<p>First off, Columbia does not have an international affairs major. The closest thing to it would probably be political science. Second, if you want a liberal arts education to supplement your major, then the core curriculum at Columbia fits your interests very nicely. </p>
<p>New York trumps any other city as far as “international opportunities” go. Also, each year Columbia hosts various world leaders as part of its World Leader’s Forum. This is a great opportunity for Columbia affiliates to go hear world leaders speak about various important issues.</p>
<p>Quite honestly, you sound like the prototypical Columbia College student as far as your interests go. I wouldn’t worry about the few kids you’ve met…I’m sure you realize that you can’t generalize about an entire population of students based on a small, unrepresentative subsample. By the same token, I don’t think you should worry about Stanford having a weak program. I’m sure that whatever they provide is top-notch. Choose based on which environment you think would suit you best.</p>