Founded in 1948, Brandeis University is a private institution located in Waltham, Massachusetts. The university has a liberal arts focus with an enrollment of approximately 3,600 undergraduate and 2,200 graduate students. At a time when discrimination and quotas still restricted equal access to higher education, Brandeis chose the powerful idea as a non-sectarian institution that would be open to all, embracing the pluralism of American society. The school has a 235 acre suburban campus and uses a semester-based academic calendar.

Brandeis is comprised of the College of Arts and Sciences and four graduate schools. The highly ranked Graduate School of Arts and Sciences offers programs in English and history, and the Heller School for Social Policy and Management is notable for its programs in social policy, health policy and management, and international development. Nearly 50 percent of students participate in study abroad programs offered in about 70 countries around the world. The Steinhardt Social Research Institute at Brandeis provides research and information on contemporary Judaism and the Jewish community. Pulitzer Prize winner and New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman graduated from Brandeis, which was named for the first Jewish Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, Louis Dembitz Brandeis.

Students are guaranteed campus housing for their first four semesters. Brandeis has religious and performance groups, service organizations, cultural awareness groups, performance groups as well as student-run TV and radio stations. The Shapiro Campus Center serves as a hub of student activity on campus, housing a theater, bookstore, cafe, library, meeting rooms and a student art gallery. The Brandeis Judges field more than 15 NCAA Division III teams and are known for their strong men's soccer team.