Private graduate university integrating Eastern wisdom, Western psychology, and spiritual transformation since 1968.
CIIS offers interdisciplinary graduate and undergraduate programs grounded in integral education—a whole-person approach combining academic rigor with spiritual and embodied practice. The curriculum spans psychology, counseling, philosophy, religion, cultural anthropology, transformative studies, integrative health, women's spirituality, and community mental health. Many courses blend mainstream academic curricula with spiritual orientation, drawing from mystical and esoteric traditions. The institute houses the world's first psychedelic-assisted treatment and therapy program. Three schools organize offerings: Professional Psychology & Health, Consciousness and Transformation (humanities), and Undergraduate Studies.
CIIS traces its lineage to the American Academy of Asian Studies (founded 1951 by Louis Gainsborough with Alan Watts), which became a hub for the San Francisco Renaissance and Beat Generation. After the AAAS closed in 1957, Haridas Chaudhuri and his wife Bina established the Cultural Integration Fellowship, grounded in Sri Aurobindo's Integral Yoga philosophy. In 1968, Chaudhuri founded the California Institute of Asian Studies, which evolved into CIIS in 1980. The institute's philosophical foundation emphasizes integration of mind, body, and spirit; Eastern and Western knowledge systems; and material and spiritual values.
CIIS is located in San Francisco's SoMa area, on the border with the Civic Center and Mission districts, at 1453 Mission Street. The campus sits on unceded Ramaytush Ohlone land. The institute maintains community counseling clinics serving the San Francisco Bay Area and offers flexible learning formats—online, hybrid, and on-campus—to accommodate diverse student needs.
CIIS holds regional accreditation from the WASC Senior College and University Commission. In 2024, CIIS graduates achieved a 98% pass rate on the Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) exam. The Doctor of Psychology (PsyD) in Clinical Psychology lost APA accreditation in 2011 and voluntarily withdrew a reaccreditation application in 2017. The institute emphasizes community engagement, social justice, and belonging as integral to its educational mission.