About Arizona
The University of Arizona is a place of wonder where you can do the extraordinary with extraordinary people.
Who We Are
As Arizona’s land-grant university, we are driven to do great things. It’s our passion to transform the lives of our student Wildcats and to solve some of the biggest challenges facing our state and the world.
But what makes us unique is how we do it. We live our purpose, mission and values every day. And we do this in one of the most incredible places on Earth, surrounded by majestic mountains and Saguaro forests, and under a sky that ignites imaginations with cotton candy sunsets and diamond-filled nights. At the University of Arizona, everywhere you look is filled with wonder.
Land Acknowledgement
The University of Arizona occupies the original homelands of the Tohono O'odham and Pascua Yaqui nations, Indigenous peoples who have stewarded this land since time immemorial. Aligning with the university’s core value of inclusion, it is an institutional responsibility to recognize and acknowledge the people, culture and history that have shaped the Wildcat community. At the institutional level, it is important to be proactive in broadening awareness throughout campus to ensure our students feel represented, heard and valued.
At A Glance
46%
DIVERSE
STUDENT BODY
HSI
HISPANIC SERVING INSTITUTION
#1
R&D
ARIZONA PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS
46,932
STUDENTS
36,503 UNDERGRADS
10,429 GRADS
See more in the UArizona Fact Book.
Achievements, Rankings & Facts
Explore student life at UArizona.
15:1
Student-to-Faculty Ratio
600+
Student Clubs & Organizations
Top 10
Recreation Centers
- Best Value Schools
Top 20
Public Research Institution
No. 6
in NASA Funding
$734M
Total Research Expenditures
PAC-12
Member of the Conference of Champions
500+
Student Athletes
Won 22
NCAA National Championships
3
Nobel Prize Winners
3000+
Faculty Members
Top
Producer of Fulbright Scholars
Explore the city of Tucson, Arizona
300+
Annual Days of Sunshine
Top 10
Most Bikeable Large Cities
- Redfin
1M+
Tucson Metro Population
Our History
The University of Arizona was established in 1885, and 27 years later, Arizona became a state. The first building, Old Main, was completed in 1890. It housed the School of Agriculture with classrooms, labs and a mess hall.
There were many obstacles on the path to opening the university. However, we never gave up on our mission. Our first graduating class of three students in 1895 set us on an incredible journey of learning and discovery with stories of wonder that continue to shape our Wildcat spirit:
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The Morrill land-grant acts of 1862 and 1890 designated us as Arizona’s Land-grant university
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Bear Down! Our beloved rallying cry, first heard in 1926, has become part of our core identity and is used by Arizona Wildcats all around the world
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In 1937 we invented tree-ring research and opened the first lab for dendrochronology
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We helped map the moon so that the Eagle could land in 1969 and sampled an asteroid in 2021 for the first time in U.S. history. #SpaceIsWildcatCountry
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Our military history runs deep. In 2016, on the 75th anniversary of the bombing of Pearl Harbor, we honored the service members killed on the USS Arizona with the USS Arizona Mall Memorial
Coming soon! Spring 2022, we'll open the completed Student Success District, restoring iconic campus buildings with cutting-edge technologies and services to improve how students live, work and study.
1890
Land-grant designation and completion of Old Main
1926
The birth of "Bear Down!"
1937
Invention of tree-ring research
1969
NASA uses our lunar map to land on the moon
2016
Installation of the USS Arizona Mall Memorial
2021
The OSIRIS-REx mission samples asteroid Bennu