• Year Established: 1855
• Location: East Lansing, Michigan
• Number of Campuses: 1 2,000-acre campus
• Classification: Flagship state/public university
• Total Number of Enrollees: 45,166*

*Source: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, 2005 Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System IPEDS, Spring 2006

A Brief Look into the History of Michigan State University

Michigan State University started its trek towards becoming an established university in 1850 – when the Michigan constitution called for the creation of an agricultural school. The first name of the educational institution built by then-governor Kinsley Bingham was the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan.

During the 1860's the university began grating master's degrees. In 1870, it became a co-ed college and the name was changed to Michigan Agricultural College in 1909. It was not until 1964 that the name was officially shortened to Michigan State University.

The main campus of Michigan State University is located in East Lansing, perched directly on the banks of the Red Cedar River.

How the Educational System Works

There are two major parts of the main campus as follows:

1. North Campus

The North campus features a number of historical buildings and sprawling architecture – this facility is the oldest part of the Michigan State University system.

1. South Campus

The South campus consists mostly of buildings modeled after the Second World War – this facility houses, amongst others, the MSU Horticulture Gardens.

Below is a list of the individual colleges at Michigan State University:

• College of Agriculture and Natural Resources
• Residential College in Arts and Humanities
• College of Arts and Letters
• Eli Broad College of Business/ Eli Broad Graduate School of Management
• College of Communication Arts and Sciences
• College of Education
• College of Engineering
• College of Human Medicine
• James Madison College
• College of Law (affiliated)
• Lyman Briggs College
• College of Music
• College of Natural Science
• College of Nursing
• College of Osteopathic Medicine
• College of Social Science
• College of Veterinary Medicine

Internationally, Michigan State University has a reputation of being a global university with outreach-ventures to other countries and Web-based curriculum available to students around the world. The overriding theme for Michigan State as an educational institution is – it is education through innovation, teaching and research.

Program Listings

Michigan State University offers undergraduate, graduate and professional education to qualified students. Below is a list of some of the programs offered:

• Agribusiness Management
• Accounting
• Community, Agriculture, Recreation & Resource Studies
• Agricultural Engineering
• American Studies
• Biomedical Engineering
• Biological Science
• Communication Arts & Sciences
• Computer Science & Engineering
• Educational Administration
• Executive MBA Program
• Environmental Engineering
• Finance
• Family & Child Ecology
• Forestry
• Food Systems Economic and Management
• Fisheries and Wildlife
• General Business & Business Law
• Quantitative Biology
• Radiology
• Resource Development
• Studio Art
• Surgery
• Small Animal Clinical Sciences
• Science and Mathematics Education
• Social Work
• Telecommunication
• Teacher Education
• Urban Planning
• Veterinary Medicine
• Zoology

Advantages of Enrolling at Michigan State University

Again, when you talk about Michigan State University, the keywords that you need to remember are innovative-education. As such, you can rest assured that you are getting only the highest quality education you deserve.

The university implements outreach, engagement and economic development activities for the students and the community. The research is also up-to-par with the most popular research universities in the nation. More importantly, Michigan State University is among the top 100 universities in the world.

When you check on Student Reviews, the overall grade of the Michigan State University is A-, with 80% of the student respondents saying that they would choose to return to MSU. Meanwhile, the Michigan State University ranked number 14 under the Best Graduate Schools list of US News & World Report.

Is There Any Downside to Enrolling at Michigan State University?

The difficulty-level for admission to Michigan State University is medium, which may be considered a disadvantage for some. Of course the Midwest is notorious for rather harsh winters so bring your cold-weather gear.

All in all, Michigan State University is an excellent university which offers a superb learning environment for the students. As past students themselves has ranked MSU in both the formal and informal surveys, the MSU is an excellent university overall.

A Final Word about the Quality of Education Offered by Michigan State University

MSU has a vision of being a global model leader for Land Grant institutions by the year 2012. As such, if you are planning to be a part of such a 'futuristic' educational establishment, Michigan State University is definitely it for you.