Student Services

Students are the center of The Jewish Theological Seminary. We offer a variety of student services to help all students succeed and gain the most from their experience in the JTS community. Please see below to learn more about the resources and services available on our campus. The staff in these offices are here to assist you, and they welcome your questions or concerns. Feel free to visit us often, either in person or online!

Abraham and Mollie Goodman Language Resource Center
Bursar
Computer Lab
Information Technology (IT)
Dining Hall
Facilities Management and Security
Financial Aid
Funding to Help JTS Students
Health Services at Columbia
Health Services at JTS
Human Resources
JTS Policies
JTS Press
Locker Room Facility
The Matthew Eisenfeld and Sara Duker Beit Midrash
Registrar
Religious and Synagogue Life (Women's League Seminary Synagogue, Student Life and Residence Hall programming, Rabbis-in-Residence)
Residence Life
Student Counseling Center
Student Life
Va’ad Gemilut Hasadim: Susan and Jack Rudin Center for Community Outreach
The Women’s Center: Isha El Akhota

Other Useful Information:
Emergency Closings
Frequently Used Phone Numbers
Kosher Restaurant Lists
Area Businesses and Resources (includes local businesses and stores, post offices, Jewish organizations, and more)

Abraham and Mollie Goodman Language Resource Center

The Goodman Center is located on seventh-floor Kripke, next to the Computer Lab. In addition to faculty from the Hebrew Department, the Goodman center serves as a helpful resource for JTS students. Hebrew language students at all levels use the Goodman center for classroom and homework assignments. Those in need of remedial Hebrew language instruction, or who wish to augment their facility with Hebrew, also find the laboratory's resources useful. Periodically, the lab offers training sessions that teach students and faculty how to use the lab's resources more effectively.

Bursar

The Office of the Bursar is responsible for the billing and collection of tuition/fees and other institutional receivables.

Computer Lab

The Computer Lab, located on seventh-floor Kripke, is a state-of-the-art facility, specifically for JTS students. The lab is filled with computer stations, which students may use to complete work for classes, do research, and use the Internet.

Computer Operations

The Department of Computer Operations handle all areas of technology on our campus and in the residence halls including, but not limited to, the Computer Lab, JTS email accounts, Internet access, and the JTS website. The Computer Operations staff is available to serve the entire JTS community and welcomes any questions students may have regarding technology on campus.

Dining Hall

The Dining Hall is a social center for JTS students, faculty, and staff, as well as for the Barnard and Columbia communities. The hours of service are Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. until 2:00 p.m. During the academic year, the Dining Hall is open for breakfast and lunch every day that classes are in session. Watch for special events with fun menus and great prices, and call the Dining Services menu hotline at extension 8155, after 10:00 a.m. for the daily menu! The Dining Hall is the caterer for all JTS events, and they are available to cater private events as well. Dining Services is managed by Richard Costas, resident district manager of Flik Independent Schools, and rabbinical supervision is overseen by Rabbi Joel Roth, Rav hamakhshir. Visit our webpage or call us (212) 678-8822 to learn more about dining services!

Facilities Management and Security

The Office of Facilities Management, currently located in Unterberg 103, is comprised of various departments. These departments include Security, Maintenance, Purchasing, Audiovisual, Mailroom, Receiving, Duplicating, Switchboard, Phone Systems, Space Planning, and Construction. The OFM oversees all aspects of the physical campus and can also assist with room reservations, classrooms, and overnight guest accommodations. Any questions regarding OFM can be directed to (212) 678-8095 or facilities@jtsa.edu.

Funding to Help JTS Students

Experiencing a financial emergency? Need money now to succeed in school?
Help is available to matriculated JTS students. The application process is private, brief, and designed to help you quickly receive money for urgent, unexpected needs. Please click here for more information.

