Northern Arizona University

Situated on a 740-acre rural campus in sunny Flagstaff at the base of the Colorado Plateau with its famous four-season climate, Northern Arizona University is a comprehensive public research institution governed by the Arizona Board of Regents. Perched at 6,950 feet above sea level and surrounded by the largest contiguous ponderosa pine forest on the entire North American continent, NAU is a favorite among winter sport enthusiasts for being within miles of the renowned Arizona Snowbowl alpine ski resort. Home to more than 26,000 student, NAU also offers courses at 36 satellite campuses across Arizona and online from anywhere in the world.

First established as the Northern Arizona Normal School in 1899, the school initially had an inaugural class of just four women who received credentials to teach in the Arizona Territory. Since its inception, the institution has been named the Northern Arizona State Teacher's College, the Arizona State Teacher's College, and finally Northern Arizona University. After the campus was utilized as a Navy V-12 program training site in World War II, NAU became the first university in Arizona to obtain program accredited from the NCATE and the first public university to offer a competency-based online program that enables students to earn credit for experience.

Fully accredited by the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association (NCA), NAU provides students with access to 87 bachelor's, 48 master's, and 10 doctoral degree programs along with 39 undergraduate and 26 graduate certificates. Consistently named among the "Best for Vets" by Military Times magazine, Northern Arizona University also offers more than 50 online accredited degree programs with a unique locked-in tuition rate and the lowest per-credit-hour costs in the state. The top undergraduate degrees by enrollment at NAU are elementary education, biology, nursing, criminal justice, and hotel and restaurant management.

For students on-campus, Northern Arizona University offers more than 200 recognized professional, academic, community service, and social organizations, an intramural sports program, and the award-winning student newspaper. Nicknamed the Lumberjacks, student athletes at NAU can compete in the Big Sky Conference of the NCAA Division I in football, basketball, baseball, ice hockey, track and field, or swimming and diving. Some of the most distinguished former Lumberjacks include artist R.C. Gorman, Olympian Lopez Lomong, actor Seamus Dever, author Diana Gabaldon, and former Governor Raul Hector Castro.