History and Mission
Now in its 92nd year, Claremont Graduate University was founded on the premise that education thrives where students and faculty closely engage in scholarship and research on a level that encourages broad-ranging conversation and collaboration. Founding President James Blaisdell was an academic visionary and theologian who saw “great conversation” and intimate intellectual engagement as the heart of the University’s identity.
The University thrives on a mission and tradition of inquiry and research across disciplines to address significant social issues with academic rigor. The University pursues this goal with a human-centered approach in an intimate, student-focused environment that highlights both theoretical and applied learning and research. This pursuit and these tactics are essential to the institution’s goal of preparing a diverse group of outstanding individuals to assume leadership roles through research, teaching, and practice in select fields and to address some of humanity’s thorniest problems.
A Member of a Unique Group in US Higher Education
Claremont Graduate University belongs to The Claremont Colleges, seven world-class member institutions that form one unique center of learning in southern California. The group includes five highly ranked undergraduate liberal arts colleges and two pathfinding graduate-level institutions. The Claremont Colleges is modeled after Oxford and Cambridge. The seven independent institutions are situated within a square mile and all offer rigorous curricula, small classes, distinguished professors, and personalized instruction in a vibrant, residential college community.
A Transdisciplinary Focus
Claremont Graduate University is the only research-intensive university in the nation devoted entirely to graduate-level liberal arts education. CGU conducts instruction and research in small classes, seminars, and in the field. The University encourages close scholarly relationships between students and faculty. Recognizing that many contemporary problems require contributions across multiple disciplines, CGU was an early adopter of transdisciplinary education and research. At CGU, transdisciplinarity is defined as working around a complex problem important to society, inclusion of diverse stakeholders working together, and re-framing a resolution of that problem.
Research: Breadth and Impact
Claremont Graduate University’s most distinctive strength resides in its unique culture. Like other graduate institutions, the University educates leaders, scholars, and experts and creates new knowledge through research. But CGU’s scale and transdisciplinary model enable a distinctive approach that produces outsized impacts within the University, across the Claremont Colleges, and—most important—in the world.
Research and scholarly activity at CGU are high, with the University generating a prodigious intellectual footprint relative to its size. Members of the CGU faculty produce and apply knowledge across all of the scholarly disciplines represented in its schools and departments, collaborate with colleagues around the globe, and actively mentor students on research projects. External funding such as federal research grants, foundation grants, and public and private contracts supports much of this work. Over the last decade, CGU has averaged $8 million per year in sponsored research—from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, National Institutes of Health, National Science Foundation, National Cancer Institute, and more.
Notable CGU Alumni
CGU boasts more than 22,000 alumni, including college and university presidents, members of Congress, MacArthur fellows, presidents of major corporations, artists, educators, faculty members, managers, and high-ranking government officials. Notable alumni include former Congressman David Dreier, “primal therapy” psychologist Arthur Janov, political analyst and commentator Sherry Bebitch Jeffe, ESPN broadcaster Bomani Jones, former chief US arms control negotiator Ronald F. Lehman, Cisco Systems co-founder Sandy Lerner, biblical scholar Marvin Meyer, journalist Suzanne Muchnic, former US Treasury Secretary Paul O’Neill, former Jack in the Box COO Paul L. Schultz, science writer and Skeptics Society founder Michael Shermer, and acclaimed installation artist James Turrell, among many others.
The CGU Community
The institution has approximately 170 staff and 136 core faculty members, including internationally renowned scholars, many of whom are from diverse ethnic backgrounds. Approximately 38% of the core faculty are female and 6% are members of ethnic minorities. For the core faculty, 86% are full-time faculty members, and 61% are tenured or tenured-track. The University also has 118 adjunct faculty. CGU offers master’s degrees in 45 fields, doctoral degrees in 22 fields, and certificates in nine fields across seven schools. Of the 2,038 graduate students enrolled at CGU, 61% are full-time, 56% are female, and 20% of the student body are members of ethnic minorities. International students, drawn from 54 countries, make up about 22% of the student body. About 19% of the students are African American or Latina/Latino students. In comparison with nationwide statistics, the percentages of minority students receiving doctoral degrees are high at CGU. In a recent NSF survey, 11.9% of doctorate recipients at CGU were Asian, 10.9% are African American, and 8.9% are Hispanic. The national averages are 8.3%, 6.6%, and 5.8% for the three groups, respectively.
