Monmouth was founded in 1933 to provide opportunity for higher education to area high school graduates who, in those Depression-era days, could not afford to go away to college. It was a two-year institution, holding classes only in the evening.

Support from students and the community enabled the fledgling College to persevere and quickly assume its present private status. In 1956, Monmouth College was accredited by the state to offer four-year programs leading to the baccalaureate degree. Less than a decade later, it was authorized to offer master's degree programs. In March 1995, the New Jersey Commission on Higher Education granted Monmouth university status.