The New School for Social Research

What The New School for Social Research does

The New School for Social Research is a constituent graduate college of The New School, a private nonprofit university founded in 1919 in New York City, with NSSR itself established in 1933 as a social-science research institution. The broader university operates five divisions — Parsons School of Design (ranked #1 in the United States), Eugene Lang College of Liberal Arts, The New School for Social Research, College of Performing Arts (including Mannes School of Music), and the Schools of Public Engagement — along with a Paris campus through Parsons Paris. It serves undergraduate, graduate, and continuing-education students, delivering 2,600+ courses across 34 academic centers and reaching both domestic and international cohorts.

The institution's core products are degree programs, certificates, and continuing-education offerings across design, liberal arts, social sciences, performing arts, and public engagement. Its underlying technology stack includes Canvas LMS for course delivery, Optimizely DXP (migrated from Ektron CMS) as the digital content platform, Kaltura MediaSpace for video content, and Google Workspace for collaboration. AI appears in discrete curriculum offerings (e.g., LCST4044) and in the Adobe Not Generated initiative, with governance expressed through published AI Guidelines for marketing content.

The business model is multi-stream nonprofit: tuition and fees from degree and continuing-education programs, philanthropic gifts and foundation grants (e.g., $10M from NorthLight, Capri Holdings Corporate Foundation gift), research funding (e.g., Carnegie Fellowship), and consortium partnerships (NYU Bobst Library, Cooper Union). Customers are segmented across degree-seeking undergraduates, graduate students, international students (NY + Paris), and lifelong learners in continuing and professional education.

Name

The New School for Social Research

Legal name

The New School

Website

https://newschool.edu

Company type

Private

Founded year

1919

Operating status

Operating

Short description

The New School for Social Research is the graduate social-science college of The New School, a private nonprofit university in New York City delivering degree, certificate, and continuing-education programs across design, liberal arts, social research, and performing arts to students worldwide.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Higher Education

NAICS

Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (6113), Fine Arts Schools (611610)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Arts, Humanities & Creative Research Universities (EDAHABAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Arts-Integrated Liberal Arts Colleges (EDAHACAO), Residential Liberal Arts Colleges (EDAHACAH)

Keywords

• Higher education services
• Undergraduate degree programs
• Graduate degree programs
• Design education programs
• Liberal arts education

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices6 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Tuition and Fees: The institution generates revenue primarily through tuition from undergraduate and graduate programs, with financial aid guarantee that institutional scholarships remain constant for program duration.
2. Foundation Grants and Philanthropy: The university receives significant grants from foundations including NorthLight Foundation ($10 million to Tishman Center) and federal/state sources for specific research and preservation projects.
3. Continuing and Professional Education: Parsons and other units offer continuing education courses and programs accessible to learners of all ages, including summer intensives, youth programs, and professional certificates.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The New School is a private nonprofit urban university delivering undergraduate, graduate, doctoral, and continuing education programs across multiple colleges including Parsons School of Design (ranked #1 design school in the US), Eugene Lang College of Liberal Arts, College of Performing Arts (Mannes School of Music, School of Drama, School of Jazz), Schools of Public Engagement, The New School for Social Research, and Parsons Paris. The institution awards degrees and certificates through more than 2,600 courses, supported by 34 academic centers and institutes that produce research and creative practice.

Product overview

The New School is a comprehensive urban university consisting of multiple colleges and schools offering undergraduate, graduate, and professional education. The institution's product portfolio includes its core academic divisions: Parsons School of Design (ranked #1 in the US), Eugene Lang College of Liberal Arts, The New School for Social Research, College of Performing Arts (including Mannes School of Music, School of Drama, and School of Jazz), Schools of Public Engagement, and Parsons Paris. Supporting infrastructure includes The New School Libraries with consortium partnerships, a Course Catalog system with 2,600+ courses, and a Content Management System. Additional offerings include Online Programs, Continuing and Professional Education, and Youth/Pre-College Programs. The university operates a Graduate Application Portal and provides internal Marketing Tools and Training resources. Research is supported through 34 academic centers and institutes. The product ecosystem integrates with Common App for admissions, Canvas LMS for learning, RefWorks for citations, and uses MediaSpace (Kaltura) for video content.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Parsons School of Design: Design school ranked #1 in the United States, part of The New School
• Eugene Lang College of Liberal Arts
• College of Performing Arts
• Schools of Public Engagement
• Parsons Paris