Schools and Signature Programs
The University comprises seven schools with a range of world-renowned, pioneering programs and research centers (visit cgu.edu for additional information).
The School of Social Science, Policy & Evaluation (SSSPE) engages students in holistic, interdisciplinary scholarship to solve real-world problems and enhance society. SSSPE houses two scholastic divisions devoted to this mission: the Division of Behavioral & Organizational Sciences (DBOS) and the Division of Politics & Economics (DPE).
The Division of Behavioral & Organizational Sciences (DBOS) is a national leader in applied psychological science, preparing graduates in theoretical and practical psychology, evaluation, and human resource scholarship to solve pressing challenges within increasingly diverse communities and organizations. DBOS offers master’s and doctoral degrees in several areas of applied psychology, including Basic & Applied Social Psychology, Organizational Behavior, Evaluation & Applied Research Methods, Applied Cognitive Psychology, Positive Psychology, and Developmental Psychology. DBOS is also home to the Quality of Life Research Center and Professor Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, founder of the psychological concept of “flow” and co-director of the center.
The Division of Politics & Economics (DPE) provides innovative research in the economic and political sciences, along with a strong commitment to transdisciplinary scholarship. Core offerings in Politics & Government, Economic Sciences and International Studies are highly customizable, resulting in unique programming in Global Commerce & Finance, International Political Economy, Analytical Politics, Public Policy & Evaluation, and more. DPE even offers programs that let students further expand scholarship, such as the MA in Politics, Economics & Business, designed in partnership with the renowned Drucker School of Management.
The Peter F. Drucker and Masatoshi Ito Graduate School of Management focuses on an approach to management and organizational effectiveness based on the principles of Peter Drucker, the “father of modern management theory,” who taught at the university for more than three decades. The Drucker School prepares leaders with powerful, ethical, and universal management skills, with a focus on being globally minded and socially conscious. Drucker students learn these skills in small classes taught by internationally renowned professors who have extensive professional experience and award-winning academic credentials. Drucker’s programs—Management, MBA, Executive MBA, Financial Engineering, Art Business, and Arts Management—are taught at locations in Claremont and Los Angeles, providing an ideal setting for learning about management while still networking with L.A.’s business innovators, creative thinkers, technology leaders, and others. The Drucker School is affiliated with Sotheby’s Institute of Art, Southwestern Law School, and Art Center College of Design. The school features several research centers, including the Executive Mind Leadership Institute (which examines the connection between management and mindfulness), the Center for Supply Chain & Logistics, the Center for the Future of Organization, the Claremont Game Lab, and the Drucker Customer Lab. The school also hosts Drucker Day, a signature event that draws leading management professionals and Drucker alumni from around the country.
The disciplines of Art, Music, Applied Women’s Studies, Cultural Studies, English, History, Philosophy, and Religion are taught in the School of Arts & Humanities (SAH), creating a unique educational environment designed to promote disciplinary depth and flexibility. In addition to discipline-specific training, there are also five interdisciplinary concentrations—American Studies, Early Modern Studies, Hemispheric & Transnational Studies, Media Studies, and Museum Studies. The school’s devotion to both theory and practice cultivates the skills and knowledge students need for a remarkable career. The Religion Department includes three research centers: the Coptic Studies Council, Mormon Studies Council, and Zoroastrian Studies Council. The school is also the home of the 25-year-old Kingsley and Kate Tufts Poetry Awards, an elite literary prize that presents an annual $100,000 and $10,000 award to poets selected by a panel of judges.
The School of Community & Global Health (SCGH) is catalyzing a new vision of how humankind conceptualizes and promotes health that extends far beyond the scope of traditional paradigms. SCGH programming convenes top minds from science, public health, government, business, and the community to engage in creative problem solving that leads to innovations in health, well-being, and quality of life. This experiential, transdisciplinary research aims to promote human health and improve quality of life for individuals, families, and communities. Scholars at SCGH examine the cellular, genetic, individual, economic, political, social, cultural, societal, and environmental factors that contribute to health outcomes and their uneven distribution within and between populations. SCGH faculty rank in the top tier of federally-funded prevention science research programs per capita. The school’s philosophy is that graduate training excellence starts with research excellence. Prevention science and training at SCGH is multi-disciplinary and requires collaborations with clinics, hospitals, businesses, community organizations and academic institutions both locally and globally.
