I came across this thread recently, and I signed up for an account, because I felt compelled to provide some credible information. I am a graduate of TC, though not in psychology. So I cannot speak to that program specifically. But I can speak to the relationship between TC and Columbia, which seems to be in dispute, and I can also speak to the overall quality of the education I received.
I received a masters in education (EdM) earlier this year. My diploma says the following:
"The trustees of Columbia University in the city of New York to all persons to whom these presents may come greeting, be it known that [my name], having completed the studies and satisfied the requirements for the degree of Master of Education, has accordingly been admitted to that degree..." etc.
It is signed by both Lee Bollinger, President of Columbia University and Susan Fuhrman, President of Teachers College.
Having just successfully defended my dissertation, I will receive my doctorate in education (EdD) in Feb. '15. Like the masters, the doctoral degree will be conferred by Columbia University and signed by the same two people.
This is because, as TC's director of admissions, David Estrella, states in a video on TC's website,
,
TC is Columbia University's Graduate School of Education. As such, it is one of Columbia University's 20 schools. This information is also published on Columbia's website,
http://www.columbia.edu/content/schools.html.
Elsewhere on TC's website, it says, "In 1898, Teachers College became affiliated with Columbia University as a professional school for the training of teachers while retaining its legal and financial independence. Later that year, Teachers College and Columbia University adopted an affiliation agreement."
http://www.tc.columbia.edu/abouttc/. Admittedly, this is a confusing statement that should probably be re-worded, because "affiliated" is not clearly defined. The aforementioned link to Columbia's own website, however, should clear up any confusion as to what "affiliated" means: TC is one of Columbia's schools and has been for 116 years.
TC is primarily a teacher training institution, as the name implies, and it is only for graduate students. These are two important distinctions: (1) there are only masters and doctoral students at TC, no bachelors students; and (2) TC is a school of education.
TC is very selective-- my program accepted three students the semester I was admitted, me and two others. My doctoral degree was rigorous and intense, with a full complement of research based courses to prepare me for my dissertation, which entailed a large, mixed methods research project. My dissertation was 450 pages (too long, but that's how I wrote it).
TC and Columbia students can cross-register-- I had students from other Columbia schools in my TC classes, and I knew TC students who enrolled in classes at other Columbia schools. These students were consistently bright and astute.
Taking all this in consideration, I don't know how one can say that TC is not Columbia-- the facts speak for themselves. And based on selective admission standards, academic rigor, and caliber of students, I feel the quality of education I received is representative of an Ivy League institution.
