Spiritual Identity
Mission Driven
No genuine search for the truth is alien to the life of faith. As part of Notre Dame's mission, these words guide our academic and spiritual lives.
Our Catholic faith not only informs our pursuit of truth, it is part of everything we do on campus. That’s why community service isn’t just a hallmark of Notre Dame. It’s a way of life. Service to others is how we live out our faith. Notre Dame students bring a concern for those in need, a commitment to helping, and a desire to give more than take, to everything they do. So, whatever your passion, you’ll find a way to put it to use for the greater good.
Senior Joonhee Bock reads to an elementary school student at the Robinson Community Learning Center.
Faith on Campus
Notre Dame represents much that is best and most generous in the American tradition.
- More than 80% of Notre Dame students participate in service or service learning before they graduate.
- Roughly 5% of each graduating class spends a year or more in volunteer service.
- 800+ Notre Dame graduates have served in the Peace Corps.
Sacred Spaces
- Every week, more than 40 Sunday Masses and 160 daily Masses are celebrated on campus.
- You can find more than 75 priests on campus, serving as hall rectors, professors, and administrators.
- 30 religious retreats are offered annually through Campus Ministry.
- There are over 60 chapels on campus, including a chapel in each of the 32 residence halls, for personal reflection and weekly Mass.
- Each year, just prior to Commencement, the senior class celebrates one last Mass together in the Grotto.
All Faiths Welcome
We are a Catholic institution, but all faiths practiced within our community are welcomed and supported. Notre Dame has one of the largest campus ministry organizations in the country and our Campus Ministry serves all faiths through Masses, faith sharing groups, and retreats. You can work with high school participants at the ND Vision retreat, serve as a Eucharistic minister at your residence hall Mass, or lend your voice in worship to the Liturgical Choir, the Folk Choir, or the Voices of Faith Gospel Choir.
Faith in Action
Let us help you make the world a better place. Applying our knowledge to real-world issues is central to the Notre Dame mission. We do that through service-learning programs that combine academics and ethics; through partnership with major nonprofit organizations; and by championing causes we believe in. Whatever your path, your academic experience will inspire in you a solidarity with the global community and a passion for serving the common good. These are some of the ways we turn our faith into action.
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Center for Social Concerns
U.S. News & World Report consistently ranks Notre Dame's Center for Social Concerns as one of the national leaders in community-based learning and service. Its Summer Service Learning Program places students within more than 300 community organizations in the U.S. and abroad.
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The ACE Program
The Alliance for Catholic Education (ACE) places more than 180 college graduates in over 120 parochial schools throughout the United States and provides elementary and secondary school students and teachers with valuable resources.
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Mission and Mettle
A long tradition of athleticism and service gives student-athletes one more way to give back. The Bengal Bouts men’s boxing tournament has raised money for Holy Cross Missions in Bangladesh for more than 80 years. The Baraka Bouts women’s boxing club contributes to the Holy Cross Missions in East Africa.