- Oklahoma State University–Stillwater (also referred to informally as Oklahoma State, OKState, O-State, and OSU) is a land-grant, sun-grant, coeducational public research university located in Stillwater, Oklahoma, United States. OSU was founded in 1890 under the Morrill Act. Originally known as Oklahoma Agricultural and Mechanical College (Oklahoma A&M), it is the flagship institution of the Oklahoma State University System. Official enrollment for the fall 2010 semester system-wide was 35,073, with 23,459[2] students enrolled at OSU-Stillwater. Enrollment shows the Freshman class of 2012 was the largest on record with 4,298 students.[2] OSU is classified by the Carnegie Foundation as a research university with high research activity.[5]
Oklahoma State University is listed by the Princeton Review as one of 120 “Best Western Colleges” for 2011, and as one of 50 "Best Value Colleges – Public" for 2010. Oklahoma State University is one of the highest rated veterinarian colleges in the US.[6] It is ranked by U.S. News & World Report No. 66 among "Top Public Schools: National Universities" and No. 132 among all National Universities for 2011.[7] For 2009–10, Kiplinger listed OSU among its "100 Best Values in Public Education," with an in-state ranking of No. 91 and an out-of-state ranking of No. 93.[8] In 2013, Oklahoma State was ranked number 23 on the Forbes list of "Best Value Colleges."[9]
The Oklahoma State Cowboys' athletic heritage includes 51 national championships, a total greater than all but three NCAA Division I schools in the United States, and first in the Big 12 Conference.[10] Students spend part of the fall semester preparing for OSU's Homecoming celebration, begun in 1913, which draws more than 40,000 alumni and over 70,000 participants each year to campus and is billed by the university as "America's Greatest Homecoming Celebration."[11]
