University of Minnesota Twin Cities

Overview

The University of Minnesota is one of the largest higher education institutions in the U.S. Midwest, ranking second in enrollment size for the region. Established in 1851, it is a public research university and a member of the Committee on Institutional Cooperation, a collaborative group of Midwest universities.

Its main campus, located in Twin Cities, hosts over 50,000 students, making it the sixth-largest student body in the United States. Additional campuses are situated in Crookston, Duluth, Morris, and Rochester. Across these locations, the university operates more than 300 research, education, and outreach centers and institutes, addressing fields such as life sciences, public policy, and technology.

In 2007, the University of Minnesota joined the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory (LIGO) and has since played a key role in analyzing data related to gravitational waves, which were experimentally confirmed in 2016.

The university boasts a prestigious list of alumni, including eight Nobel laureates, two Pulitzer Prize winners, and two former U.S. vice presidents, Hubert Humphrey and Walter Mondale. Other notable individuals include musician Bob Dylan, who briefly attended, and former UK Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg, who studied there on a scholarship.