*Taking notes* take Cryptography to stay cryptic—got it.

Name, School, Major, Hometown: Afra Ashraf, Barnard, Physics, Birmingham, Alabama

Claim to fame: Getting CAVA’ed (sober) after falling down all the 116th subway stairs, serenading the Slavic department at the annual Christmas party, shenanigans, trickery

Where are you going? Short term, the Wild West…

What are 3 things you learned at Columbia and would like to share with the Class of 2026?

  1. Take so many classes during shopping period. Shop classes outside of your major, shop classes for elaborate sex plots, etc.
  1. Take care of each other <3
  1. Ultimately, try not to make too much sense

“Back in my day…” West Side had 24/7 soup samples, the giant inflatable shake shack rat was my good friend, Amigo’s margarita Tuesdays

Favorite Columbia controversy? Someone PLEASE tell me if the bird noises on campus are coming from real birds or drones to scare the real birds away

What was your favorite class at Columbia? Number Theory and Cryptography. This class both stabilized me and kept me cryptic. 10/10 would recommend

Would you rather give up oral sex or cheese? I refuse to entertain the notion that these are mutually exclusive… cheese

Whom would you like to thank? All of my roommates throughout my time here, our constant stream of guests, Tomi’s intro Russian section, Barnard physics, BDNYC, Diana sushi, my honorary children through Barnard babysitting, every professor who has ever granted me an extension

One thing to do before graduating: Give Mustache, the little cat in olive tree deli, a kiss for me

Any regrets? Never finding the entrance to the Columbia tunnel system

Portrait via Afra