The Catholic University in Ružomberok consists of four faculties (Faculty of Arts and Letters, Faculty of Education, Faculty of Theology, Faculty of Public Health). The university has been an associate since 2004 and in 2010 it became a member of the International Federation of Catholic Universities. The university has also been the member of Fédération des Universités Catholiques Européennes since 2007.

It was after the Velvet Revolution in the year 1989 that possibilities arose for the creation of CU in Slovakia. The Slovak bishops endeavoured to form a Faculty of Pedagogy which would educate Catholic teachers. The charter of the Pedagogical Institute of St. Andrew in Ružomberok was signed on 29 June 1995, in Dolná Krupá, and the first director was prof. RNDr. Jozef Ďurček, CSc.

The Academic Council of the University of Trnava created a Catechetical-pedagogical Faculty of St. Andrew (KPF) in 1996, through the transformation of the Pedagogical Institute of St. Andrew. The KPF was incorporated into the University of Žilina in 1997. Its statute, with the right of Church audit, as is usual for theological faculties, was registered at the Ministry of Education of the Slovak Republic. The first deans of KPF were prof. RNDr. Jozef Ďurček, Csc. (1996-1998) and prof. RNDr. Pavol Kluvánek, CSc. (1999-2000).

Later, on the basis of KPF, CU came into existence. The Law of the National Council of the Slovak Republic from 10 May 2000, concerning the establishment of the Catholic University in Ružomberok (CU) (this is the official name), established the creation of CU from 1 April 2000, with two faculties: a Faculty of Pedagogy and a Faculty of Philosophy. The Faculty of Theology, with its seat in Košice, was established on 1 July 2003, and the fourth, the Faculty of Health, on 1 July 2005. Although Law 167/2000 created CU as a non-governmental university, with the Law of the National Council of the Slovak Republic about universities, CU became a public university with religious character from 1 April 2002.