Campus

Report

Columbia Marriage Pact · 2025 ·

Columbia. It’s nice to see you. We come bearing gifts.

We thought we’d share a bit about Columbia’s romantic playing field——just so you know what you’re up against.

And this time, we’re trying something new. See exactly how you and your friends compare to everyone at Columbia. Don’t let the power get to your head.

Our analysis is built upon anonymized and aggregated data from the Columbia Marriage Pact. It will never be sold or shared for commercial purposes. You can read more about our principles and practices here.

Maybe it is a

You Problem

For the first time in Columbia Marriage Pact history, see how you stack up against your ~~romantic prospects~~ fellow classmates. Maybe it really is you, after all. Much to think about.

Major

breakdown

Your major, your concentration, your greatest disappointment to your parents. Sit back and enjoy judging all the majors that aren’t your own.

Physics majors would rather fail a test than cheat

Gold star! Here’s how different majors answered the question: “I would rather fail an exam than cheat on it”

	Strongly disagree Strongly agree
	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
Physics	0.08	0.13	0.18	0.10	0.22	0.15	0.13	x̄=4.22	n=60
Philosophy	0.05	0.17	0.26	0.10	0.10	0.17	0.17	x̄=4.19	n=42
Sociology	0.08	0.10	0.18	0.23	0.18	0.13	0.10	x̄=4.13	n=39
Computer Science	0.13	0.18	0.23	0.17	0.12	0.10	0.08	x̄=3.55	n=278
Political Science	0.17	0.18	0.19	0.16	0.11	0.06	0.13	x̄=3.54	n=212
Neuroscience and Behavior	0.13	0.24	0.23	0.14	0.13	0.07	0.06	x̄=3.34	n=181
Psychology	0.14	0.26	0.21	0.18	0.08	0.06	0.08	x̄=3.28	n=117
Economics-Mathematics	0.19	0.18	0.23	0.14	0.12	0.11	0.04	x̄=3.28	n=57
Financial Economics	0.21	0.20	0.19	0.11	0.14	0.09	0.06	x̄=3.24	n=103
Economics	0.18	0.21	0.24	0.11	0.13	0.09	0.04	x̄=3.24	n=211

Smartest majors (self-reported)

These are the majors with the highest average response to the question “Are you smarter than most people at Columbia?”

Applied Mathematics
Computer Science
Computer Science-Mathematics
Mathematics
Philosophy
Biomedical Engineering
Physics
Chemistry
Mechanical Engineering
Economics-Mathematics

Machiavellian majors

Majors ranked by their Machiavellian tendencies (revenge, getting ahead, ruthless ambition, etc.) Maybe keep one eye open when you nap in lecture.

Financial Economics
Economics-Mathematics
Economics
Computer Science-Mathematics
Computer Science
Economics-Political Science
Economics-Statistics

Sociology
Urban Studies

Note: majors with 26 or fewer respondents are omitted to protect their privacy in this analysis.

It’s your world

We’re all just living in it, no? Here’s how power-hungry we are at Columbia. Don’t forget about us when you reach the top.

Libertarians want to be part of the 1%, communists don’t

Gold diggers, pay attention: Here’s how we answered “I want to be part of the 1%.”

	Strongly disagree Strongly agree
	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
Libertarian	0.00	0.00	0.03	0.03	0.21	0.21	0.52	x̄=6.14	n=29
Conservative	0.00	0.03	0.04	0.03	0.15	0.18	0.56	x̄=6.11	n=71
Republican	0.00	0.00	0.05	0.11	0.08	0.22	0.54	x̄=6.08	n=37
Independent	0.02	0.02	0.04	0.10	0.20	0.24	0.38	x̄=5.67	n=254
Apolitical	0.02	0.04	0.07	0.18	0.18	0.21	0.29	x̄=5.27	n=136
Democrat	0.05	0.09	0.12	0.13	0.21	0.18	0.21	x̄=4.77	n=1256
Liberal	0.06	0.10	0.12	0.14	0.19	0.19	0.21	x̄=4.71	n=512
Socialist	0.30	0.21	0.15	0.13	0.09	0.06	0.06	x̄=2.90	n=240
Communist	0.40	0.23	0.03	0.17	0.10	0.00	0.07	x̄=2.60	n=30

Libertarians believe they can change the world

To everyone else——keep up. Here’s how we answered, “I believe I can truly change the world.”

	Strongly disagree Strongly agree
	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
Libertarian	0.00	0.07	0.07	0.10	0.28	0.24	0.24	x̄=5.28	n=29
Socialist	0.00	0.05	0.08	0.13	0.35	0.24	0.15	x̄=5.07	n=240
Communist	0.03	0.07	0.10	0.17	0.20	0.10	0.33	x̄=5.07	n=30
Republican	0.05	0.03	0.05	0.24	0.27	0.14	0.22	x̄=4.92	n=37
Independent	0.02	0.06	0.11	0.20	0.27	0.18	0.17	x̄=4.83	n=254
Democrat	0.01	0.05	0.14	0.19	0.35	0.17	0.10	x̄=4.73	n=1256
Conservative	0.01	0.04	0.14	0.23	0.31	0.13	0.14	x̄=4.72	n=71
Liberal	0.02	0.06	0.16	0.20	0.30	0.14	0.12	x̄=4.60	n=512
Apolitical	0.03	0.13	0.16	0.20	0.26	0.10	0.13	x̄=4.33	n=136

Spiritual students are the most important people in their own lives

Don’t tell the big man upstairs. Here’s how we answered “I’m the most important person in my life.”

