Stevens Institute of Technology is a private research university in Hoboken, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1870, it is one of the oldest technological universities in the United States and was the first college in America solely dedicated to mechanical engineering. The 55-acre campus encompasses Castle Point, the highest point in Hoboken, a quad, and 43 academic, student and administrative buildings.
Established through an 1868 bequest from Edwin Augustus Stevens, enrollment at Stevens includes more than 8,000 undergraduate and graduate students representing 47 states and 60 countries throughout Asia, Europe and Latin America. Stevens comprises four academic schools that deliver technology-based STEM degrees and degrees in business, arts, humanities and social sciences: the Charles V. Schaefer, Jr. School of Engineering and Science, the School of Business, the School of Systems and Enterprises, and the School of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences. The university also operates the College of Online and Professional Education, established in 2023, and in January 2026 the Board of Trustees approved the establishment of a fifth school, the Stevens School of Computing, scheduled to launch in fall 2026. For undergraduates, Stevens offers the Bachelor of Engineering (B.E.), Bachelor of Science (B.S.) and Bachelor of Arts (B.A.). At the graduate level, Stevens offers programs in engineering, science, systems, engineering, management and the liberal arts. Graduate students can pursue advanced degrees in more than 50 different designations ranging from graduate certificates and master's degrees to Ph.D. levels.
Stevens is classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity". The university is home to two national Centers of Excellence as designated by the U.S. Department of Defense and U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
History
Establishment and the Stevens family (1868–1870)
In 1868, Edwin Augustus Stevens died. In his will, he left a bequest for the establishment of an "institution of learning," providing his trustees with land and funds. Edwin's will was executed by surviving wife, Martha Bayard Stevens, who would also serve as a lifetime Trustee of the institute that now bears the family's name. Martha and her brother, Samuel Bayard Dod, are responsible for much of the organization for the institute including the hiring of the first president, Henry Morton. Dod became the first president of the board of trustees, serving until his death in 1907.
The land now occupied by Stevens Institute of Technology was purchased at public auction by John Stevens in 1784. John Stevens was a Revolutionary War Colonel, Continental Congressman, first Treasurer of New Jersey, father of American patent law, steamboat and rail locomotive engineer, and father to Edwin. John built his estate on Castle Point, the Stevens Castle which served as the home to the Stevens family until 1917 when the building was offered to the U.S. Government for WW1 while the family resided in another building on the estate. The Stevens Mansion was then acquired by the university and used as an administrative building until 1959 when the Wesley J. Howe Center was built on its location.
The Stevens family - "America's First Family of inventors" - was influential in founding the university, its early leadership as trustees, and the institute's surrounding community, Hoboken. Edwin A. Stevens' bequest totaled a city block's worth of land, $150,000 for the construction of a building, and a $500,000 endowment.
Early years
Stevens Institute of Technology opened in 1870, offering a rigorous engineering curriculum grounded in scientific principles and the humanities. The original course of study was a single, rigorous curriculum based upon the European Polytechnic model of engineering science (following the French and German scientific and polytechnic schools), rather than the shop schools that were common at that time. The original degree offered was the mechanical engineer (M.E.), in addition to a Ph.D. in mechanical engineering, chemistry and physics. Stevens granted several doctoral degrees between 1870 and 1900, making it one of the earliest Ph.D.-granting institutions in the United States. The broad-based interdisciplinary philosophy was put into practice by the founders from the first graduating class. Despite the title of the degree and concentration in mechanical engineering, the curriculum included courses in all engineering disciplines of the time: mechanical, civil, chemical and electrical. In 1880, Robert H. Thurston, professor of mechanical engineering, was nominated the first president of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.
The campus was situated at the periphery of the family estate at Castle Point in Hoboken. It occupied a single building now designated Edwin A. Stevens Hall, which was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1994. Stone designs on the building's facade are believed to be derived from a pattern repeated in the floor mosaic of Hagia Sophia, the great cathedral in Istanbul, which Edwin Stevens is believed to have visited in the late 19th century.
