University of Memphis

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U.S. News Rankings

Ranking score and category

U.S. News rank Category Name Rank Not Published National Universities

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Summary

University of Memphis is a public institution that was founded in 1912. It has a total undergraduate enrollment of 17,966, its setting is urban, and the campus size is 1,600 acres. It utilizes a semester-based academic calendar. University of Memphis's ranking in the 2013 edition of Best Colleges is National Universities, Tier 2. Its in-state tuition and fees are $7,276 (2012-13); out-of-state tuition and fees are $15,340 (2012-13).

The University of Memphis is a public institution at which first year students can take advantage of the Fresh Connections learning communities—a group of three courses connected by one theme, such as Africans in History or even War, Peace, and Zombies. Freshmen choose a themed package of classes and take them with a small group of other first year students, who often become future study partners, connections, or friends. All undergraduates at U of M, as the school is known, can choose from more than 50 majors, and master’s students can study in more than 40 graduate programs, including in those in the Fogelman College of Business and Economics, the Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law, and the schools of education and engineering.

Outside the classroom, U of M students can join more than 70 campus clubs, pledge with about 25 fraternities and sororities, or play for many recreational sports teams. The Memphis Tigers varsity sports teams compete in the NCAA Division I Conference USA. Notable University of Memphis alumni include NFL football players Isaac Bruce, Stephen Gostkowski, Wade Smith, and DeAngelo Williams.

School mission and unique qualities (as provided by the school):

The University of Memphis was founded in 1912 by the Tennessee legislature and is one of only two doctoral high or very high research public universities in the state and is designated as "community engaged" by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. Home to 21,000 students from all 50 states and 100 foreign countries, the University of Memphis strives to provide a close community for its students through its Learning Communities, Emerging Leaders Program, Honors Program, residence life, and 180 student organizations. Our students are National Merit finalists, Truman and Goldwater Scholars, Emerging Leaders, Honors students, and Merck Research scholars. They have won national competitions in robotics/artificial intelligence, music, journalism, finance, moot court, architecture, and mathematics. Our student athletes compete in the classroom as well as the field of athletic competition in 18 different NCAA Division I intercollegiate sports. Men's basketball has enjoyed a 35-year tradition of excellence, including repeated trips to the NCAA tournament; the team has played in the Final Four three times. The UofM comprises five colleges - arts & sciences, business, education, communication & fine arts, engineering, and the University College, which offers non-traditional degrees - as well as a graduate school, and schools of law, nursing, communication sciences and disorders, music, urban affairs and public policy, and public health. The University offers 15 bachelor's degrees in more than 50 majors and 70 concentrations, master's degrees in more than 45 subjects, and doctoral degrees in 21 disciplines, in addition to the juris doctor (law) and specialist in education degrees. Our academic programs enable our students to compete at the highest level offering world-recognized programs in education, psychology, philosophy, audiology and speech-language pathology, earthquake science, biomedical engineering, and discrete mathematics, among others. The Loewenberg School of Nursing has a longstanding 100% first-time passage rate for state licensure, and the Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law graduates have the overall highest first-time bar exam passage of any law school in the State of Tennessee. The Rudi E. Scheidt School of Music is the only program in the Southeast region to offer a doctorate in music. The University's Fogelman College of Business and Economics is in the forefront of international business education, and the College of Education is the 8th largest in the nation. Other notable initiatives of the UofM are the Kemmons Wilson School of Hospitality and Resort Management, a gift from the world-renowned late hotelier, and the FedEx Institute of Technology, a one-of-a-kind partnership with FedEx Corporation. The University is closely connected to the community via internships and research conducted in conjunction with area schools, non-profits, and businesses. These partnerships provide students unique educational and career opportunities and generate knowledge to inform the University's community, governmental, business and industrial partners. The University's academic and research efforts are closely tied to societal needs, including, groundbreaking strides in the training of teachers for urban classrooms, ongoing research into educational policy, community health and health care, addiction, economics, housing, regional planning, environmental sustainability, groundwater, earthquakes, cybersecurity, bio-hazards, nanotechnology, artificial intelligence, and public safety, among others. The University is dedicated to lifelong learning, and to making higher education accessible to as many people as possible. Toward that end, it makes significant use of online courses and offers classes at the University of Memphis Lambuth in Jackson, Tennessee, at 3 satellite campuses in West Tennessee and 34 off-site community locations.

General Information

School type	public, coed college
Year founded	1912
Religious affiliation	N/A
Academic calendar	semester
Setting	urban
2011 Endowment	$197,337,400

Applying

When applying to University of Memphis, it's important to note the application deadline is July 1. Scores for either the ACT or SAT test are due July 1. The application fee at University of Memphis is $25. It is selective, with an acceptance rate of 66.3 percent.

For more information about the tests, essays, interviews, and admissions process, visit the Applying to College knowledge center.

Selectivity	selective
Fall 2011 acceptance rate	66.4%
Application deadline	July 1
SAT/ACT scores must be received by	July 1

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Academic Life

The student-faculty ratio at University of Memphis is 15:1, and the school has 36.3 percent of its classes with fewer than 20 students. The most popular majors at University of Memphis include: Business, Management, Marketing, and Related Support Services; Education; Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies; Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities; and Social Sciences. The average freshman retention rate, an indicator of student satisfaction, is 76.8 percent.

Class sizes
Student-faculty ratio	15:1
4-year graduation rate	12
Five most popular majors for 2011 graduates
Business, Management, Marketing, and Related Support Services 21% Education 10% Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies 10% Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities 6% Social Sciences 6%

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Student Life

University of Memphis has a total undergraduate enrollment of 17,966, with a gender distribution of 38.3 percent male students and 61.7 percent female students. At this school, 14.0 percent of the students live in college-owned, -operated, or -affiliated housing and 86.0 percent of students live off campus. University of Memphis is part of the NCAA I athletic conference.

Total enrollment	22,725
Student gender distribution
Undergraduate men who are members of a fraternity	N/A
Undergraduate women who are members of a sorority	N/A
Collegiate athletic association	NCAA I

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Campus Info & Services

University of Memphis offers a number of student services including nonremedial tutoring, women's center, placement service, day care, health service, and health insurance. University of Memphis also offers campus safety and security services like 24-hour foot and vehicle patrols, late night transport/escort service, 24-hour emergency telephones, lighted pathways/sidewalks, student patrols, and controlled dormitory access (key, security card, etc). Of the students at University of Memphis, 91 percent have cars on campus. Alcohol is not permitted for students of legal age at University of Memphis.

Students who have cars on campus	91%
Health insurance offered	Yes
Students required to own/lease a computer	No

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Paying for School

At University of Memphis, 71.3 percent of full-time undergraduates receive some kind of need-based financial aid and the average need-based scholarship or grant award is $5,470.

Paying for college doesn't have to be difficult or devastating. Go to the Paying for College knowledge center to get advice on raising cash and reducing costs.

In-state tuition and fees	$7,276 (2012-13)
Out-of-state tuition and fees	$15,340 (2012-13)
Room and board	$8,498 (2012-13)
Financial aid statistics

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* Overview details based on 2011 data