Our Mission

As a co-educational institution of higher learning, the University is dedicated to the education of undergraduate and graduate students in both the liberal arts and professional courses of study.

Core Mission

Founded in 1933 by the Sisters of the Presentation of Mary and Sister Madeleine of Jesus, Rivier University is a Catholic institution of higher education dedicated to transforming hearts and minds to serve the world.

The Rivier Mission

Committed to the faith heritage, intellectual tradition, and social teachings of the Roman Catholic Church, the University educates the whole person in the context of an academic community that cultivates critical thought, sound judgment, and respect for all people. This community supports the intellectual growth of all its members while offering them opportunities for social, cultural, moral, and spiritual development. The challenge to the University community is to search for truth through the dialogue between faith and reason.

Rivier creates an environment in which integrated learning is the shared responsibility of students, faculty, staff, and administrators, and is pursued in all the curricular and co-curricular programs of the University. To participate in the life of Rivier University is to strive for academic excellence, to take responsibility for ourselves and for others, and to engage in dialogue about basic human issues facing society, especially the plight of the poor and powerless. The University extends to all of its members, and also to the greater community, an invitation to join in intellectual inquiry and dialogue.

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Mission-Focused Curriculum

Undergraduate Academic Goals

Through its Mission-focused curriculum, Rivier University seeks to:

Develop Knowledge of Human Cultures and the Physical and Natural World through study focused on engagement with big questions, both contemporary and enduring, in:

• The sciences and mathematics
• Social sciences
• Humanities
• History
• Languages
• The arts

Develop Intellectual and Practical Skills that will be practiced extensively across the curriculum, in the context of progressively more challenging problems, projects and standards for performance, in the areas of:  

• Inquiry and analysis
• Critical and creative thinking
• Written and oral communication
• Quantitative literacy
• Information literacy
• Teamwork and problem solving

Develop Personal and Social Responsibility reinforced through active involvement with diverse communities and real-world challenges, including:

• Civic knowledge and engagement – local and global
• Intercultural knowledge and competence
• Ethical reasoning and action
• Foundations and skills for lifelong learning

Engage in Integrative and Applied Learning demonstrated through the application of knowledge skills and dispositions to new settings and complex problems including:

• The synthesis and advanced accomplishment across general and specialized studies

Foster a Sense of the Sacred and of the Dignity of the Human Person, particularly as expressed through the Catholic Tradition, by active engagement with intellectual traditions and living communities, developed by:

• Recognition of Catholicism’s contribution to the development of the whole person
• Appreciation of the sacred meaning and purpose of life
• Inquiry into the essence of authentic human community
• Respect for the belief systems of others

Graduate Academic Goals

Through its graduate and doctoral curriculum, Rivier University enables students to:

• Further develop creative approaches to problem solving, promote intellectual curiosity, and engender a lifelong commitment to learning
• Engage in ethical personal and professional conduct, as well as pursue a strong commitment to social justice, in order to serve the disciplines and communities in which students will participate
• Develop a sense of the sacred and of the dignity of the human person, particularly as expressed through the Catholic tradition
• Develop the ability to place one’s discipline in an historical, cultural, and global perspective
• Apply advanced critical and creative reasoning, both qualitatively and quantitatively, and demonstrate advanced communication ability in a variety of modalities
• Function as skilled professionals in their chosen careers, or consolidate an advanced understanding of their disciplines