1900–1999
In its first century, Stevens grew quickly, evolving from a small, four-year undergraduate engineering college into a comprehensive technological university with strengths in key fields such as quantum computing, artificial intelligence, resilience engineering, robotics, complex systems, healthcare, biomedical research, brain research and fintech. The university produced a Nobel Prize winner (Frederick Reines '39 M.S. '41) and thousands of new technologies, products, services and research insights.
In 1906, students, under the guidance of President A.C. Humphreys, created the honor system – a moral and ethical code governing the life of Stevens students and preaching equality and honest work. The student-run system still exists to this day, in which the accused are tried by their peers with a punishment recommended to the faculty. Stevens was the first technical school to implement such a system.
During World War II, Stevens Institute of Applied Science was one of 131 colleges and universities nationally that took part in the V-12 Navy College Training Program which offered students a path to a Navy commission. During this time, the institute was also honored by the naming of the Victory Ship, SS Stevens Victory, a merchant cargo ship built by the Bethlehem Fairfield Shipyard at Baltimore. Launched on May 29, 1945, the ship was one of 150 named for U.S. colleges and universities.
In 1959, the undergraduate engineering degree was changed to the bachelor of engineering (B.E.) to reflect the broad-based interdisciplinary engineering curriculum (the M.E. degree of that time was a baccalaureate degree, not to be confused with the present Engineer's degree, which is a terminal professional graduate degree).
Also in 1959, the land occupied by the 40-room Victorian mansion, "Castle Stevens" or "Villa on the Hudson", was repurposed for the 14-story administration building completed in 1962, later renamed the Wesley J. Howe Building. Serving as a campus building since in 1911, it was used as a dormitory, cafeteria, and office space. The unsupported cantilevered staircase, with its elegant hand-carved balustrade, was one of only two such "floating staircases" in America.
Stevens' graduate program admitted women for the first time in 1967. Undergraduate women were first admitted in 1971. The Lore-El Center for Women's Leadership promotes the empowerment of women at Stevens.
In 1982, Stevens became the first institution in the U.S. to require all incoming first-year undergraduate students to purchase and use a personal computer. Around this time, an intranet was installed throughout campus, which placed Stevens among the first universities with a campus network.
WCPR: Castle Point Radio, the radio station of Stevens Institute of Technology since 1961, has over 10,000 LPs, one of the largest record collections in New Jersey.
2000 and beyond
Stevens has continued to grow since the turn of the millennium, expanding its enrollment, facilities, partnerships and research programs. The university's collaborations with industry and government include numerous grant awards, contracts and collaborative projects, as well as two National Centers of Excellence designated by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and Department of Defense.
Since 2010, undergraduate enrollment has increased 67 percent and full-time graduate enrollment has increased 73 percent. Stevens has adapted and expanded to accommodate that growth, with a focus on modernizing campus facilities and infrastructure. Under the 2012–22 university strategic plan, Stevens made AV and IT upgrades to 100 percent of its classrooms. Improvements also included two new anchor facilities. The Gateway Academic Center, an 89,500-square-foot teaching and research facility, opened in 2019. In 2022, Stevens opened the University Center Complex, providing residential housing for approximately 1,000 students, as well as a campus hub with meeting, collaboration, event spaces, a fitness center and dining facilities.
Stevens has also focused on increasing access and opportunity for students from underrepresented groups. Among undergraduates, there was a 98 percent increase in women and 149 percent increase in the number of underrepresented minorities between 2011 and 2021. Initiatives developed to provide financial, academic and professional development support for students – including the Accessing Careers in Engineering and Science (ACES), A. James Clark Scholars and Lawrence T. Babbio Pinnacle Scholars programs – have played a role in this growth.
In recognition of the progress Stevens made through its strategic plan, the American Council on Education presented the university with its 2018 ACE/Fidelity Investments Award for Institutional Transformation. The award is given to "institutions that have responded to higher education challenges in innovative and creative ways and achieved dramatic changes in a relatively brief period."