The School of Educational Studies (SES) offers programs in Education and Teacher Education and prepares future educators for the unprecedented challenges facing today’s K–12 and higher education climates. SES believes a socially just nation should educate all its citizenry through net-works of effective and accountable organizations that interact responsibly with families and communities. From urban education to student affairs, educational policy to human development, and quantitative evaluation to teaching and learning, our programs draw on dynamic instruction, multidisciplinary curricula, and hands-on class-room experience to prepare graduates for successful careers. SES alumni are professionals from diverse cultures and backgrounds who have gone on to become members of Congress, university presidents, professors, researchers, superintendents, principals, vice principals, and classroom teachers.
The Center for Information Systems & Technology (CISAT) prepares professionals and educators to assume leadership positions in the field of Information Systems & Technology. With a strong grounding in software development, database systems, networking, and information systems and technology management, CISAT’s curriculum provides research-infused instruction from faculty fully devoted to IS&T scholarship and innovation. CISAT’s distinctive curricular approach integrates relevant, cutting-edge technical training with applied IS&T experience, educating graduates who solve real problems for real people in business, health care, and more. CISAT features concentrations in Geographic Information Systems, Data Science, Cybersecurity & Networking, Health Informatics, and IT Strategy & Innovation.
The Institute of Mathematical Sciences (IMS) trains new generations of mathematical scientists for positions in education, industry, and government laboratories. IMS offers four master’s and three doctoral degree programs, including joint PhD programs with the California State University system and a joint MS program in financial engineering with CGU’s Drucker School of Management. IMS’s internationally recognized Engineering & Industrial Applied Mathematics Clinic provides students with first-hand experience in solving significant mathematical problems for industry and government clients, such as the Jet Propulsion Lab-oratory, Southern California Edison, and Los Alamos National Laboratory. IMS faculty conduct research in areas ranging from machine learning to bio-informatics to mathematical finance, funded by the Simons Foundation, the Army Research Office, and the Department of Energy. IMS and the mathematics departments of the other Claremont Colleges constitute the Claremont Center for the Mathematical Sciences, one of the largest mathematical science communities in California, with more than 60 faculty members spanning all areas of pure and applied mathematics.
In addition to the seven schools, CGU’s program in Botany is conducted in collaboration with Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden (RSABG), which provides most of the faculty and facilities resources required by the program. The chair of the program is the Director of Research at RSABG, and RSABG senior scientists hold faculty appointments at CGU. The program enrolls 10 to 15 students and grants both master’s and doctoral degrees. Research conducted by students and faculty advances knowledge of plant diversity in an evolutionary context.
In addition to its academic programs, CGU is home to the Drucker Institute, an externally facing social enterprise founded by Peter Drucker whose mission is “strengthening organizations to strengthen society.” The institute works across all three sectors of society and uses Drucker’s wisdom to help organizations move from ideas, to action, to results. Claremont Graduate University also houses the Getty Leadership Institute, which provides educational opportunities designed to enable current and future museum leaders to navigate the field’s most pressing challenges and opportunities.
Finances
Claremont Graduate University has an operating budget of approximately $53 million and an endowment of about $185 million. Student tuition and fees currently make up about 78% of the operating budget. Tuition varies by school and program but costs to students are in the upper ranges of tuition for peer institutions. Student loans are a burden for many of the students and the University desires to provide greater financial assistance to students in order to be competitive with other major graduate and research universities. The need for additional grants and a more robust endowment are clearly goals of the leadership
The University’s last capital campaign took place 17 years ago and raised $40 million. CGU’s next ambitious campaign—The Centennial Campaign—is currently in the planning stages. The development and marketing/communications staff has increased in size and depth in order to provide support for all the schools of the University. With the selection of a new President, the University will be poised to undertake this significant campaign with the trustees, the 22,000-member alumni base, and the many friends of CGU who have become involved in the rich variety of graduate offerings and research programs.