Health Services at Columbia

JTS participates in Columbia University’s student health plan, which consists of the Columbia Health Services (located on the Columbia campus, fourth-floor John Jay Hall). Two options of medical insurance are available in partnership with Chickering and underwritten by Aetna. All full-time and residential students are required to enroll in the health service, which covers a range of outpatient services and includes emergency care. In addition, they have a helpful health education program, Go Ask Alice!, as well as Counseling and Psychological Services. Students enrolled in the Joint Program between List College and Barnard are required to enroll in Barnard’s Student Health Service located in Brooks Hall on Barnard’s campus. Visit Columbia University Health Services or Barnard College Student Health Services for further information.

Human Resources

The Office of Human Resources handles personnel matters and questions for JTS. It also administers student medical coverage through the Columbia University Health Service and issues JTS student photo identification cards.

JTS Policies

JTS policies appear on the JTS website at www.jtsa.edu. Many of these policies also appear in the Guide to Student Life. Since some policies are amended from time to time, the most current version always appears on the website. Printed copies of any of the policies are available in the Office of Student Life. We urge all students, faculty and staff to familiarize themselves with these policies.

JTS Press

JTS Press offers scholarly and Judaic texts in both Hebrew and English. Students have an opportunity to purchase JTS Press publications at a 30 percent discount. For a complete catalog, go to Shop at JTS. Please email pubmanager@jtsa.edu if you are interested in placing an order or obtaining more information.

Locker Room Facility

JTS has a limited number of lockers available for commuting students on the second floor of Kripke Tower. Only JTS students living south of 110th Street (109th Street and below), north of 134th Street, east of Fifth Avenue, or outside of Manhattan can apply to rent a locker. Students are required to sign a contract in the Office of Student Life and pay a nominal rental fee per semester. For further information, please go to Unterberg 209.

The Matthew Eisenfeld and Sara Duker Beit Midrash

JTS provides many varied opportunities for students to learn and evaluate the roots and sources of our religious heritage. As part of an ongoing effort to enhance the level of study, JTS provides a guided beit midrash program. The Matthew Eisenfeld and Sara Duker Beit Midrash (located in the basement of Unterberg) is open all day, seven days a week, for study in hevruta or alone. Special programs and shiurim are scheduled throughout the academic year for the JTS community. At designated hours during the week, the beit midrash is staffed with rabbis and teachers who serve as guides for community study. They will assist students in their preparation for their Talmud and rabbinics courses.

The Matthew Eisenfeld and Sara Duker Beit Midrash is a place to gather, learn, improve, and grow. Join our shared community of study. We look forward to seeing you there.

Registrar / Financial Aid

The Registrar / Student Financial Services Office processes financial aid applications and provides all services relating to academic programs, including course registration, academic transcripts, and grades. Students may contact this office to obtain all of the applications and information needed to apply for student financial assistance and to receive financial aid counseling and information on payment plans. Walk-in assistance is available Monday through Thursday, 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., and on Fridays, 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Please feel free to email us at financialaid@jtsa.edu or registrar@jtsa.edu, or fax us at (212) 678-8002.

Religious and Synagogue Life

Religious life at JTS is organized in a variety of arenas including the Women's League Seminary Synagogue, Student Life and Residence Hall programs, and in the individual schools.

