Yeshiva University

New York, NY · founded 1886 · 6,500 students · religious · Skyline Conference (NCAA Division III)

Known for: Yeshiva University is the oldest and most comprehensive educational institution under Jewish auspices in America, combining rigorous liberal arts and sciences with Torah study. It is a leading center for Jewish scholarship and professional education.

Rankings

U.S. News national: #105
QS World: #571
Times Higher Education: #401
Forbes: #157

Top programmes

Biology
Psychology
Business
Law (Cardozo)
Medicine
Jewish Studies

Notable alumni

Ruth Bader Ginsburg — Former Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court (attended, transferred)
Jonas Salk — Developer of the polio vaccine (attended City College, YU affiliation through graduate work)
Geraldine Ferraro — First female vice presidential candidate for a major U.S. party
Norman Lamm — Former President of Yeshiva University, prominent rabbi and author
Marty Markowitz — Former Brooklyn Borough President
Aharon Barak — Former President of the Supreme Court of Israel
David Luchins — Professor and former senior aide to Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan
Herman Wouk — Pulitzer Prize-winning author of 'The Caine Mutiny'

Traditions

Purim Chagigah
Yom Ha'atzmaut celebration
Annual Chag Hasemikhah
Seforim Sale

If Yeshiva University were…

As a food: Cholent from a Shabbos kiddush — Deeply traditional, slow-cooked complexity that you either grew up with or have to acquire a taste for—not trying to be trendy, unapologetically itself. YU is nourishing and substantial for those who want this specific f
As an athlete: Tamir Goodman — The 'Jewish Jordan' who turned down college scholarships to maintain Shabbat observance, eventually playing professionally in Israel—talented but unwilling to compromise core identity for mainstream success. YU produces
As a person alive today: Mayim Bialik — PhD neuroscientist, successful actress, outspokenly Orthodox—living proof you can be intellectually rigorous, professionally accomplished, and religiously observant simultaneously. YU's entire institutional premise is th
As a historical figure: Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik — The Rav—towering Talmudic genius with a PhD in philosophy from Berlin, who embodied YU's mission of Torah u'Madda and shaped Modern Orthodox thought for generations. His legacy of rigorous religious intellectualism combi
As a movie or TV show: A Serious Man — Coen Brothers' meditation on Jewish intellectual life, faith, and the search for meaning through study and community in the face of chaos. YU students live in that tension between rigorous textual analysis and modern pro
As a US president: Harry S. Truman — Not from the elite establishment, deeply principled, made tough decisions based on clear values (recognized Israel immediately), and proved substance matters more than pedigree. YU isn't Ivy League but produces leaders i
As a city: Jerusalem — Ancient and modern coexisting in constant tension, where religious scholarship and contemporary life intersect on every street corner, and identity politics dominate every conversation. YU's Washington Heights campus sit
As an element: Carbon — Forms the backbone of organic life, bonds with everything, exists in multiple forms from diamond to graphite—versatile and foundational. YU's dual curriculum model provides the basic structure for Modern Orthodox profess
As a car: 2019 Volvo S60 — Sophisticated, safe, and built for urban professionals navigating Manhattan—Yeshiva blends serious Talmudic scholarship with pre-professional pragmatism in a tight-knit community. This Swedish sedan is refined without fl

Campus life

Campus life is deeply rooted in Jewish tradition, with daily religious observance, kosher dining, and a strong sense of community. The student body is diverse within the Jewish community, with separate undergraduate colleges for men (Yeshiva College) and women (Stern College).

The film, scored

This profile answers “if Yeshiva University were a movie or TV show?” with A Serious Man (2009). Coen Brothers' meditation on Jewish intellectual life, faith, and the search for meaning through study and community in the face of chaos. YU students live in that tension between rigorous textual analysis and modern professional ambition, between inherited tradition and contemporary American life, finding meaning in the study itself even when answers are elusive. It sits in the 55th percentile on rankquant, which re-centres every critic score on the reviewer who gave it, so a percentile means position against peers rather than a raw star average. The full film & TV catalogue ranks the rest the same way.