Address: 365 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10016, United States
Doctoral programs in sciences, social sciences and humanities, master programs, Advanced Science Research Center
The CUNY Graduate Center is a public research university and postgraduate institution in New York City. It was founded in 1961 as the Division of Graduate Studies and renamed the Graduate School and University Center in 1969. It is the principal doctorate-granting institution of the City University of New York system. Its Carnegie classification is R1, very high research activity, and its budget exceeded 114 million dollars in 2025.
The Graduate Center is located at 365 Fifth Avenue, in Midtown Manhattan, in the former B. Altman and Company Building, which it shares with Oxford University Press. The campus covers 570,000 square feet. Before 2000 it was housed in Aeolian Hall on West 42nd Street. In 2017 it was joined to the CUNY Advanced Science Research Center in Harlem, which had opened in September 2014 and covers nanoscience, photonics, structural biology, neuroscience and environmental science.
More than 3,100 students were enrolled in fall 2025, and about 2,600 of them were doctoral students. The school offers 32 doctoral and 18 master programs. The average acceptance rate for doctoral programs was 13.5 percent in fall 2025. About 130 core faculty members hold appointments only at the Graduate Center, and more than 1,700 additional faculty come from other CUNY colleges. The research network includes more than 30 research centers and institutes.
The Advanced Science Research Center has 15 core facilities. Between 2014 and 2019 its researchers secured 126 grants worth 61 million dollars. The Mina Rees Library is the primary library, and a partnership with the New York Public Library since 1968 gives faculty and students borrowing privileges at its research collections.
Programs are well placed in national rankings. The 2023 U.S. News ranking listed criminal justice at 15th and English at 17th, and history, sociology and audiology were also ranked. The Philosophical Gourmet Report of 2022 ranked philosophy 14th in the country. The alumni number about 15,000 worldwide and include the philosopher Nancy Fraser and the poet Gregory Pardlo, winner of a Pulitzer Prize in 2015. The faculty includes Paul Krugman, Michio Kaku and Saul Kripke. The first president was the mathematician Mina S. Rees. Tuition differs for residents and non-residents. Check the current tariff.
Domains taught:
Chemistry, Data Analytics, Mathematics, Nanotechnologies, Optics, Physics, Statistics
Diplomas*:
Doctor, Master
Status:
Public
Partnerships:
Advanced Science Research Center in Harlem, Mina Rees Library, partnership with the New York Public Library, faculty from other CUNY colleges.
Research:
Nanoscience, photonics, structural biology, neuroscience, environmental science, criminal justice, English, philosophy, sociology and history.
Principal doctorate-granting institution of CUNY, R1 classification, more than 30 research centers, location in Midtown Manhattan, 32 doctoral programs.
Cons
Postgraduate only, selective doctoral admission, high cost of living in New York.
Best For
Doctoral students looking for a public research postgraduate institution in Manhattan.
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Most Similar Schools Locally
Brandeis University overlaps with this school on chemistry, physics and mathematics, so the two are easy to compare, and it is private, whereas this school is public, and also offers bachelor's and mba programmes.
In terms of fields, University of California, San Francisco is the nearest neighbour, with statistics and data analytics again at the core; it covers bioinformatics and microbiology and genetics as well, and has almost the same size, at about 3,100 students.
Both schools build their programmes around statistics, and University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center is the one to compare first within the country, since it also offers graduate certificate programmes and covers bioinformatics and microbiology and genetics as well.
On content, University of Maryland, Baltimore and this school are close, as both teach graduate and social; it is larger, enrolling about 7,137 students against roughly 3,100 here, and is also a public institution.
Oregon Health & Science University is the closest domestic counterpart for statistics and data analytics; it covers bioinformatics and microbiology and genetics as well, and is slightly larger, at about 4,123 students against roughly 3,100 here.
Most Similar Schools Abroad
A foreign alternative with a similar emphasis on chemistry, physics and mathematics is Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel, and it is also a public institution and runs the same master's and doctoral programmes.
Hebrew University of Jerusalem (Israel) works on the same fields as this school, chiefly chemistry, statistics and physics; it is far larger, with about 23,000 students against roughly 3,100 here, and is also a public institution.
Scuola Normale Superiore di Pisa brings a Italy setting to the same core fields, nanotechnologies, chemistry and physics, and it is far smaller, with about 600 students against roughly 3,100 here, and is also a public institution.
Seen from abroad, X - École Polytechnique (France) is a close relative on subject matter, since nanotechnologies, optics and chemistry are central to both, and it runs the same master's and doctoral programmes and covers military and aerospace as well.
The closest overseas parallel on chemistry, statistics and physics is Masaryk University, located in the Czech Republic; it is far larger, with about 35,115 students against roughly 3,100 here, and is also a public institution.
*our own picks (our criteria: a mix between domains, diploma delivered, reputation and size), but obviously too many criteria for an apple-to-apple ranking.
FAQ
Where is the CUNY Graduate Center?
At 365 Fifth Avenue, in Midtown Manhattan, New York.
When was it founded?
In 1961, as the Division of Graduate Studies.
Does it offer undergraduate degrees?
No, it is a postgraduate institution with doctoral and master programs.
How many doctoral programs does it offer?
32.
How many students does it have?
More than 3,100 in fall 2025.
What was the doctoral acceptance rate?
13.5 percent in fall 2025.
What is the Advanced Science Research Center?
A CUNY research center in Harlem, opened in September 2014.
Who was the first president?
The mathematician Mina S. Rees.
Which well-known economist teaches there?
Paul Krugman.
What does it cost?
Tuition differs for residents and non-residents. Check the current tariff.
Chemistry, Innovation, Physics, Research and Development
*: without any judgment of the quality, readers are strongly encouraged to check the official status of the exact diploma envisioned as many universities have a mix of recognized diplomas, not recognized, “co-delivered,” “equivalent to”, “some pathways” (…), can change over time, and can be named differently from one country to another.
**: international reputation: is based on some criteria that do not mean much in some domains or specialties (number of researchers, of scientific publications, on budget ….). Our approximate 1-4 scale:
known locally
known locally and internationally
is listed in some of the world university’s classifications
is listed among the 20 firsts in some of world university’s classifications
***: estimated numbers, based on online sources and/or feedbacks. The numbers can vary greatly depending on school organisation (ex.: school is part of a group, it employs internal staff or external consultants or has public staff without employing them …). Refer to all the links provided to have accurate and updated numbers.
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