Seton Hall University football Seton Hall University is a private Roman Catholic university in South Orange , New Jersey , United States . Founded in 1856 by Archbishop James Roosevelt Bayley , Seton Hall is the oldest diocesan university in the United States . Seton Hall is also the oldest and largest Catholic university in the State of New Jersey . The university is known for its programs in business , law , education , nursing , and diplomacy . Seton Hall is made up of nine different schools and colleges with an undergraduate enrollment of about 5 , 200 students and a graduate enrollment of about 4 , 500 . Its School of Law , which is ranked by " US News & World Report " as one of the top 100 law schools in the nation , has an enrollment of about 1 , 200 students . For 2009 , " BusinessWeek ' s " " " Colleges with the Biggest Returns " " ranked Seton Hall among the top 50 universities in the nation that open doors to the highest salaries . Seton Hall ' s Stillman School of Business is ranked 56 out of the top 100 undergraduate business schools and # 1 in the state of New Jersey according to BusinessWeek . The Seton Hall College of Medicine and Dentistry was the first school of medicine in the State of New Jersey . The school was acquired by the state in 1965 , and is now the New Jersey Medical School , part of the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey . History . Early history . Like many Catholic universities in the United States , Seton Hall arose out of the Plenary Council of American Bishops , held in Baltimore , Maryland in 1844 , with the goal of bringing Catholicism to higher education in order to help propagate the faith . The Diocese of Newark had been established by Pope Pius IX in 1853 , just three years before the founding of the college , and it necessitated an institution for higher learning . Seton Hall College was formally founded on September 1 , 1856 by Archdiocese of Newark Bishop James Roosevelt Bayley , a cousin of President Theodore Roosevelt . Bishop Bayley named the institution after his aunt , Mother Elizabeth Ann Seton , who was later named the first American - born Catholic saint . The main campus of the college was originally in Madison , New Jersey . Reverend Bernard J . McQuaid served as the first college president ( 1856 – 1857 , 1859 – 1868 ) and directed a staff of four diocesan clergy including Reverend Alfred Young , vice - president ; Reverend Daniel Fisher ( the second college president , 1857 – 1859 ) and five lay instructors . Initially , Seton Hall had only five students – Leo G . Thebaud , Louis and Alfred Boisaubin , Peter Meehan and John Moore . By the end of the first year , the student body had grown more than tenfold to 54 . By the 1860s , Seton Hall College was continuing its rapid growth and began to enroll more and more students each year . However , among other difficulties , several fires on campus slowed down the growth process . The first of several strange fires in the University ' s history occurred in 1867 which destroyed the college ’ s first building . Two decades later on March 9 , 1886 , another fire destroyed the university ’ s main building . In the 20th century , another campus fire burned down a classroom as well as several dormitory buildings in 1909 . During the 19th century , despite setbacks , financially tight times and the American Civil War , the College continued to expand . Seton Hall opened a military science department ( forerunner to the ROTC program ) during the summer of 1893 , but this program was ultimately disbanded during the Spanish - American War . Perhaps one of the most pivotal events in the history of Seton Hall came in 1897 when Seton Hall ’ s preparatory ( high school ) and college ( undergraduate ) divisions were permanently separated . By 1937 , Seton Hall established a University College . This marked the first matriculation of women at Seton Hall . Seton Hall became fully coeducational in 1968 . In 1948 , Seton Hall was given a license by the FCC for WSOU - FM . Today , the station is considered by some as one of the leading college radio stations in the country . The College was organized into a university in 1950 following an unprecedented growth in enrollment . The College of Arts and Sciences and the schools of business , nursing and education comprised the University ; the School of Law opened its doors in 1951 , with Miriam Rooney as the first woman dean of law in the United States . Student life . Athletics . The school ' s sports teams are called the Pirates . They participate in the NCAA ' s Division I and in the Big East Conference . The college established its first basketball squad in 1903 . Seton Hall canceled football ( which was played in Division III ) in 1982 . Seton Hall athletics is best known for its men ' s basketball program , which won the National Invitation Tournament ( NIT ) in 1953 , and lost in the finals of the 1989 NCAA Tournament to Michigan , 80 – 79 in overtime . Seton Hall currently participates at the Division I level in baseball , basketball , women ' s basketball , cross country running , men ' s golf , soccer , women ' s soccer , softball , swimming , diving , women ' s tennis , indoor and outdoor track & field , and volleyball sports . Seton Hall also has club sports in ice hockey , rugby union , and Men ' s volleyball . All Seton Hall sports have their home field on the South Orange campus except for the men ' s ice hockey team and the men ' s basketball team , which currently plays at the Prudential Center in Newark , New Jersey after previously calling the Meadowlands home .