Stevens was named one of the healthiest campuses in the nation by Active Minds, a national nonprofit dedicated to student wellness. It has also been recognized for its commitments to environmental sustainability, including receiving the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) STARS Gold Rating in 2020. In 2021, Stevens announced it would source 100 percent of its electricity from renewable energy starting in that year's fall semester.
In April 2021, Stevens became one of the first higher education institutions in the United States to require COVID-19 vaccination not only for students, but also faculty and staff. In December 2021, the university announced it would require all students, faculty and staff to receive the COVID-19 booster vaccine to be compliant with the rule.
In January 2026, the Board of Trustees approved the establishment of the Stevens School of Computing, the institute's fifth academic school, supported by an initial $36 million in philanthropic gifts and scheduled to launch in fall 2026.
Controversies
Attorney general matter
In 2009, after a two-year investigation by the New Jersey attorney general, Stevens and the attorney general filed competing lawsuits against one another. The Stevens suit against the attorney general contended that she had overstepped her legal authority over a private institution and sought that any case be pursued by confidential arbitration. The attorney general suit against Stevens, its then-president, Harold J. Raveché, and chairman of the board of trustees, Lawrence Babbio Jr., now referred to as the attorney general matter or allegations of the attorney general. On January 15, 2010, a settlement was reached in which Raveché was ordered to repay the low-interest loans offered to him by the university and increased oversight by the state of New Jersey until 2016. The president and chairman stepped down shortly after, succeeded by Nariman Farvardin and Virginia P. Ruesterholz, respectively. It concluded with no admission of liability or unlawful conduct by any party.
Campus
Stevens Tech's 55 acre (22 ha) campus is in Hoboken, New Jersey, a city defined by its proximity to New York City and high density. The campus overlooks the Hudson River and is primarily along the waterfront of Hoboken, directly west of Manhattan. The area has a humid subtropical climate and consists of a prominent hill known as Castle Point, the highest point in Hoboken. There are 17 academic, three athletic, 11 administrative, and nine non-Greek residential buildings. Thirteen Greek residences and additional buildings are associated with the university in Hoboken.
Of the 60+ buildings associated with the university, three are listed in the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP).
Early campus (1870–1916)
Edwin A. Stevens Hall
When the institution opened in 1870 it consisted of a single building, Edwin A. Stevens Hall, named after its benefactor. The building was designed by renowned architect Richard Upjohn and featured a five-story, 80,000-square-foot hall in the High Victorian Gothic style adorned with heavy-stone masonry, brickwork, pointed arches, and intricately carved sculptures and ornaments. The majority of the building was finished in 1870, with the east wing being completed in 1872, and it functioned as the only building for the college until 1902. Notably, the American Society of Mechanical Engineers was chartered within the prominent main hall in 1880, now known as Debaun Auditorium. To celebrate the 125th anniversary of the institution a 40 ft spire was added atop the building, which is now featured as the logo of the university. Modernly, the building is home to the Charles V. Schaefer Jr. School of Engineering and Sciences, performing arts space, laboratories, offices, and lecture halls. The building was added to the NRHP in 1994 for its significance to education, architecture, and social history.
Carnegie Mechanical Laboratory
In 1900, trustee and benefactor Andrew Carnegie, offered a sum of $65,000 for the construction of a new engineering workshop, Carnegie Mechanical Laboratory. The architectural style of the building includes an arcade atop a cement basement with a Corinthian entablature. Structurally, a steel frame and cement make up the building, making it completely fireproof. The building is now home to labs, offices, and classroom space. Carnegie Laboratory is inter-linked with the Gateway Academic Center, which wraps around the north and east sides of the building.
