10000 North Ojai Road
Santa Paula, CA 93060

Thomas Aquinas College is a private, Catholic liberal arts college located on 131 acres, 65 miles northwest of Los Angeles in Santa Paula, California. In the 1960s, several philosophy professors were discussing the course of modern Catholic liberal education and from those discussions, Thomas Aquinas College was born. The school officially enrolled 33 students in 1971 and began granting degrees in 1975.

Following other colleges such as St. John's College in Annapolis, Maryland, Columbia University, the University of Chicago and St. Mary's College in Oakland California who instituted "Great Books" programs, Thomas Aquinas College has no textbooks, lectures, majors, minors or electives. Students follow the same curriculum throughout their college education at Thomas Aquinas College by studying the Great Books of Aristotle, Homer and Euclid to St. Thomas Aquinas, T. S. Eliot and Albert Einstein.

In small classes of no more than 20 students, learners at Thomas Aquinas College can earn a Bachelor of Arts degree in liberal arts. More than 350 students from more than 40 states and ten countries enroll at Thomas Aquinas College each year. That teaching method has gained Thomas Aquinas College a number of rankings among college listings: The Princeton Review's "Top Ten Value College," U.S. News and World Report's America's Best College's top liberal arts college, and a "Great School, Great Price ranking from the same publication.

Spiritual life is a large part of life at Thomas Aquinas College. Mass is celebrated three times a day and three full time chaplains are available at all times. There are no classes scheduled during mass so that all who want to attend can do so. Attendance is not required, however, and students of all faiths are welcome at Thomas Aquinas College. Students are expected to live in one of the residence halls on campus. Students who wish to live with their families may apply for special permission to live off campus, but due to the nature of the learning environment, such permission is usually not extended.


Quick Facts:

Professors at Thomas Aquinas College are referred to as "tutors," and there are more than 35 at Thomas Aquinas College. Approximately 65 percent of the tutors have their Doctorate Degrees.

The Student to teacher ratio at Thomas Aquinas College is 11:1. Nearly 40 percent of all students are accepted into graduate or professional schools. Approximately 11 percent of graduates enter the ministry.

Thomas Aquinas College is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges.

The high school program at Thomas Aquinas College allows gifted high school aged children from all over the country to attend a two week course each year to discuss the works of Plato, Euclid, Sophocles, Pascal, Boethius, St. Thomas Aquinas and others.

Intramural sports, as well as a variety of social and intellectual clubs and organizations are a part of campus life at Thomas Aquinas College.

This school profile has been compiled and updated by The CollegeBound Network. The school is not affiliated with The CollegeBound Network and shall not be considered a sponsor of this program.