A Christian Minority College, St. Stephen's College, New Delhi is a Constituent College of the University of Delhi. Established on 1st February 1881, it was managed by the Delhi Mission of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel.
 
An autonomous Christian College, it is under the Church of North India. St. Stephen's College, New Delhi, is widely regarded as one of the most prestigious and oldest colleges for arts and sciences in India. It has produced a number of distinguished alumni.

The college was established to impart higher education to meritorious students. It is one of the premier colleges that was established with an intention to be a milestone in the path of progress.

St. Stephen's College is affiliated to the University of Delhi, New Delhi. It was recognized by the University Grants Commission (UGC) under section 2(f) & 12(B) on 20th May 2014 under the UGC Act of 1956. On 19th February 2016, it was re-accredited by the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) with "A" Grade - (CGPA score 3.21 on a 4 point scale in the 3rd cycle).

The college aims at the spiritual, intellectual and moral development of its students. To preserve its pluralistic and cosmopolitan tradition, it encourages the enrollment of students from varied economic and social strata and different communities.

St. Stephen's College is a self-financed institute. It is a co-educational college that provides regular courses.

St. Stephen's College's history can be traced back to St. Stephen's High School, which was founded in 1854. The credit for the founding of the college goes to Reverend Samuel Scott Allnutt of St. John's College, Cambridge.

In 1879, the Govt. College, Delhi was closed down due to financial problems. To set matters right, the Reverend Thomas Valpy French, the Bishop of Lahore, asked the Cambridge Mission, an Anglican mission organized by the alumni of University of Cambridge to do something to bridge the gap.

The college was also founded as a response to the British Indian Government's promotion of English education in India.

With three professors and five boarders, the college operated from Chandni Chowk, Delhi. It was then affiliated with the University of Calcutta, Kolkata.

However, in 1882, it was affiliated to Punjab University, Chandigarh. After a year of the founding of the St. Stephen's College, the Punjab University received its charter. The St. Stephen's College was one of the two institutions first affiliated to Punjab University. Later, the college moved to Kashmiri Gate, Delhi.

In 1922 the University of Delhi was founded and St. Stephen's College became a constituent college of the University of Delhi.

Under the University of Delhi, St. Stephen's College had received many accolades in the field of education, sports, and extra-curricular activities at the city, state and national level.

Based on nationwide surveys, The Week and India Today have always considered St. Stephen's College as one of the best colleges in India providing courses in both science and arts streams.

The St. Stephen's College provides undergraduate (three years) and postgraduate (two years) courses in the fields of arts and science. It also provides various specializations under the University of Delhi, New Delhi.

Several exchange programmes are also conducted with the universities of UK, US, Europe, and Japan. Certificate courses in Asian and European languages are also conducted here in the International Languages School.

Unlike other colleges under the Delhi University, St Stephen's College has its own unique selection process. An online application process enables the prospective applicants to fill in their academic achievements and interests. A list of the candidates selected for admission test and interview is put up by the first week of June.

The college conducts examinations on various courses conducted by the University of Delhi and also other examinations.

Vision:

• The college aims at gaining excellence in higher education. It also stresses on the total development of personality, character building, discipline and responsible citizenship.

Mission:

• The college is on a mission to educate the young generation of our country with republican and liberal values so that they can become able citizens who serve the nation with pride and also equip themselves with values that enable them to attain maximum personal fulfillment.