America's oldest Jewish seminary, training rabbis, cantors, and Jewish leaders since 1875.
Hebrew Union College offers graduate and professional programs across multiple schools: the Rabbinical School (with traditional and virtual pathways), Debbie Friedman School of Sacred Music (cantorial ordination and Master of Sacred Music), Zelikow School of Jewish Nonprofit Management, Joan and Phillip Pines School of Graduate Studies, School of Education, and Pastoral Care Programs. The college also operates the Louchheim School for Judaic Studies with fellowships and undergraduate programs. Los Angeles campus runs many programs in cooperation with the University of Southern California, including the Center for Muslim-Jewish Engagement.
The college maintains four distinct campuses: the historic Cincinnati location (established 1875), New York City (merged 1950, relocated to Greenwich Village 1979, moving to new Manhattan location by 2027), Los Angeles (added 1954), and Jerusalem (added 1963). The Jerusalem campus is the only seminary in Israel for training Reform Jewish clergy. Each campus houses extensive library collections, with Klau Library in Cincinnati holding 700,000 volumes—the second-largest collection of printed Jewish material in the world. The college operates museums including the Dr. Bernard Heller Museum in New York and manages the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles.
The college serves approximately 400 full-time students and 800 part-time education, graduate, and undergraduate students (including those at partner institutions USC and Xavier University), making it the largest Jewish seminary in North America by enrollment. A new virtual pathway enables second-career students nationwide to pursue rabbinical ordination while remaining in their communities. The college is open to students of all faiths in eligible graduate programs.
Hebrew Union College reports 100% placement of graduates in rewarding careers within 6 months of graduation, with 99% of students in eligible programs receiving scholarship support. Alumni lead over 1,000 North American Reform congregations and Progressive synagogues in Israel and worldwide, as well as national Jewish communal organizations, philanthropic foundations, and chaplaincies. The college has approximately 4,000 active alumni serving the Reform Movement and global Jewish communities.
Following a 2021 Morgan Lewis investigation into sexual harassment and discrimination, the college initiated a multi-year teshuvah (repentance) process to strengthen a sacred and respectful community. Key initiatives include facilitated listening circles, reissuance of graduation documents, reaffirmation of ordination ceremonies, and revised policies for handling misconduct complaints. The college emphasizes diversity, equity, and inclusion as core institutional values.