University of Kansas

“Public flagship research university in Lawrence with AAU membership and 400+ degree programs.”

The University of Kansas (KU) is the flagship public research university of the state of Kansas — a Carnegie R1 'Very High Research' institution founded in 1865, with its main 1,000-acre campus crowning Mount Oread overlooking the city of Lawrence, plus medical and pharmacy campuses in Kansas City and a juris doctor program in Topeka. KU enrolls about 28,000 students total, including roughly 19,000 undergraduates and over 1,900 international students from more than 100 countries. KU is a member of the Association of American Universities (AAU) — one of only 71 elite North American research universities — and competes in the Big 12 Conference, where Jayhawk men's basketball is among the most storied programs in NCAA history (4 national championships, 16 Final Fours, the home of inventor of basketball Dr. James Naismith as KU's first coach). Academically, KU is anchored by a broad set of professional schools: the highly-ranked William Allen White School of Journalism and Mass Communications (consistently top-15 nationally), the School of Architecture & Design (the only ABET-accredited architecture program in Kansas), the School of Business (AACSB-accredited, top-50 publicly), the School of Engineering (top-60 publicly), the School of Pharmacy (consistently top-25 in the US), the School of Education and Human Sciences, and the School of Music. KU's College of Liberal Arts and Sciences — the largest unit — houses Psychology (the most popular undergrad major), the natural sciences, humanities, and social sciences. Notable specialty centers include the Hall Center for the Humanities, the Beach Center on Disability, and the Spencer Museum of Art. For international students, KU offers an unusually generous merit-scholarship ladder for a public flagship: ALL international first-year applicants are automatically considered for one of five renewable scholarships ($8,000-$16,000 per year, totaling $32,000-$64,000 over four years) based purely on high school GPA — no separate application required, no minimum test scores. KU is test-optional for admission, has a robust English proficiency pathway (including the Applied English Center for conditional admission), maintains a SEVP-certified International Support Services (ISS) office, and offers full STEM OPT designation across Engineering, Computer Science, Business Analytics, and many science programs. Lawrence is a quintessential American college town — affordable, walkable Massachusetts Street downtown, music venues, restaurants, all 40 minutes from Kansas City and its international airport.