Lipscomb University

As a liberal arts university building upon a 133-year heritage of academic excellence, Lipscomb University offers an engaging, intellectually challenging environment for graduate education and a commitment to encourage and support spiritual formation in every member of the university community. Lipscomb’s 113-acre campus, located in the Green Hills area of Nashville, Tennessee, provides a beautiful setting which supports a nurturing environment where students can develop professionally and personally.

The Lipscomb community is diverse, with 4,800 members of the undergraduate and graduate student body representing 49 states and 46 nations that include numerous ethnic cultures and religious traditions. An average undergraduate class size of 20 students creates an environment for productive and rich interaction among students from diverse professional and educational backgrounds as well as between students and faculty. Of the full-time faculty, 80% hold a terminal degree in their fields of expertise.

Lipscomb University offers an academically enriching experience that prepares graduates for success in their chosen professions and careers. Classroom facilities provide opportunities for innovative and creative approaches to learning. Lipscomb’s George Shinn Center offers state of the art learning experiences for animation majors.  The Fields Engineering Center is bringing new opportunities to engineering education on campus. The Nursing and Health Sciences Center provides education for the next generation of nurses through use of the most current technology and most contemporary best practices available in health care education. In addition, the McFarland Science Center provides the most up-to-date laboratory facilities for undergraduate education and research in biology and chemistry. Lipscomb’s Pharmaceutical Sciences Research Building enhances opportunities to faculty for significant scholarly research. Lipscomb was the recipient of almost $6.9 million in the past seven years for both research and student support activities from public agencies including National Institutes of Health, National Science Foundation, U.S. Department of Education, Tennessee Department of Transportation, Tennessee Higher Education Commission and U.S. Department of Health & Human Services.

Exciting new programs and recent honors have broadened our appeal, enhancing the opportunities for Lipscomb graduates. Lipscomb is now ranked in the National Universities category of the annual U.S. News & World Report “Best Colleges” rankings among institutions such as Princeton, Harvard, Yale, Columbia, Duke, and Notre Dame. According to a 2020 report by the Chronicle of Higher Education, Lipscomb was the fastest-growing private doctoral university in Tennessee and the eighth fastest growing in the nation between 2008 and 2018. 

One of the most compelling indicators of the value of a Lipscomb education is the ability of our graduates to successfully enter the job market or be accepted into institutions for advanced degrees. Lipscomb’s 2019-2020 job placement rate was 92 percent. This was based on the amount of bachelor’s degree graduates who are employed or pursuing graduate school within six months of graduation. Lipscomb’s achievement signifies that the excellent education provided by our programs is highly desired by employers and greatly respected by other institutions of higher learning. Examples of this excellence are the College of Education’s undergraduate secondary teacher preparation program, which was named one of the top 120 programs in the country for 2019 by the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ). For 12 consecutive years, Lipscomb’s College of Education has been recognized as one of the most effective teacher preparation programs in Tennessee on the Teacher Preparation Report Card, released annually by the Tennessee State Board of Education. The College of Business undergraduate programs were ranked among the top 50 undergraduate programs in the nation by Poets&Quants in its 2024 Best Undergrad Business Schools rankings. This is the eighth consecutive year for Lipscomb’s College of Business to be ranked among the top nationally. The undergraduate Social Work program, housed in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, was ranked No. 1 in Tennessee by socialworkdegree.org in its 2019 rankings of nearly 400 programs nationwide. Lipscomb’s undergraduate engineering program, housed in the Raymond B. Jones College of Engineering, was ranked No. 110 in the nation for a non-doctoral degree engineering program by the 2021 U.S. News and World Report “Best Colleges” rankings. As of 2022, Lipscomb had produced 14 Fulbright student scholars in the previous 16 years, with five awarded in 2019.

Spiritual life at Lipscomb goes far beyond the required Bible courses and chapel credits. An emphasis is placed on putting one’s faith into action to make a difference in the world. The Serving and Learning Together (SALT) Program allows students to apply their knowledge and skills to specific service projects. Through this service-learning program, students serve the Nashville community and Middle Tennessee region through organizations such as Faith Family Medical Clinic, Morning Star Sanctuary, the Nashville Rescue Mission, and Youth Encouragement Services. Lipscomb renewed its Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching “Community Engagement” classification in 2020, including it among just over 350 universities in the nation to have achieved this classification.

Lipscomb University recognizes the importance and value of understanding the diversity of cultures present both locally and globally. Opportunities for global engagement are available to Lipscomb students through a variety of study abroad programs and mission trips. Lipscomb offers undergraduate study opportunities in Florence, London, Vienna, and Costa Rica, as well as other locations that vary by school year. Each year more than 800 of our students, faculty and staff put their faith into action in a variety of efforts outside of the U.S. Ask anyone who has participated, and you’ll hear amazing stories of learning, faith and service. To learn more, visit www.lipscomb.edu/globallearning.

Beyond the classroom Lipscomb provides an active program of campus activities. The Bison athletics program is a vital part of campus life. Competing in the NCAA Division I as a member of the Atlantic Sun Conference, Lipscomb University continues to build on its tradition of success in athletics as we grow in competition at the highest level. Players or teams in men’s and women’s basketball, men’s baseball, women’s softball, women’s volleyball, men’s golf, men’s and women’s soccer, men’s and women’s track, and men’s and women’s cross country have advanced to the NCAA Division I national tournaments. In the 2018-19 season, men’s basketball advanced to the NIT championship game in Madison Square Garden. The Lipscomb Bisons have earned the Atlantic Sun Academic Trophy seven times between 2010 and 2022, with at least 72 percent of student-athletes posting a 3.0 grade point average or better in any given year.

Lipscomb University is providing students with an educational experience that is valued and respected by local, state and national constituencies. In the past ten years, the Lipscomb campus has been transformed by new construction, environmentally friendly renovations and landscaping totaling more than $100 million. Lipscomb led the way for universities in Tennessee through its on-campus sustainable innovations when the Burton Health Sciences Building became the first LEED-registered academic building in the state to earn the gold-level certification. 

Lipscomb University is a private coeducational institution whose principal focus is undergraduate education in the liberal arts and sciences, combined with a number of undergraduate professional and pre-professional fields, and master’s and doctoral degree programs. Its primary mission is to integrate Christian faith and practice with academic excellence. This mission is carried out not only in the classroom and online studies, but also by involvement in numerous services to the church and the larger community.

Mission

We are a Christ-centered community preparing learners for purposeful lives through rigorous academics and transformative experiences.

Objectives