About Us

JFK University is all about transformation. All about growth. All about change. We help you get from where you are to where you want to be. At JFKU, you can achieve your career goals while satisfying your heartfelt need for purpose and fulfillment.

In the spirit of our namesake John F. Kennedy, 35th president of the United States, our challenging and innovative approach to education enhances your life and supports your personal and professional goals. Our multi-dimensional programs are practical and inspirational, creative and stimulating, expansive and active, holistic and interdisciplinary. Who you are--the ways that life and experience have influenced you--is as important to us as what you want to do.

When Kennedy accepted the 1960 nomination for president, he challenged the world to deal with war, poverty, and ignorance: "I believe the times demand new invention, innovation, imagination, decision. I am asking each of you to be pioneers on that New Frontier."

Following his 1963 assassination, a group of idealistic educators took up Kennedy's charge and established a distinctive university in his name, one imbued with conscience, dedicated to higher education that accommodates people of diverse interests and needs, intent on providing valuable community service, and accessible to all.

At JFK University, our faculty of scholar-practitioners collaborates with you in an atmosphere that respects individual and cultural differences while forging bonds of common understanding for an interdependent world. Our rigorous academic programs encourage you to deepen your intellectual inquiry, expand your vision and spirit, and actively contribute to your profession and community.

You'll find JFKU programs at four locations in the greater San Francisco Bay area: Pleasant Hill, Campbell, Berkeley and Santa Cruz. Each has its own character--from historic buildings to "green" principles--and specialized offerings. You can choose from undergraduate-completion, doctorate, and graduate degrees, teaching credential, certificate, and continuing education programs in our five schools: Education and Liberal Arts, Professional Psychology, Holistic Studies, Management, and Law.

Classes are offered in the late afternoons, evenings, and weekends, so you can manage work, family, and other commitments while earning your degree.

Every year, our alumni--now more than 12,000 strong--realize long-held dreams of educational achievement. They master theoretical knowledge, gain confidence, and acquire the skills to perform effectively in their chosen fields.

JFKU graduates embody the ideal that one person can make a difference. Their influence is multi-dimensional, interactive, and holistic. Like JFKU itself, our alumni are transforming lives, changing the world.