Bais Medrash Elyon

Bais Medrash Elyon began in 1945 on what was then empty farmland in Monsey, New York. Horav Shraga Feivel Mendlowitz established it after the Holocaust to help replace the great centers of advanced Torah study that had been destroyed. The original setting gave students an environment where they could study without disturbance. That quiet purpose remains an important part of the school’s identity, with learning at the center of its work.

The school opened as a graduate division of Yeshiva Torah Vodaath. Its curriculum was designed for students seeking advanced study across several areas of Torah: Talmud, Jewish law, philosophy, and ethics. The program now offered is a 150-credit, five-year undergraduate course leading to a First Talmudic Degree. This structure gives students a sustained course of study while retaining the broad subject range that shaped the yeshiva from its beginning.

Bais Medrash Elyon also helped draw religious Jews to Monsey, and the surrounding area grew into the Torah metropolis it is today. International students should understand the school within that religious and educational setting. The academic year has fall, spring, and summer terms, with scheduled breaks during the fall and spring. The fall term runs from August to December, spring from December to March, and summer from May to August. The program requires a five-year commitment centered on Torah study and the First Talmudic Degree.