public institution located on 570 acres (230 hectares) in Grand Forks, N.D., in the middle of the Red River valley. It was founded in 1883, before North Dakota was a state. The university grants degrees from the bachelor's through the doctoral level and conducts classes on the semester system. About three fourths of the full-time faculty hold doctorates. The university has a branch at Williston, and some of the evening and weekend classes for adult learners are held in shopping malls in the surrounding region. Undergraduate enrollment is roughly 10,000 students, most of whom are from the North Central United States. The numbers of men and women seeking bachelor's degrees are about equal. Approximately a quarter of the undergraduates are over the age of 25. About a third of the undergraduates live on campus in its single-sex and coeducational dormitories. All freshmen enter the University College for a year of general education classes before starting their major. The university offers degree programs in numerous fields, including liberal arts and sciences, library science, business, education, fine and performing arts, meteorology, aviation, area and ethnic studies, engineering, criminal justice, computer science, communications, home economics, industrial arts, nursing and other health professions, public administration, and social work. At the graduate level, enrollment is about 2,000 students. Graduate studies are available in many of the same areas as for undergraduates. The university also has law and medical schools. Some 200 extracurricular activities are conducted at the university, including publications, religious organizations, fraternities and sororities, musical and theatrical groups, the student-run newspaper, and intramural sports. Varsity sports teams, nicknamed the Fighting Sioux, compete in Division II of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (except the hockey team, which participates in Division I). School colors are green and white. |