it remains vibrant as it enters its tenth decade. Although many students regard the sole purpose of college to prepare them for a particular vocation, there are some tangible intellectual and economic benefits for all students enrolled in this kind of program.
The Columbia Core Curriculum is often described as the “essence” of a liberal arts education.

I think it's truly amazing that the Contemporary Civilization class involves readings from both the Bible and the Q'uran, but how in-depth are the conversations on global cultures?
I am looking over the Core Curriculum of Columbia and honestly it seems "too good to be true". The Core Curriculum was originally developed as the main curriculum used by Columbia University's Columbia College in 1919. The "Darnley Portrait" of Elizabeth I of England (c. 1575) (Wikimedia Commons) The Tudor & Stuart Dynasties Following the Reformation that swept through Europe and as a product of Henry VIII’s desire to divorce his first wife, Catherine of Aragon, in 1527, England split from the Roman Catholic church. Do Columbia students truly come out of these classes with a more global perspective? Today, customized versions of the Core Curriculum are also completed by students in the School of Engineering and Applied Science and the School of General Studies (the other two undergraduate colleges of Columbia University).