Biola University () is a private, nondenominational, evangelical Christian university in La Mirada, California, United States. It was founded in 1908 as the Bible Institute of Los Angeles as a center for biblical and missionary training. Its campus in downtown Los Angeles featured iconic "Jesus Saves" signs and a 3,500-seat auditorium. In 1949, it became Biola College and later adopted the name Biola University in 1981. The school relocated to La Mirada, California, in 1959 and has maintained a strong evangelical identity rooted in traditional theology, as reflected in its association with The Fundamentals: A Testimony to the Truth.
Over the years, Biola expanded its academic offerings beyond biblical studies, adding multiple schools and graduate programs including the Talbot Theological Seminary, Rosemead Graduate School of Professional Psychology, School of Intercultural Studies, Crowell School of Business, and School of Education. Today, Biola offers 47 undergraduate majors, over 150 professional fields of study and degrees ranging from B.A. to Ph.D., all integrated with Christian doctrine.
Biola is also known for its conferences, centers, and athletics. It hosts annual events such as the Missions Conference and the Torrey Memorial Bible Conference. The university supports several academic centers, including the Center for Christian Thought and the Center for Christianity, Culture and the Arts. Athletically, the Biola Eagles compete in NCAA Division II within the Pacific West Conference, fielding 18 varsity sports.
History
Biola University was founded in 1908 as the Bible Institute of Los Angeles by Lyman Stewart, president of the Union Oil Company of California; Thomas C. Horton, a Presbyterian minister and author; and Augustus B. Prichard, also a Presbyterian minister.William Jeynes and David W. Robinson (2012), International Handbook of Protestant Education, Springer, , p. 127.William Deverell and Greg Hise (2010), A Companion to Los Angeles, Wiley, , p. 196.
In 1912, the institute appointed R. A. Torrey as dean, and in 1913 began construction on a building at the corner of Sixth and Hope St. in downtown Los Angeles, which included a 3,500-seat auditorium, two large neon signs (added later) on top of the building proclaiming "Jesus Saves", and a carillon of 11 bells hymns are played three times daily.Cory Stargel and Sarah Stargel, Early Downtown Los Angeles, Arcadia Publishing, 2009, , p. 36.Randall Herbert Balmer (2002), Encyclopedia of Evangelicalism, Westminster John Knox Press, , pp. 68-70. David Kipen (2011), Los Angeles in the 1930s: The WPA Guide to the City of Angels, University of California Press, , p. 159. The early leaders wanted the institute to focus on training students in the Bible and missions rather than the broad approach to Christian education typical of Christian liberal arts colleges. The institute offered a diploma after completion of a two-year curriculum. This model was based largely on the Moody Bible Institute. Beginning in the 1920s, attempts were made to broaden the curriculum, but it was not until 1949 that the institution took the name "Biola College" and in 1981 was renamed "Biola University". Biola re-located to La Mirada, California, in 1959.Hans Joachim Hillerbrand (2004) The Encyclopedia of Protestantism, Volume 1, Routledge, , p. 388.
The school has a tradition of conservative theology, documented in the 1917 four-volume version of The Fundamentals: A Testimony To The Truth.Mal Couch (2000), The Fundamentals for the Twenty-First Century: Examining the Crucial Issues of the Christian Faith, Kregel Academic, , p. 16. George M. Marsden (1982), Fundamentalism and American Culture: The Shaping of Twentieth Century Evangelicalism, 1870-1925, Oxford University Press, , pp. 118-123.
As of 1925, John Murdoch MacInnis was the school's second dean. He was a Presbyterian minister who had been an instructor at the school for about two years. MacInnis served as dean until his forced resignation on December 31, 1928. His administration had been turbulent. In 1927, Biola published a book by MacInnis entitled Peter the Fisherman Philosopher, which became the focus of an intense national controversy in which MacInnis was accused by fundamentalists of advocating liberal theological positions. Eventually, MacInnis was forced to resign, and all remaining copies of the book, along with the printing plates, were destroyed.
In 1929, Charles E. Fuller a businessman, evangelist, and graduate of Biola, was drafted as vice president to find a new dean and a president. Elbert McCreery and William P. White, both associated with Moody Bible Institute, were chosen to fill these posts.Tom Sitton and William Francis Deverell (2001), Metropolis in the Making: Los Angeles in the 1920s, University of California Press, , pp. 238-243.
During the Great Depression, the institute suffered serious financial difficulties. In 1932, Louis T. Talbot, pastor of the Church of the Open Door, assumed the presidency and helped raise much-needed funds. During the next two decades, Talbot concentrated efforts on academic programs as the school's mission. Talbot Theological Seminary became Biola's first graduate school and in 1977, Biola acquired the graduate programs of Rosemead Graduate School of Professional Psychology and relocated them to the La Mirada campus. Biola added a School of Intercultural Studies in 1983, through funds from the abandoned property of the Hunan Bible Institute in China, a School of Business in 1993, a School of Education in 2007, and a School of Arts and Letters in 2026.
