Founded in 1795, the first college chartered by the Board of Regents of the State of New York, Union is an independent, liberal arts college. Its name reflects the sense of community felt by members of various groups who were instrumental in its founding.

Union College's 18th-century founders had an objective that was, for the time, a radical one. Convinced that the new country would need enlightened leadership in many fields, they created a college with a strong focus on the contemporary world.

More than 200 years later, Union still reflects its heritage as a college attuned to the world around us. We offer nearly 1,000 courses in the arts, the humanities, the sciences, the social sciences, and engineering - a range that is unusual among America's highly-selective colleges. And our commitment to international study, undergraduate research, community service, and exciting new fields like converging technologies continues to produce graduates who are truly at home in the world.