Changing Demographics

Behind the Numbers: 
Yale University collected religious statistics from all incoming freshmen in the beginning of the chaplaincy. We have researched the Yale Library archives and the Chaplain’s Office records to find many years’ worth of student statistics on religious preferences. The statistics represent the religious identities of students when they come to Yale as freshmen. You can see how the numbers of various traditions change over the decades with our visuals of the statistics for each decade of the Yale chaplaincy. Religious preference statistics now come from the records of an optional form completed by incoming first year students each year at Yale University. We now gather voluntary information from about 40-50% of incoming undergraduates in the annual Religious Information Form.

 

Additional Info: 

1930s

All years are represented for all freshmen students. The religious statistics form was not optional at the time. The first Buddhist freshman student was recorded in the class of 1934. The first self-identified agnostic is in the class of 1934 and the first Atheist in the class of 1939.

1940s

All years are represented for freshmen students. The first Baha’i freshman student was recorded in the class of 1948J. The first Muslim freshman student was recorded in the class of 1944.

Due to World War II, this decade’s statistics are compiled from 19 different records. Classes from 1945 to 1950 each had two to four different graduating classes of students, based on when the student returned from the war.

1950s

The first Hindu freshman student was recorded in the class of 1956. Freshmen statistics are collected for the classes of 1950, 1950F, 1951, 1952, 1954 and 1955. Statistics for the 1956 and 1958 represent the entire undergraduate population. No statistics found for the classes of 1953, 1957 and 1959.

1960s

Statistics for 1963-1967 recorded for the entire undergraduate population. No statistics found for the classes of 1960, 1961, 1962, 1968 and 1969.

1970s

Freshmen statistics recorded for the class of 1970. No records found from 1971-1973. Records found for 1974-1979 lumped all smaller religious affiliations into one “unaffiliated” group. These records significantly skew the records for this decade.

1980s

Records only found for 1980-1982. The records lumped all smaller religious affiliations into one “unaffiliated” group. These records significantly skew the records for this decade.

1990s

The first freshman Zoroastrian student identified in the class of 1991. The first freshman Jain student identified in the class of 1996. Records found only for the classes of 1991, 1996, 1997 and 1998.

2000s

The first self-identified Pagan/Wiccan student was in the class of 2006. Records found for this decade only represent the classes of 2005-2008.

2010s

The first self-identified Sikh student is in the class of 2012. Native American spirituality is first recorded in the class of 2020. Statistics in this graph represent the classes of 2010-2020 (11 years total).