Women's League Seminary Synagogue
There are two synagogues at JTS. The Women’s League Seminary Synagogue (second-floor Schiff) houses egalitarian services that meet regularly for Shaharit and Minhah on weekdays, as well as Shabbat and holidays throughout the academic year. A non-egalitarian minyan meets regularly during the week in the Stein Chapel (first-floor Schiff) throughout the academic year as well. The tefillot (prayer services) are student run and organized with the guidance of Rabbi Lisa Gelber, associate dean of The Rabbinical School, who oversees the leadership of student gabbaim. Additional services are held in various locations throughout JTS and in the residence halls throughout the week. Prayer services are a time when faculty, staff, and students can come together as community.
Student Life and Residence Hall Programming
The offices of Student Life and Residence Life play an integral role in religious life of the JTS community through Shabbat, holiday observances, celebrations, programming, and outreach in the residence halls. Shabbat dinners and holiday celebratory meals, held throughout the year, create opportunities for informal interaction between students. The office employs graduate-student-level Jewish Life directors in the Brush, Goldsmith, and Mathilde Schechter residence halls. The role of these directors is to plan religious programs and facilitate Jewish learning and living outside of the classroom. They serve as a resource to students with religious questions and provide outreach to the students through home hospitality.
In addition to religious life on the JTS campus and in the residence halls, students take advantage of the Jewish communities at Columbia/Barnard Hillel and numerous synagogues and Jewish organizations on the Upper West Side.
Rabbis-in-Residence
The Rabbinical School and William Davidson Graduate School of Jewish Education have rabbis-in-residence on their staff. These individuals offer religious counseling to the students and plan educational programs, workshops, and opportunities to further Jewish learning as a supplement to the curriculum.

Residence Life

The Office of Residence Life oversees and administers all housing and residential life operations at JTS, which includes three coeducational residence halls and limited off-campus apartment leasing for graduate students and their immediate families. Live-in resident directors (RDs), graduate-level students, occupy an apartment within each undergraduate residence hall and manage halls through policy enforcement, crisis management, counseling referral, and other residential concerns. RDs supervise undergraduate student leaders who serve as resident advisers (RAs). RAs assist RDs by providing peer counseling and facilitating social and educational programs. These programs help foster a sense of community and friendship within each residence hall. Jewish Life directors, live-in Office of Student Life associates, organize Jewish cultural and religious programming and serve as a resource for residents who may be exploring their religious identities or have questions about Judaism and religious practice.

Student Counseling Center

The Student Counseling Center is available for JTS students to help them get the most from their academic, spiritual, and emotional life at JTS. The JTS counselors offer a safe, nonjudgmental, and confidential environment in which students have the time and space to explore what is contributing to their current distress and figure out ways of coping with their troubles. The Student Counseling Center staff will work with a student to decide the best course of action, which might include short-term counseling. When appropriate, referrals are made to a psychiatrist, private therapist, or agency. Students may arrange to meet with the counseling service staff by calling the Student Counseling Center at (212) 280-6161. In addition to providing counseling, the staff also offers workshops and information fairs during the year on a variety of mental health and wellness topics. Our website includes links to numerous resources, which we hope are helpful to the entire JTS community.

Student Life

The Office of Student Life is here to enhance and enrich the personal, social, educational, and religious growth of JTS students, and to create a welcoming, student-centered environment. The Student Life staff, along with student leaders, coordinates a wide variety of activities with an emphasis on creating community at JTS for students in each of the five JTS schools.

Va’ad Gemilut Hasadim: Susan and Jack Rudin Center for Community Outreach

The Va’ad seeks to promote community service at JTS through its hands-on volunteer opportunities, educational programs, and annual Tzedakah campaign. We invite you to explore the various programming that the Va’ad offers at JTS. Find out how you can start making a difference today!

The Women’s Center: Isha El Akhota

Isha el Akhota (Sister to Sister), the JTS Women's Center, serves as an umbrella organization for women's programming at JTS. Run by student coordinators Cecelia Beyer and Arielle Cohen, with faculty supervision by Dr. Anne Lapidus Lerner, the center supports the religious, academic, and professional needs of JTS's diverse women's community. Programs typically include a Sukkah Welcome and a Women's Seder, as well as events relating to professional and personal issues. Community members are encouraged to present programming ideas. The office is located just outside the Women's League Seminary Synagogue. The center also has a small refrigerator. Women who are nursing may use the private space and the refrigerator. Stop by the Office of Student Life (Unterberg 209) to sign out a key so that you may use the nursing space at your convenience.

Still can’t find what you need? Feel free to email us with any questions or comments!

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The Jewish Theological Seminary