Northern Arizona University

Being a desert rat since I was born I was eager to get away from Tucson, AZ. Because of costs I had to chose an in-state college and being that NAU is located in the beautiful Northern Arizona mountain range I put in my application. Not only did I receive the most financial aid/scholarships and grants from NAU, but the cost of attending was much lower then my other choices. The campus is close knit not more then a mile long and about that wide. The town of Flagstaff is definitely a college town, and unlike U of A or ASU the city keeps it's distance. Instead of making the beautiful campus weave throughout the businesses it has built it self around our community. NAU by far has the best resident hall system in Arizona. With so many choices for on-campus living its a wonder that 6500 of the 15,000 students opt to live in the dorms. Coming in as a freshman there are some limits as to which halls you can live in, but the variety and options are wide and make for a fun time. Not once have I had a class that was so crowded that you couldn't breath. I would say there is an average of thirty students to a professor, unless you take the lecture hall courses. The worry of having TA instead of tenure professors has not come into play throughout my college career. Although that may vary upon majors chosen. Overall this is a great school to attend. So come be Lumberjack! more

NAU is a great university here in Northern Arizona. While their emphasis is undergraduate education, they also offer graduate programs and research that build from the base on the Colorado Plateau and extend to such national concerns as forest health and bioterrorism. They just received a grant/contract to take part in a genome type project. They offer a full range of athletics—from NCAA Division I sports to intramurals—and clubs, organizations, and campus events where students can make new friends or enhance their college experience. NAU offers one of the best educational values available, with resident tuition rates ranking in the bottom third nationwide. Kaplan/Newsweek has called NAU a "hidden treasure," and an institution that "provides maximum personal attention" to students. more