MSU Facts

Michigan State University Spartans work to advance the common good in uncommon ways. The nation’s pioneer land-grant university, MSU began as a bold experiment that democratized higher education and helped bring science and innovation into everyday life. Today, MSU is one of the top research universities in the world—on one of the biggest, greenest campuses in the nation—and is home to a diverse community of dedicated students and scholars, athletes and artists, scientists and leaders.

ABOUT MSU

History

Founded in 1855

Prototype for 69 land-grant institutions established under the Morrill Act of 1862

First institution of higher learning in the United States to teach scientific agriculture

Official name changes

February 12, 1855 – Agricultural College of the State of Michigan

March 15, 1861 – State Agricultural College

June 2, 1909 – Michigan Agricultural College

May 1, 1925 – Michigan State College of Agriculture and Applied Science

July 1, 1955 – Michigan State University of Agriculture and Applied Science

January 1, 1964 – Michigan State University

Presidents

1. Joseph R. Williams (1857–1859)
2. Lewis R. Fisk (1859–1862)
3. Theophilus C. Abbot (1862–1884)
4. Edwin Willits (1885–1889)
5. Oscar Clute (1889–1893)
6. Lewis B. Gorton (1893–1895)
7. Jonathan L. Snyder (1896–1915)
8. Frank S. Kedzie (1915–1921)
9. David Friday (1921–1923)
10. Kenyon L. Butterfield (1924–1928)
11. Robert S. Shaw (1928–1941)
12. John A. Hannah (1941–1969)
13. Walter Adams (1969–1970)
14. Clifton R. Wharton Jr. (1970–1978)
15. Edgar L. Harden (1978–1979)
16. Cecil Mackey (1979–1985)
17. John DiBiaggio (1985–1992)
18. Gordon Guyer (1992–1993)
19. M. Peter McPherson (1993–2004)
20. Lou Anna K. Simon (2005 –)

Tradition

Nickname: Spartans

Colors: Green and white

Mascot: Sparty

Conference: Big Ten

Campus profile

Located in East Lansing, three miles east of Michigan’s capitol in Lansing

5,200-acre campus with 2,100 acres in existing or planned development

642 buildings, including 82 with instructional space

17,500 acres throughout Michigan used for agricultural, animal, and forestry research

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LEADERSHIP

President

Lou Anna K. Simon

Board of Trustees

Brian Breslin (term ends January 1, 2019)

Dianne Byrum (term ends January 1, 2017)

Joel I. Ferguson (term ends January 1, 2013)

Melanie Foster (term ends January 1, 2013)

Mitch Lyons (term ends January 1, 2019)

Faylene Owen (term ends January 1, 2015)

George Perles (term ends January 1, 2015)

Diann Woodard (term ends January 1, 2017)

Executive officers

Kim A. Wilcox, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs

Fred L. Poston, Vice President for Finance and Operations and Treasurer

William R. Beekman, Secretary of the Board of Trustees and Executive Assistant to the President

J. Ian Gray, Vice President for Research and Graduate Studies

Robert W. Groves, Vice President for University Advancement

Mark A. Burnham, Vice President for Governmental Affairs

Denise B. Maybank, Interim Vice President for Student Affairs and Services

Robert A. Noto, General Counsel and Vice President for Legal Affairs

Paulette Granberry Russell, Senior Adviser to the President for Diversity and Director of the Office for Inclusion and Intercultural Initiatives

Heather C. Swain, Vice President for Communications and Brand Strategy

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SPARTAN COMMUNITY

Students (fall 2011)

47,954 total: from all 83 counties in Michigan, all 50 states in the United States, and 130 other countries

36,675 undergraduate and 11,279 graduate and professional

52 percent women, 48 percent men

16.4 percent students of color, 12 percent international

Faculty and academic staff

Approximately 4,950

Support staff employees

Approximately 6,300

Living alumni

Approximately 461,500 worldwide

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ACADEMICS

200 programs of undergraduate, graduate, and professional study

Outstanding record of students earning prestigious national and international scholarships: Goldwater, 32; Rhodes, 16; Churchill, 16; Truman, 16; Marshall, 15; Udall, nine; Hollings, six; Gates, three; and Mitchell, one

Freshman class profile (middle 50 percent of fall 2011 entering class): high school GPA, 3.4–3.9; SAT combined score (math and critical reading), 1010–1210; ACT composite score, 23–28

More than 270 study abroad programs on all continents in more than 60 countries

An ever-growing library collection approaching six million volumes

Degree-granting colleges

• College of Agriculture and Natural Resources • Interim Dean: Douglas Buhler
• Residential College in Arts and Humanities • Dean: Stephen L. Esquith
• College of Arts and Letters • Dean: Karin A. Wurst
• Eli Broad College of Business/Eli Broad Graduate School of Management • Dean: Stefanie A. Lenway
• College of Communication Arts and Sciences • Dean: Pamela Whitten
• College of Education •  Dean: Donald E. Heller
• College of Engineering • Dean: Satish Udpa
• College of Human Medicine • Dean: Marsha Rappley
• James Madison College • Dean: Sherman W. Garnett
• College of Law (affiliated) • Dean: Joan Howarth
• Lyman Briggs College • Dean: Elizabeth H. Simmons
• College of Music • Dean: James Forger
• College of Natural Science • Dean: R. James Kirkpatrick
• College of Nursing • Dean: Mary H. Mundt
• College of Osteopathic Medicine • Dean: William D. Strampel
• College of Social Science • Dean: Marietta L. Baba
• College of Veterinary Medicine • Dean: Christopher M. Brown

