Brandeis University, the youngest major private research university in the United States, is recognized for its academic excellence and commitment to social justice. Brandeis has especially strong programs in the life sciences, history, economics, business and other fields.
A Remarkable History
Founded in 1948, the University is named for Louis Dembitz Brandeis, a distinguished United States Supreme Court justice. With early faculty members such as Eleanor Roosevelt and Leonard Bernstein, Brandeis quickly established an international reputation. Thirteen years after its founding it was accredited by Phi Beta Kappa, and in 1985 it was elected to the Association of American universities, the exclusive "club" of the 59 leading research universities of the US and Canada.
Prominent Alumni
The University's 30,000 alumni include chief executives Leonard Asper (Canwest), Christie Hefner (Playboy) and Suk Won Kim (Ssangyong Group), bankers Barry Kaplan (Goldman Sachs) and Louis Perlmutter (Lazard Freres), journalists Thomas Friedman (New York Times), Walt Mossberg (Wall Street Journal) and Bill Schneider (CNN), and government leaders Nikolai Vassiliev (Deputy Prime Minister, Bulgaria) and Dimitrij Rupel (Minister of Foreign Affairs, Slovenia).
Brandeis Today
Brandeis has 3200 undergraduate and 1100 graduate students. Its 499-member faculty includes former labor secretary Robert Reich, historian David Hackett Fischer, three MacArthur "genius" award winners, and 30 members of leading scientific academies. Brandeis is ranked 31st among US universities in US News and World Report, and 9th in a study by Graham and Diamond (The Rise of American Research Universities) based on quantitative measures of the impact of faculty research.
University Resources
We occupy 96 buildings on an attractive 235-acre campus. Landmarks include a one-million-volume library (Goldfarb), an outstanding sports complex (Ford), a new campus center (Shapiro), a celebrated museum of modern art (Rose) and a theater (Spingold). Brandeis is located in suburban Boston and is connected to Boston and Cambridge by a 20-minute train ride. Click here for maps of the University and its area.