The Institute for Social and Economic Research and Policy (ISERP) is Columbia University's research institute dedicated to interdisciplinary social science.  ISERP pioneers research, shapes public policy, and integrates knowledge and methods across the social sciences.

Our Mission

To bring ideas into the world, ISERP supports researchers, faculty, students, and interdisciplinary social science research through research development, education and training programs, centers, workshops and administrative support. 

ISERP achieves its mission by:

• fostering a dynamic intellectual community for the social science community at Columbia University;
• strategically investing in research development;
• educating the next generation of researchers, undergraduate, postgraduate and post-doctoral students;
• translating social science research for the broader public and policymaking worlds.

Participation in ISERP’s core activities spans the departments of Anthropology, Economics, History, Political Science, Psychology, Sociology, and Statistics, as well as of Barnard College, the Earth Institute, Teachers College, the Mailman School of Public Health and the Schools of Architecture, Planning and Preservation, Business, International and Public Affairs, Law, and Social Work.

Research

ISERP works within the intellectual community of Columbia University to generate, find external support for, and publicize innovative basic and applied social science research. Our general programming coupled with the services and resources of our Research Development Office provide an ideal environment for making innovative, interdisciplinary, and collaborative work and high-risk, high-return research possible.

Education

ISERP's stimulating intellectual environment and innovative social science and policy research are predicated on substantive and ongoing education and training. ISERP is distinguished by the breadth of its programming, which addresses the needs of doctoral students, as well as of faculty, postdoctoral fellows, masters students, local community leaders, and even high school students interested in the social sciences. Click here to learn more about all of our education programs.