About The School of Religion

Welcome from Dean Min

I welcome you to the School of Religion of Claremont Graduate University. Claremont Graduate University is a unique institution: it is the only university in the United States that is both exclusively devoted to graduate studies . . . and comprehensive in its offerings . . . We study each religion in its own right and in its own depth. We also study each religion in relation to one another and in the concrete conditions of history that make each religion unique but also interrelated. We study each in the context of the cultural, political, and economic conditions of the globalizing world, using a plurality of approaches and methodologies from the classical to the postmodern. We are part of the Claremont University Consortium that includes five of the nation’s most prestigious liberal arts colleges . . . [read more]

The Study of Religion at Claremont

Claremont is synonymous with excellence in graduate religious studies. The programs are student-centered and characterized by personal attention and flexibility. Working closely with a responsive staff and engaged faculty, students have the opportunity to create, within the limits of degree requirements, a course of study and research that is best suited to their needs and interests. Claremont Graduate University’s broad-based humanistic training equips religion students with research capabilities, analytical methods, and writing and other communication skills that are valuable in many fields. [read more]

The CST Connection

Since its founding in 1960, the Religion program at CGU has been a cooperative venture of the faculties and administrations of Claremont Graduate University and Claremont School of Theology. Ernest Cadman Colwell, the first president of the School of Theology, gave the first endowment he received to CGU (then known as the Claremont Graduate School) in order to found a university department of religion. Since that time, these two independent institutions have combined their efforts to build a world-class program in the study of religion. [read more]

Councils

The School of Religion (SoR) is dedicated to studying religions in their relationship to each other and to understanding religions in terms of their interdependence, cultural exchange, and unique contributions to civilization. Currently, eight councils facilitate that process. They are: Catholic Studies, Coptic Studies, Jewish Studies, Indic Philosophy & Culture, Islamic Studies, Mormon Studies, Protestant Studies, Zoroastrian Studies [read more]

Additional Information

• School of Religion brochure (PDF)
• Map and Directions

FMI, contact the School of Religion at 909.621.8085 or e-mail religion@cgu.edu