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RESEARCH

External funding totaled $439 million in 2010–11

Top federal funding agencies: National Science Foundation, National Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of Agriculture, and U.S. Department of Energy

Selected by the U.S. Department of Energy to design and establish the Facility for Rare Isotope Beams, a $615 million facility that will advance understanding of rare nuclear isotopes and the evolution of the cosmos

Awarded a $25 million grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to establish the NSF Science and Technology Center for the Study of Evolution in Action to study evolution in both natural and virtual settings

Home of AgBioResearch, which funds the research of nearly 400 scientists who conduct research in on-campus facilities and at 14 outlying research centers across the state

Notable discoveries include homogenization of milk and the anticancer drug cisplatin

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GLOBAL

One of only four public universities in the nation that rank in the top 10 for both study abroad participation and international student enrollment

Nearly 1,500 faculty members involved in international research, teaching, and service work

More than 210 partnerships with international institutions

More than 25 internationally focused centers, institutes, and offices

Ranks sixth among large universities for producing Peace Corps volunteers with 2,268 alumni serving since 1961

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ENGAGEMENT 

Reaches into all 83 counties in Michigan through MSU Extension to share resources with individuals, communities, and businesses

Academic and professional degree and certificate programs extended to off-campus learners via MSU Global, with more than 15,000 enrollments in 30 degree and certificate programs

Music education, music therapy, and performance opportunities offered to residents of all ages, backgrounds, and abilities in Greater Lansing and Detroit by MSU’s Community Music School

Offers expanding community connections and opportunities for community-based scholarly work in Southeast Michigan through the MSU Detroit Center

Registered nearly 18,000 students for service-learning and civic engagement placements in 2010–11

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TOP DISTINCTIONS

U.S. News & World Report ranks MSU

• 28th among the nation’s public universities
• First in the nation for 18 years for graduate programs in elementary and secondary education
• First in the nation for graduate programs in nuclear physics and industrial and organizational psychology
• First in the nation for undergraduate program in supply chain

Recognized for nine consecutive years as one of the top 100 universities in the world by Shanghai Jiao Tong University in its annual Academic Ranking of World Universities

National leader in study abroad participation among U.S. public universities for seven consecutive years and ninth in the nation for international student enrollment, according to the Institute of International Education

Ranks 39th among public universities for in-state students in Kiplinger’s 2011 edition of Best Values in Public Colleges

Silver rating from the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education’s STARS proram, which measures and encourages sustainability in education and research; operations; and planning, administration, and engagement

Member of the prestigious 61-member Association of American Universities

Only university in the country with three on-campus medical schools, graduating allopathic (MD) and osteopathic (DO) physicians, and veterinarians (DVMs)

Among the largest single-campus residence hall system in the country with 25 undergraduate halls, one graduate hall, and three apartment villages

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FINANCES

General fund budgeted revenues (2011–12): $1,050,300,000

• Tuition and fees: $725.9 million (69.1 percent)
• State appropriations: $241.1 million (23 percent)
• Other university funds: $83.3 million (7.9 percent)

General fund budgeted expenditures (2011–12): $1,050,300,000

• Salaries: $676.8 million (64.4 percent)
• Supplies, services, and equipment: $338 million (32.2 percent)
• Labor: $35.5 million (3.4 percent)

Tuition (2011–12)

Resident undergraduate students

• Lower division: $406.75/credit
• Upper division: $444.50/credit

Resident graduate students: $569.00/credit

Nonresident undergraduate students

• Lower division: $1,038.25/credit
• Upper division: $1,071.00/credit

Nonresident graduate students: $1,117.50/credit

Housing (2011–12)

Residence hall rates

• Undergraduate (double room/silver meal plan): $4,077/semester
• Graduate (permanent single room/$300 food credit plus 75 meal accesses): $3,608/semester

Apartment rates

• One bedroom (standard): $650/month
• Two bedrooms (standard): $774/month

For a more detailed estimate of costs, visit: finaid.msu.edu/costs

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CAMPUS LIFE

Athletics

25 varsity squads: 12 intercollegiate sports for men and 13 intercollegiate sports for women

14 straight NCAA appearances by men’s basketball team, including six Final Four appearances

Three-time national top collegiate mascot (Sparty)

One of the largest intramural sports programs in the nation

Facilities: Spartan Stadium, Breslin Student Events Center, Daugherty Football Building/Skandalaris Football Center, Berkowitz Basketball Complex, Munn Ice Arena, Jenison Field House, McLane Baseball Stadium (Kobs Field), DeMartin Stadium (soccer), Forest Akers Golf Courses, McCaffree Pool, Ralph Young Field (field hockey/track), Old College Field, MSU Tennis Facility, and three intramural facilities

Culture and entertainment

Wharton Center for Performing Arts: four venues–Cobb Great Hall, Pasant Theatre, MSU Auditorium, and Fairchild Theatre–host a variety of cultural events

Breslin Student Events Center: state-of-the-art arena hosts special events such as concerts, commencements, ice shows, circuses, sporting events, banquets, conventions, and trade shows

MSU Museum: offers anthropological, biological, folklife, geological, and historical exhibits and programs

Abrams Planetarium: houses a Digistar II computer graphics planetarium projector and a 150-seat Sky Theater

Horticulture Gardens: six distinct gardens over 7.5 acres provide a living laboratory where plants and people grow together

Student organizations

Registered student groups: more than 600 each year

Student media: The State News and Impact 89 FM radio

Greek-letter community: 55 nationally affiliated organizations

Programs for persons with disabilities

Resource Center for Persons with Disabilities: provides disability-related information and referrals

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