Colleges and Schools
Originally founded in 1865 as a business college to prepare professionals for the post–Civil War economy, Rider relocated in 1959 from Trenton to its current 280-acre campus in Lawrenceville, New Jersey. In 1992, Rider merged with Westminster Choir College in Princeton, a globally recognized leader in music education. This merger strengthened the University’s performing arts offerings and supported the integration of its theatre and dance programs. In 2007, these programs were formally unified under the Westminster College of the Arts, which housed both the School of Fine and Performing Arts and Westminster Choir College and offered select programs across the Princeton and Lawrenceville campuses.
In 2020, Westminster Choir College relocated to Rider’s Lawrenceville campus. Two years later, in 2022, the Westminster College of the Arts and the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences merged to form the College of Arts and Sciences. Most recently, in 2026, the College of Education and Human Services merged with the Schools of Humanities and Social Sciences and Science, Technology, and Mathematics to create the College of Humanities, Sciences and Education. At the same time, the Westminster College of Media and Performing Arts was established, bringing together the School of Communication, Media and Performing Arts and Westminster Choir College.
The colleges and schools within Rider University include:
- Norm Brodsky College of Business
- College of Humanities, Sciences and Education
- Westminster College of Media and Performing Arts
- School of Communication, Media and Performing Arts
- Westminster Choir College