	Strongly disagree Strongly agree
Muslim	3.63	n=102
Jewish	3.91	n=211
Catholic	4.06	n=307
Christian	4.18	n=291
Agnostic	4.40	n=702
Atheist	4.47	n=434
Spiritual	4.51	n=243

Only children have only-child syndrome

Same question as above——this time by birth order.

	Strongly disagree Strongly agree
Oldest	4.22	n=1050
Middle	4.24	n=321
Youngest	4.25	n=913
Only	4.43	n=408

Topics to avoid

at the dinner table

Time to get political. Dare you to keep these in your back pocket for your next first date.

76% of socialists wouldn’t date a Republican

Each box indicates the percentage of the political identity listed to the left who reported they don’t want their partner to have the political identity listed above.

	Communist	Socialist	Liberal	Democrat	Apolitical	Independent	Libertarian	Conservative	Republican
Communist	0.10	0.10	0.23	0.07	0.53	0.13	0.37	0.67	0.70
Socialist	0.06	0.05	0.09	0.05	0.59	0.20	0.43	0.72	0.76
Liberal	0.14	0.03	0.03	0.03	0.21	0.08	0.14	0.41	0.45
Democrat	0.23	0.05	0.02	0.04	0.24	0.08	0.15	0.43	0.52
Apolitical	0.05	0.01	0.01	0.01	0.01	0.00	0.01	0.01	0.04
Independent	0.15	0.09	0.02	0.03	0.06	0.01	0.04	0.09	0.13
Libertarian	0.14	0.07	0.03	0.03	0.07	0.03	0.03	0.07	0.10
Conservative	0.23	0.21	0.14	0.17	0.04	0.00	0.08	0.01	0.01
Republican	0.41	0.38	0.24	0.22	0.11	0.05	0.16	0.00	0.05

You’ve changed, Columbia

At least a little. We’ve run the Columbia Marriage Pact six times since fall 2020——here’s how our political beliefs have evolved over the years.

Note: in fall 2023, we added several new political identities to the options.

Let’s Talk

About Sex

Going out with a bang. Here’s a look at what Columbia students are getting up to in the bedroom.

Bringing politics into the bedroom

...is always a good idea! Here’s how students with different political identities answered the question “I generally like to take control during sex.”

	I’d rather not 🥺 Give me the reins 😈
Communist	2.93	n=30
Democrat	3.35	n=1256
Socialist	3.48	n=240
Liberal	3.54	n=512
Independent	3.64	n=254
Libertarian	3.93	n=29
Conservative	4.01	n=71

What’s the easiest major?

No, not that kind of easy. Here’s how the different majors at Columbia answered the question “How long do you think it’s appropriate to wait before sex?”

	Zero wait Until marriage
	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
Sociology	0.13	0.33	0.31	0.18	0.03	0.03	0.00	x̄=2.72	n=39
Philosophy	0.14	0.24	0.33	0.17	0.12	0.00	0.00	x̄=2.88	n=42
Urban Studies	0.04	0.37	0.37	0.15	0.04	0.00	0.04	x̄=2.93	n=27
Political Science	0.06	0.14	0.36	0.25	0.11	0.03	0.05	x̄=3.51	n=212
Neuroscience and Behavior	0.06	0.15	0.31	0.23	0.17	0.04	0.03	x̄=3.54	n=181
Economics	0.03	0.12	0.28	0.32	0.17	0.04	0.04	x̄=3.76	n=211
Computer Science	0.06	0.12	0.26	0.29	0.15	0.07	0.05	x̄=3.78	n=278
Economics-Statistics	0.03	0.16	0.26	0.16	0.26	0.06	0.06	x̄=3.90	n=31
Biology	0.03	0.06	0.33	0.23	0.21	0.10	0.03	x̄=3.97	n=115
Mechanical Engineering	0.00	0.03	0.27	0.33	0.21	0.03	0.12	x̄=4.30	n=33

Agnostic students would bring a hookup home to an unmade bed

Chaotic AND sexy. Here’s how each religion answered, “I would never bring a hookup home to an unmade bed.”

	Strongly disagree Strongly agree
Agnostic	4.55	n=702
Atheist	4.57	n=434
Spiritual	4.67	n=243
Jewish	4.83	n=211
Catholic	4.86	n=307
Christian	4.89	n=291
Muslim	4.96	n=102

Join our team ·

Had fun this year? Help us spread the good word.

Help launch next year’s Columbia Marriage Pact, or help launch Marriage Pacts across the country.

apply.marriagepact.com

Applications close Wed 5/06 at 11:59pm