Products and services

• Parsons School of Design Degree-granting school offering undergraduate and graduate programs in fashion, architecture, communication design, industrial design, lighting design, and fine arts; ranked #1 design school in the United States.
• The New School for Social Research (NSSR) Graduate and doctoral degree programs in social sciences, humanities, and philosophy, including anthropology, economics, history, philosophy, politics, psychology, sociology, and public policy.
• Eugene Lang College of Liberal Arts Liberal arts undergraduate degree programs in arts, culture, media, economics, history, journalism, philosophy, politics, psychology, and sociology.
• College of Performing Arts Degree programs in music, drama, and jazz/contemporary music combining Mannes School of Music, School of Drama, and School of Jazz; offers performance, composition, and theatrical training.
• Schools of Public Engagement Degree programs in media studies, international affairs, creative writing, policy/management/environment, and bachelor programs for adults and transfer students.
• Parsons Paris Paris campus offering BFA, BBA, MFA, and MS programs in fashion design, art media and technology, and strategic design management; 275 students from 55+ nationalities.
• Online Programs Online degree and certificate programs offered across multiple schools, including online degrees, asynchronous and synchronous learning modalities, and learning on partner platforms.
• Continuing and Professional Education Non-credit courses, certificates, and professional development programs from Parsons and other schools, including summer intensives, youth programs, and professional certificates accessible to learners of all ages.
• Youth and Pre-College Programs Parsons summer programs for youth including pre-college academies, summer intensives, and academy programs designed for high school students.
• The New School Libraries University library system providing collections, databases, research support, course reserves, collaboration rooms, laptop loans, printing services, and archives; includes consortium partnerships with NYU Bobst Library and Cooper Union.

Quantifiable outcome

• 83% of campus climate survey respondents received information on how to report sexual assault; 80% knew where to get help
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration12 records

AI capability8 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• AdobecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 December 2025Collaborative initiative 'Not Generated' with Parsons School of Design to examine the evolving relationship between creativity, technology, and AI.
• NYC Mayoral AdministrationminorOthers · 1 October 2025Lauren Melodia of The New School's Center for New York City Affairs appointed to NYC Rent Guidelines Board by Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani.
• Bakermat AntwerpminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 October 2025Partnership with Bakermat Antwerp for Parsons Paris Re/Source Fabric Fair, giving students access to sustainable fabric resources and industry connections.
• NYU Bobst LibraryminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerConsortium library partnership providing extended research resources and access to New York University library collections.
• Cooper UnionminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerConsortium library partnership providing extended research resources and access to Cooper Union library collections.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Pratt Institute: Private NYC university with signature schools in art, design and architecture; directly competes with Parsons for design students in the same NYC market.
• Juilliard School: Premier NYC conservatory for music, dance and drama; directly comparable to The New School's College of Performing Arts (Mannes, Drama, Jazz) for performing-arts talent.
• Manhattan School of Music: NYC music conservatory directly comparable to Mannes School of Music within The New School's College of Performing Arts.
• Rhode Island School of Design (RISD): Premier US art and design college consistently ranked alongside Parsons; competes head-to-head for top undergraduate design talent in the US.
• School of Visual Arts (SVA): NYC-based proprietary college focused on visual and applied arts; directly competes with Parsons for design, illustration and fine arts students in the same metro.
• Bard College: Private liberal-arts college in New York State known for interdisciplinary, progressive education; comparable academic philosophy to Eugene Lang and NSSR.
• Cooper Union: Small private NYC college with programs in art, architecture and engineering; comparable size and location to The New School and shares library consortium partnerships.

Emerging players

• Royal College of Art: London-based postgraduate art and design university comparable to Parsons in global design rankings; competes with Parsons Paris for European and international design talent.

Broad incumbents

• New York University: Large private NYC research university offering Tisch arts, Gallatin interdisciplinary studies and global programs; broader portfolio but overlaps on NYC liberal-arts/social-research applicants and shares a library consortium.
• Columbia University: NYC Ivy League research university with Columbia College and Graduate School of Arts and Sciences; broader portfolio but competes for the same social-science/social-research graduate students as NSSR.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/nssrnews
• YouTubeyoutube.com/thenewschool
• Facebookfacebook.com/thenewschool
• Instagraminstagram.com/TheNewSchool
• TikToktiktok.com/@thenewschool
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-new-school

Compliance5 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The New School for Social Research