Our history
The Criterion is a selection of literature and art created by Columbia College (SC) students. First established in 1897 and continuously published every year since then, it is one of the longest running, consecutively published literary journals in the country.
Originally publishing only poetry and fiction, it has since expanded to include literary nonfiction and visual art. In 2025, in order to become more accessible to students in an increasingly digital age, The Criterion moved to an online format, and we are striving to branch out further into audiovisual and digital forms.
About Columbia College
Columbia College is a private liberal arts college with a legacy of developing leaders with the courage, commitment, confidence, and competence to build a better world.
While housed at Columbia College, the perspectives expressed in The Criterion are the artistic expressions of students and do not necessarily reflect the attitudes of the college as a whole or the views of administration.