University of Virginia

University of Virginia (U.Va.) - public higher education institution in United States.

University of Virginia - Description

The University of Virginia is distinctive among institutions of higher education. Founded by Thomas Jefferson in 1819, the University sustains the ideal of developing, through education, leaders who are well-prepared to help shape the future of the nation. The University is public, while nourished by the strong support of its alumni. It is also selective; the students who come here have been chosen because they show the exceptional promise Jefferson envisioned Founded in Charlottesville by Thomas Jefferson in 1819, the University of Virginia is a leading public university that serves as a national model for excellence through innovation and collaboration in its missions of teaching, research, public service and health care. The University is made up of eleven schools in Charlottesville, plus the College at Wise in southwest Virginia. U.Va. offers 51 bachelor's degrees in 47 fields, 81 master's degrees in 65 fields, six educational specialist degrees, two first-professional degrees (law and medicine), and 57 doctoral degrees in 55 fields. There are 2,133 full-time instructional and research faculty. The fall 2010 undergraduate enrollment was 14,591; graduate enrollment was 6,515, for a student body total of 21,106. Undergraduates come from 49 U.S. states and 121 foreign countries. International students make up 6 percent of the undergraduate student body. The six-year graduation rate for students who entered in fall 2005 is 94 percent. U.Va. remains the No. 2 best public university in the 2011 edition of the U.S. News and World Report rankings. In the 14 years since U.S. News began ranking public universities as a separate category, U.Va. has ranked either No. 1 or No. 2. Based on the quality of both its academic and financial aid offerings, the University of Virginia ranks third among more than 500 public four-year colleges and universities across the nation for "best value," according to an annual ranking by Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine. Also part of the University is the University of Virginia Health System, which strives to provide advanced health care to patients from Virginia and beyond. The School of Medicine educates the doctors, nurses and researchers of tomorrow, and the Medical Center cares for people in the community by giving time, expertise and resources. Five medical specialties are ranked among the tops in their field in U.S. News & World Report's annual "Best Hospitals" guide. U.Va. specialties ranked in the 2011-12 guide are: Diabetes and endocrinology (13); Neurology and neurosurgery (35); Ear, nose and throat (39); Gynecology (44); and Cancer (48). Sixty-seven physicians from the University of Virginia Health System appear on the 2011 "Top Doctors" directory issued by U.S. News & World Report