Dean's Welcome

Dear Visitor:

Thank you for visiting the School of Religion at Claremont Graduate University web site. 

The School of Religion is in the unique setting of Claremont Graduate University, the only fully independent graduate school in which faculty teaching is devoted exclusively to graduate level courses and the student body is made up entirely of graduate students.  Presently over 100 students study together at Claremont, making it a place for real intellectual community. 

The faculty of the School of Religion is a publishing faculty, as is reflected in the research institutes affiliated with the School of Religion, the Institute for Antiquity and Christianity, the Center for Process Studies and the Ancient Biblical Manuscript Center. Students at the Claremont School of Religion have the opportunity to share in the excitement of a major research project while gaining research skills and an orientation to the world of publishing. 

The students at Claremont are not only preparing to be scholars, but also teachers; there is an equal emphasis on preparing students for teaching.  There are teaching assistantships available which provide mentoring.  There is a Teaching Practicum with regular seminars on constructing a syllabus, evaluating students, faculty politics, etc.  Students at Claremont find numerous teaching opportunities within the California State University system and the many City Colleges. 

Students at Claremont find a diverse faculty, which means that the full range of methodological approaches are represented.  It is also a congenial faculty in which interdisciplinary work is encouraged.  Every field hosts a monthly colloquium in which doctoral students, together with faculty in that area discuss papers presented by both students and faculty. 

A special feature of Claremont not included under its academic appeal is its climate.  The school is located at the foot of snow-covered mountains where a typical winter day is 70 degrees and sunny.  Throughout the year students meet and study in the garden of the School of Religion.  When students need a break it is only an hour's drive to the ocean heading west or to the desert heading east. 

Karen J. Torjesen, Dean
School of Religion
Claremont Graduate University