 University Statistics |
Student Statistics |
Campuses |
Academic Achievement |
| What the Experts Say |
Research |
Libraries |
Degrees |
| Endowment |
Capital Improvements |
Culture |
Opened in 1866, the University of Kansas is a comprehensive educational and research institution with 30,644 students and more than 2,200 faculty members. KU includes the main campus in Lawrence, a city of about 90,000 in northeastern Kansas; the medical center in Kansas City, Kan.; the Edwards Campus in Overland Park; a clinical campus of the School of Medicine in Wichita; and educational and research facilities throughout the state.
Learn more: Lawrence
Visitor's Bureau Fast Facts for Media
University Statistics: Fall 2008
Enrollment: 30,102 (20,811 undergraduates and 6,188 graduates at the Lawrence and Edwards campuses; 3,103 students at the medical center).
Faculty members: 2,458 at the main campus and the medical center.
Full-time faculty with Ph.D. or equivalent in their fields: 97 percent
Fields of study: More than 190.
Study Abroad opportunities: 135 programs in 72 countries.
Major academic divisions: College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, which includes the School of the Arts; schools of allied health; architecture, design, and planning; business; education; engineering; journalism and mass communications; law; medicine; music; nursing; pharmacy; and social welfare.
Financial aid, scholarships, and grants: About $203.4 million to more than 18,000 students on Lawrence and medical center campuses.
Student Statistics: Fall 2008
States represented: All 50
Percentage of students from Kansas: 74
International students: More than 1,900 from more than 110 countries.
Average age of undergraduate students: 21
Average age of graduate students: 30
Percentage of men to women: 49.9 to 50.1
Percentage of multicultural students: 13
Average ACT composite score for freshmen: 24.8, highest of any Kansas regents school
Degrees granted annually: To about 4,000 undergraduates and 2,135 masters', doctoral, and professional candidates (one-third of the bachelor's and master's degrees and two-thirds of the doctorates granted at the six Kansas regents schools)
Campuses
Considered one of the most beautiful in the nation, KU's main campus occupies 1,000 acres on and around Mount Oread in Lawrence, a thriving city of 90,000 in the forested hills of eastern Kansas.
The KU Medical Center occupies several city blocks in Kansas City, Kan., about 45 miles east of Lawrence, and is home to the academic schools of allied health, medicine and nursing, clinics, and research centers.
The Edwards Campus, on 38 acres in a suburban Kansas City corridor known for its high-tech manufacturers and laboratories, offers courses for adult students.
In addition, KU has a clinical campus of the School of Medicine in Wichita and educational and research facilities throughout the state.
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Academic Achievement
Honors students: 1,322 in 2008-09
Rhodes Scholars: 25, more than all other Kansas schools combined.
Fulbright Fellowships for students: 406
Recent recognitions:
Allied health: Scholarship of Excellence winner, Association of Schools of Allied Health Professions, 2008
Architecture: American Institute of Architects Education Honor Award, 2009
Business: U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce Bizfest champion, 2007
City management/urban policy: No. 1 graduate program, U.S. News & World Report, 2009
Debate: National champions, 2009 (fifth national title)
Education: No. 1 special education graduate program, U.S. News & World Report, 2009
Engineering: Space Robotics Challenge international awards, 2008
Journalism: Hearst Intercollegiate Writing Competition champions, 2009 (third consecutive year)
Medicine: No. 1 in number of graduates entering family medicine residencies
Music: Naftzger Young Artists Music Awards/Piano, 2009
Nursing: Master's, midwifery and anesthesia programs in top 30 among public universities, 2008
Pharmacy: No. 3, National Institutes of Health research grant ranking, 2009
Social welfare: Eli Lilly Reintegration Award, 2007
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What the Experts Say
Nationally ranked graduate programs: 42 (U.S. News & World Report, 2009)
Ranking in U.S.: No. 40 among U.S. public universities (U.S. News & World Report, Best Colleges 2009)
College guides:
"One of the premier college bargains in the United States."— 2009 Fiske Guide to Colleges
"One of the best values among the most academically outstanding colleges in the nation."— 2008 Princeton Review's Best 366 Colleges
"One of the more highly regarded (public) schools in the nation."— Choosing the Right College, 2006
High-school counselor ratings: 12th among U.S. public universities, based on academic reputation (U.S. News & World Report, 2008)
Student choice awards: 7th among U.S. public universities by enrolled students (U.S. News & World Report, 2008)
Volunteering: One-third of KU students participate ("Colleges with a Conscience: 81 Great Schools With Outstanding Community Involvement")
Facebook: No. 1 university page in U.S. by number of fans. www.facebook.com/ku
Research
Research is an integral part of KU's educational activity. In fiscal year 2008, university expenditures in research, training, and service grants totaled $297.4 million. The National Science Foundation and the Carnegie Foundation both classify KU as a top research university, and it has been a member of the elite Association of American Universities since 1909.
