The institution traces its founding to 1742 by Moravians, descendants of followers of the Bohemian Reformation under John Amos Comenius.

Moravian Church Settlements — Bethlehem was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in July 2024.

[4] Moravian University is the sixth-oldest college in the United States and the first to educate women in the original 13 colonies.

It traces its roots to the Bethlehem Female Seminary, which was founded in 1742, as the second boarding school for young women in the U.S. behind just the Ursuline Academy in New Orleans.

[5] The university also traces its roots to the founding of two boys' schools, established in 1742 and 1743, which merged to become Nazareth Hall in 1759.

Faith communities most often represented among the seminary's students include: Moravian, Lutheran, UCC, Episcopal, United Methodist, Presbyterian, Baptist, Roman Catholic, Quaker, Mennonite, Unitarian Universalist, African Methodist Episcopal, Assembly of God, Brethren, Reformed, and nondenominational.

[9] Moravian University's student news site is The Comenian, which is published online throughout the school year.

The program helps Moravian students gain a better understanding of scholarship in their discipline, and fosters scholar–colleague relationships.

[16] Established in 1960, the university's honors program provides qualified seniors the opportunity to pursue a yearlong intensive study of a subject of special interest.

Art and music programs are offered in Bethlehem's historic district on the college's Priscilla Payne Hurd Campus.

In the 2009–2010 school year, Moravian University added a new living complex on the Priscilla Payne Hurd Campus called the HILL.

The suites contain a living room, full kitchen, private bathroom, and additional hallway sinks.

The field is located at the center of campus, with views from the residential halls, Reeves Library, and the portico of the Haupert Union Building (HUB), which has been razed and will re-open in August 2025 as a $42 million state-of-the-art student center with student mental and physical wellness central to the building design.

The 55,000-square-foot facility hosts classes for both undergraduate and graduate programs, including nursing, informatics, and the health sciences and features the region's only virtual cadaver lab.

Men's sports include football, lacrosse, soccer, basketball, baseball, track and field, cross country, tennis, golf, and swimming.

On July 26, 2024, Moravian Church Settlements—Bethlehem became the 26th UNESCO World Heritage site in the United States.

Along with Gracehill, Northern Ireland, and Herrnhut, Germany, Bethlehem joins Christiansfeld, Denmark as a single World Heritage site that represents the outstanding universal value of these historic settlements and the worldwide influence of the Moravian Church.

The district also includes two buildings — the Waterworks pump house and the Gemeinhaus (community hall)  — both previously recognized as historic landmarks on their own.