Presidents William P. White (1929–1932) Louis T. Talbot (1932–1935) Paul W. Rood (1935–1938) Louis T. Talbot (1938–1952) Samuel H. Sutherland (1952–1970) J. Richard Chase (1970–1982) Clyde Cook (1982–2007) Barry Corey (2007– )
Conferences Biola holds two annual student conferences, the Missions Conference during the spring semester and the Torrey Memorial Bible Conference during the fall semester.
The Torrey Memorial Bible Conference is also a three-day conference dedicated to students' spiritual growth. Every year, a specific topic is chosen that is geared towards the typical college student's spiritual needs.
The university also holds the Biola Media Conference, an event for Christian entertainment professionals to increase their skills.
On November 16, 1996, the university hosted the first national conference on intelligent design. Later, Intervarsity Press published Mere Creation, a collection of the papers presented at the conference. Subsequent intelligent-design conferences were held at the university in 2002 and 2004.
Since 2015, Biola requires students to attend five conference sessions and twenty chapel services per semester, or face a financial penalty.
Academics
Schools
Biola offers 47 undergraduate majors, 80 concentrations, and more than 150 professional fields of study. Degrees awarded include B.A., B.S., B.M., B.F.A., M.A., M.B.A., M.Div., Th.M., D.Min., D.Miss., Psy.D., Ed.D., and PhD. All are institutionally and professionally accredited and integrated with Christian doctrine.
The schools are: Crowell School of Business Rosemead School of Psychology School of Arts and Letters School of Education Cook School of Intercultural Studies Talbot School of Theology School of Science, Technology and Health Snyder School of Cinema and Media Arts
Crowell School of Business is an undergraduate and graduate business school located in La Mirada, California, at Biola University. In 1993, the school was established as the fifth school of Biola University. In 2005, the school was renamed the Crowell School of Business.
Crowell offers a Master of Business Administration (MBA) and a Masters in Professional Accountancy (MPAcc), both of which can be obtained through a full-time or part-time schedule. Both programs are accredited through the Western Association of Schools and Colleges; the MBA program is also accredited by the Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs. The undergraduate program at Crowell offers majors in accounting and in business administration with emphasis in international business, management, marketing, marketing management and business analytics. The school offers a minor in business administration available to all undergraduates at Biola University. The undergraduate program enrolls approximately four hundred students.
The School of Education was established in 2007, originally started as the Education Department in 1952. It offers biblically integrated courses and programs that exist to train those who desire to make an impact as educators and administrators in public, private, homeschool, charter and international schools. At the undergraduate level, the School of Education is home to the elementary education, multidisciplinary majors and liberal studies, which consistently rank among the most popular undergraduate majors at Biola. At the graduate level, the School of Education offers Master of Arts in Teaching and Master of Arts in Education programs.
The School of Arts and Letters was founded in 2026, a merger between the University's previous School of Humanities and Social Science and School of Fine Arts and Communications. The current school has 3 divisions including the Division of Visual Arts and Performing Arts, the Division of Communication and the Division of Humanities and Social Sciences. The School offers over 14 majors and over 20 minors to students. The motto of the school is "think deeply, express boldly, and lead faithfully".
All undergraduate students are required to take 30 units of Bible classes, regardless of their major.
In its 2017 college rankings, U.S. News & World Report placed Biola in its "Best National Universities" category, ranking Biola 159 out of 311 national universities. Biola was one of only two national universities in the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities (CCCU) to be included in the first tier. In 2013, Biola was listed as one of nineteen "up-and-coming" national universities by U.S. News. In 2017, Niche ranked Biola as #33 of 364 best Christian colleges in America and #11 of 90 safest college campuses in California.
Honors program Torrey Honors College, formerly Torrey Honors Institute, is a classical literature great books program started by John Mark Reynolds in 1995 and named after Reuben Archer Torrey. Classes in the department are used to meet most of the general education requirements at Biola University in four years; the program does not offer a major or minor. The Torrey Honors College is patterned after the Oxford tutorial system, employing reading, discussion, writing, mentoring, and lectures.
Student organizations Biola has over 40 student organizations and clubs including 25 Academic and Career Clubs, 9 Cultural Heritage Clubs, 5 Performance and Publishing Clubs, 10 Political and Social Cause Clubs, 13 Recreation and Sports Clubs, 17 Shared Interest and Community Building Clubs, and 3 Other Student Groups.
Biola also has a Student Government Association (SGA) with both hired and student elected positions.
Athletics
The Biola athletic teams are called the Eagles. The university is a member of the Division II level of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), primarily competing in the Pacific West Conference (PacWest) since the 2017–18 academic year; while its men's and women's swimming & diving teams compete in the Pacific Collegiate Swim and Dive Conference (PCSC). They were also a member of the National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA), primarily competing as an independent in the West Region of the Division I level. The Eagles previously competed in the Golden State Athletic Conference (GSAC) of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) from 1994–95 to 2016–17.