Alfred University, founded in 1836 by pioneer Seventh Day Baptists, is the oldest coeducational institution in New York State and among the oldest in the nation.

There are about 2,000 full-time undergraduate and 350 full-time graduate students. The 232-acre hillside campus is located in the Upstate New York village of Alfred. The University is comprised of the College of Business, the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, the School of Art and Design and the School of Engineering.. Bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees are awarded as the culmination of Alfred University's well-known and highly regarded academic and professional programs.

The University sponsors 22 men's, women's and coeducational intercollegiate athletic teams. Men's teams include football, cross country, indoor and outdoor track and field, basketball, lacrosse, swimming and diving, soccer, skiing and tennis. Women's teams include basketball, soccer, cross country, indoor and outdoor track and field, lacrosse, softball, skiing and volleyball. Equestrian is a coeducational team. The University's sports teams are affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association, the Eastern College Athletic Conference, the New York State Women's Collegiate Athletic Association and the Empire 8 Athletic Conference.

In the 2007 edition of America's Best Colleges, published by U.S. News & World Report, Alfred is ranked No. 15 among master's level universities in the North. Every year since U.S. News began ranking colleges and universities, Alfred has been among the top institutions in the Northeast. This year, Alfred ranks second in U.S. News list of "Best Values." The Master of Fine Arts in ceramic art is consistently recognized by U.S. News as the best in the nation and its ceramic engineering and materials science programs are also nationally acclaimed. The Princeton Review rates Alfred University among the best 361 colleges and universities in the nation, an honor awarded to fewer than 10 percent of all institutions in the country.