Morton Memorial Laboratory of Chemistry
While Carnegie Laboratory was being constructed, President Henry Morton was developing plans for a suitable building to house a chemical laboratory, then known as the Alumni Chemical Hall. After Dr. Morton's death in 1902, the building was renamed to honor him and redesigned, as Jacobus said, to make it "look more imposing." Construction began in 1905. In 1906, the building was opened as the Morton Memorial Laboratory of Chemistry. The building was designed by Ackerman & Partridge and featured three-stories, ten prominent brick chimneys rising high above its roofline, with limestone and copper trimmings in a Classical Revival style. The building was added to the NRHP in 2022 for its significance to architecture.
William Hall Walker Gymnasium
When William Hall Walker Gymnasium was completed in 1916 the student newspaper, The Stute, noted: "Stevens is now a real college, for we have a real place for college dances." The building was distinctive for its elliptical form (due to site conditions) and architects Ludlow & Peabody designed the structure in a classical revival style based on ancient Greek and Roman designs. The exterior of the building was made of variegated deep-toned brick with raked joints, lime and terracotta stone trim, and a green shingled tile roof. The second floor housed the main gymnasium under a trussed ceiling 27 feet above with a gallery running track. Modernly, the building's purpose is much the same, predominately as a space for athletics with occasional activities for student life. The building was added to the NRHP in 2019 for its significance to architecture.
Distinct buildings
In addition to the three buildings on the National Register of Historic Places, Stevens is also home to a few distinct features as part of its campus, whether at present or historically. This includes four sculptures, three historic plaques, an anchor, and the famous boat dorm.
S.S. Stevens (dorm boat)
The SS Stevens, a 473-foot, 14,893-ton ship, served as a floating dormitory from 1968 to 1975 for approximately 150 students. Moored on the Hudson River at the foot of campus across from New York City, this first collegiate floating dormitory became one of the best-known college landmarks in the country.
Purchased by the institute to fill a shortfall in student housing, the ship's operating costs during the initial years of service were comparable to conventional land-based dormitory housing. In later years, however, the ship's burgeoning operating and repair costs, combined with a more favorable housing outlook, forced the institute to sell Stevens in 1975. In tribute, one of her 6-ton anchors was prominently placed on the campus grounds by the graduating Class of 1975. In August 1975, the ship was towed to a shipyard in Chester, Pennsylvania, and she was subsequently scrapped in 1979.
The anchor was briefly removed during the construction of the UCC Towers, but was brought back after student advocacy in April 2024.
S.C. Williams Library Archives
Stevens' S.C. Williams Library houses the university's special collections, which contain the largest compendium of items relating to Frederick Winslow Taylor; prints, manuscripts in facsimile and books by and about Leonardo da Vinci; and artwork by Alexander Calder, who studied at Stevens. The other collection hallmark, the "Leonardo da Vinci Room," was donated by John W. Lieb, Class of 1880.
The library's archives also house Stevens family documents and artifacts from early American and New Jersey history dating to the American Revolutionary War. The Hoboken Historical Museum hosted a six-month exhibition on the Stevens Family and their contributions to American life and featured many of the library's contents.
University Center Complex
The University Center Complex (UCC), also known as the UCC Towers, is a residential and student life complex at Stevens Institute of Technology, completed in 2022. The complex consists of two residential towers, 19 and 21 stories tall, connected by a three-story university center at their base.
History and construction
The UCC project was announced in October 2018 as part of Stevens' strategic campus development plan. Construction began in 2019, with the complex opening to students in May 2022. The project cost approximately $256 million and represents the largest capital project in the institute's history.
The North Tower was named the Harries Tower in recognition of a major gift from Richard Harries (Class of 1958) and his wife Carol, which was the largest donation ever received by Stevens at the time.
Design and facilities
The complex was designed by Design Collective in collaboration with Wallace Roberts & Todd (WRT). The architectural design features extensive glass facades providing views of the Manhattan skyline and the Hudson River. At 290 feet (88 m) above sea level, the North Tower is the tallest structure on Stevens' campus.
The two residential towers house approximately 930 undergraduate students in suite-style accommodations. Each suite includes private bathrooms and kitchenettes. The towers are connected by a two-story skybridge featuring study lounges and social spaces.