Columbia College was first established in Manassas Virginia on October 17, 1999 to meet the region’s need to support the growing industry and business. Columbia College built its foundation as Columbia College, Inc., March 2000. It offered certificate programs approved by the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV). The College moved to its current location in Fairfax in September 2004 and was approved by SCHEV for its associate degree programs in October 2005. The Silver Spring Campus (Maryland) was added in January 2006 to accommodate individuals who resided in the area.

In February 2007, Columbia College was nationally accredited by the Council on Occupational Education (COE), and the Centreville Campus (Virginia) was added in June 2008. All of the programs offered at the Silver Spring and Centreville campuses were approved by the Maryland Higher Education Commission (MHEC) and SCHEV, respectively, and later accredited by COE as well.

In May 2009, the College became a participant of Federal Student Aid Programs (Title IV). In September 2009, Columbia College opened a TOEFL test center sponsored by ETS, and in February 2010, a test center for various certifications sponsored by Prometric.

The College was approved by the State of Virginia for providing veteran’s education in September 2010. The College was approved by the Federal USCIS and SEVIS to issue I-20 for F-1 and M-1 student visa and also approved by the US Department of State and SEVIS to issue DS-2019 for J-1 exchange visa.

Over the years, Columbia College has been expanding its programs to offer to diverse populations of students, along with curriculum revisions as well as the addition of new facilities and equipment. Today, Columbia College offers ESL classes, 10 certificate and 8 associate degree programs to students from over 30 countries