The 2009 edition of U.S. News' "America's Best Graduate Schools" ranked 28 KU programs in the top 30 among public universities. Fifteen KU programs are in the top 10, and two — special education and city management/urban policy — are ranked No. 1 among public universities.
Libraries
Library collections on the Lawrence campus contain more than 4.3 million volumes, 3.6 million microforms, 338,000 maps, and 3.25 million photographs, slides, drawings, and cartoons. Scholars from all over the world use the Kenneth Spencer Research Library's valuable collections of rare and historic material, including its University Archives and Kansas Collection. Other specialized libraries hold collections in art and architecture, dance, engineering, law, maps, and music.
At the medical center, the Archie R. Dykes Library for Health Sciences and the Clendening History of Medicine Library and Museum are major resources for health professionals.
Degrees
The largest of the Kansas regents institutions, KU annually awards one-third of the bachelor's and master's degrees and two-thirds of the doctorates granted at regents schools. The university awards more than 1,000 graduate degrees a year; 200 of those are doctoral degrees.
Endowment
KU Endowment is the official organization for raising and managing private funds on behalf of KU. Founded in 1891, KU Endowment is the oldest foundation of its type at a U.S. public university and one of the largest.
In 2008, donors gave a record $94 million, the largest amount in its 117-year history, and KU Endowment provided a record amount of support to the university — $112 million, which included a 15 percent increase in student support. Net assets are more than $1 billion.
Capital Improvements
KU continues to enhance and improve its facilities and technology to provide students, faculty, and staff the most advanced tools and best possible environment for teaching and research. Among recent significant projects:
Sabatini Multicultural Resource Center: This 7,000-square-foot, $2.7 million building on the north side of the Kansas Union was dedicated in April 2008. It was largely funded by a $1 million gift from the Sabatini Family Foundation of Topeka and houses staff and program offices, an auditorium, and academic support and study rooms for students.
Structural Biology Center addition: Opened in fall 2008, the $20-million addition to the center on west campus has 45,000 square feet and houses the High Throughput Screening Lab and the KU Center of Excellence in Chemical Methodologies and Library Development.
Wescoe Hall: A $4.9-million, two-year renovation to be completed in summer 2009 includes enclosing two levels of the south terrace to create about 80 offices and meeting rooms for faculty and staff; new ventilation systems; and new mechanical systems.
Krehbiel Scholarship Hall: Alumnus Carl Krehbiel donated $4 million to fund a men's scholarship hall in honor of his parents. The 18,000-square-foot hall, housing 50 students, opened in fall 2008. Krehbiel and its neighbor, Dennis E. Rieger Scholarship Hall, echo the Queen Anne style common in the Oread neighborhood.
Steam tunnels: Repairs and replacements continue on tunnels running under and around Watson Library; and Blake, Stauffer-Flint, Strong, and Wescoe halls. Electrical and data services cables also run through the tunnels. The last stage, scheduled in 2010, will be between Robinson Gymnasium and Watkins Memorial Health Center.
