About the University

      Holy Cross is renowned for its academic excellence and mentoring-based, liberal arts education in the Jesuit tradition. An exclusively undergraduate institution with just over 2,700 students, Holy Cross is the oldest Catholic college in New England. Founded in 1843 in Worcester, Mass., the campus occupies 174 beautifully landscaped acres, featuring traditional and contemporary architecture, state-of-the-art facilities, and striking views from atop Mount St. James.

      Academic life at Holy Cross is serious, challenging and exciting. Student-professor exchanges in the classroom, as well as in countless informal settings, are at the center of academic life at Holy Cross. With a student to faculty ratio of 11 to one, the opportunity for individual attention is readily available. Few classes exceed an enrollment of 40, and most average 19 students.

      Holy Cross professors are widely respected in their academic specialties. Many have national reputations for their research and publications, creative performances, recordings and exhibitions. Almost all of the nearly 300 full- and part-time faculty members hold doctoral degrees from some of the finest universities here and abroad.

      Among the major academic facilities on campus are Dinand Library (which, along with three other specialized libraries on campus, has total holdings of more than 650,000 volumes); Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Art Gallery (with a regular schedule of world-class exhibitions); Brooks Concert Hall (acclaimed by performers and acoustical experts as one of the finest medium-sized performance spaces in the region); St. Joseph Memorial Chapel (built in 1924 and containing the recently renovated McCooey Chapel on the lower level); Hogan Campus Center (with bookstore, post office, coffee lounge, cafeteria and pub); Carol and Park B. Smith Hall (housing the Center for Religion, Ethics and Culture and the Rehm Library); the Multimedia Resource Center in Edith Stein Hall; and the science complex in Haberlin, O'Neil and Swords Halls.

      Coeducational since 1972, Holy Cross enrolls a student body of proven accomplishment. Almost all graduated in the top 20 percent of their high school classes. Most live in 10 residence halls on campus, all fully connected to the college's computer network. Students, elected by their peers, represent their classmates at faculty meetings, on major college committees, and in a consultative capacity on the appointment and promotion of faculty. There are more than 100 co-curricular offerings on campus and diverse opportunities for innovative academic options such as the first-year program, community-based learning, Washington semester, internships and full-year study abroad.

      Holy Cross integrates faith and knowledge with an emphasis on service, in keeping with the Jesuits' commitment to educate "men and women for others." A distinguishing and all-important characteristic of education at Holy Cross is the emphasis placed upon the service of faith and the promotion of justice. The Office of the College Chaplains advises Student Programs for Urban Development (SPUD), which is the largest student organization on campus. More than 450 students are involved in 37 direct-service programs in Worcester.