School of Pharmacy Building: Ground was broken for a new building in May 2009. The 110,000-square-foot structure on KU's west campus will house teaching facilities and administrative offices. It was funded by $50 million in bonds from the state of Kansas that includes about $4.5 million for an addition for the pharmacy school on the Wichita campus.
Several major athletics facilities are being built or remodeled:
Allen Fieldhouse: A $55-million renovation under way at the Fieldhouse complex includes a new 11,600-square-foot basketball practice facility for men and women; an enlarged volleyball facility in Horejsi; and remodeled locker rooms and offices in Wagnon-Parrott for softball, soccer, track and other sports. In the Fieldhouse, locker rooms, restrooms, concourses and concession areas will be remodeled; mechanical and electrical improvements will be made; and a two-level bridge to the parking garage will be added.
Anderson Family Football Complex: Adjacent to Memorial Stadium, the $31-million complex has academic areas; locker rooms; facilities for weight and cardio training, hydrotherapy, audio-visual screenings and nutrition; coaches' and trainers' offices; and new parking lots. It opened in August 2008.
See the Campus Buildings Directory for a complete list of academic, research, athletic and residence facilities; campus statues; memorials, fountains, and courtyards. www.buildings.ku.edu
Culture
Lecturers, scholars, artists, concert musicians, actors and dancers perform at the Lied Center of Kansas, a 2,000-seat performing arts hall. The adjacent 250-seat Bales Organ Recital Hall provides cathedral-like acoustics for its three-manual pipe organ, built by Wolff & Associés of Quebec.
University Theatre programs provide active learning opportunities for students of acting, directing, and technical theatre. Committed to presenting classics of world dramatic literature as living theatre, these programs also develop new dramatic texts and forms.
Performances are staged in the Crafton-Preyer Theatre (capacity 1,180) and the William Inge Memorial Theatre (capacity 125). Two other theaters in Murphy Hall — Swarthout Recital Hall (capacity 335) and the Robert F. Baustian Theatre (capacity 125) — feature classical and contemporary music and opera.
The Robert J. Dole Institute of Politics features dynamic stained-glass windows and a large reflecting pool reminiscent of Washington's Tidal Basin. The $11-million, 28,000-square-foot facility houses exhibits and the world's largest congressional archive. Lectures series, seminars and speeches on current political and cultural issues are presented in its meeting spaces and halls.
The Spencer Museum of Art, long recognized as one of the finest university art museums in the nation, houses an internationally known collection numbering nearly 36,000 artworks and artifacts in all media. Significant holdings include East Asian art; medieval art; European and American paintings, sculpture and prints; photography; Japanese Edo-period painting and prints; textiles and quilts; 20th-century Chinese painting; and an ethnographic collection of about 10,000 Native American, African, Latin American, and Australian works.
About 50,000 people a year visit the Natural History Museum. Fossil exhibits of extinct mammals, dinosaurs, reptiles, and fishes are especially popular. The museum's centerpiece is a panorama of North American plants and animals first prepared by renowned zoologist L.L. Dyche for the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago.
Greater Kansas City, a sprawling metropolitan area about 45 miles east of Lawrence, offers attractive cultural resources, including the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, the American Jazz Museum, Kansas City Repertory Theatre, the Lyric Opera, the Kansas City Ballet, and the Linda Hall Library, a premier engineering, science and technology library.
Dino Lab, KU's fossil preparation laboratory, is a public exhibit at Science City in Kansas City's Union Station, a restored 1914 Beaux Arts masterpiece. Nearby, in the Power & Light entertainment district, is the Sprint Center Arena, a 19,000-seat facility for concerts and sporting events.
The Country Club Plaza in central Kansas City, Mo., has upscale shops, boutiques, restaurants, and galleries. On the western edge of the metro area, the Legends at Village West in Kansas City, Kan., has a mix of casual restaurants, shopping, hotels, and nightclubs.
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