As of fall 2014, 27,715 students were enrolled, 20,134 at the Flagstaff campus. The average cost of tuition and fees for a full-time, Arizona resident undergraduate student for two semesters is $9,692. NAU offers Flagstaff undergraduate students the Pledge Program that guarantees the same tuition rate for four years. For the Fall 2013 school year, out-of-state undergraduates will pay an estimated $22,094 for tuition and fees. NAU also participates in the Western Undergraduate Exchange Program, which offers lower tuition rates for students from the Western United States. WUE tuition rates for fall 2013 are $12,680.
The Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education classifies NAU as a research university with high research activity.
Initially named the Northern Arizona Normal School, the institution was established on September 11, 1899. The first graduating class, in 1901, consisted of four women who received credentials to teach in the Arizona Territory. In 1925, the Arizona State Legislature allowed the school, which was now called the Northern Arizona State Teacher's College, to grant Bachelor of Education degrees. In 1929 the school became Arizona State Teacher's College.
Enrollment dropped sharply, however, at the beginning of World War II. ASTC became a Navy V-12 program training site.
Perched at 6,950 feet (2,120 m) above sea level, the third highest four year college campus in the country, the main campus is surrounded by the largest contiguous ponderosa pine forest on the North American continent[11] and enjoys a four-season climate. Snow is common in winter, with accumulations most prevalent in January, February and March. Winter skiing is accessible at Arizona Snowbowl, an alpine ski resort located on the San Francisco Peaks, 7 miles (11 km) northwest of Flagstaff.
NAU offers 87 bachelor degree programs, 48 master's degree programs and 10 doctoral degree programs, along with 38 undergraduate and 26 graduate certificates. The university was charged by the Arizona Board of Regents in 2006 to develop innovative ways to provide access and affordability to all Arizona residents. NAU developed the Pledge Program,2NAU partnerships with community colleges and NAU-Yavapai, a collaboration with Yavapai College in Prescott Valley, Ariz. NAU-Yuma just celebrated its 25th anniversary of the partnership with Arizona Western College.
Northern Arizona University is a public university accredited by the Higher Learning Commission North Central Association. In addition to 19,000 students on the Flagstaff campus, NAU currently serves more than 7,000 students statewide.
NAU's Extended Campuses offer more than 50 online accredited degree programs on more than 30 campuses throughout the state. NAU is the first public university to offer a competency-based online degree program that allows students to earn credit for experience. Personalized Learning was launched in May 2013, and federal financial aid is available for the program, which has a flat fee of $5,000 per year.
NAU is the first university in Arizona to attain program accreditation from the National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Educators (NCATE). Additional accreditations include Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs (ACBSP) and Hotel and Restaurant Management has earned accreditation from the Accreditation Commission for Programs in Hospitality Administration, an honor earned by fewer than 20% of the nation's baccalaureate degree-granting programs in the field.
NAU's Extended Campuses students pay the lowest per-credit-hour tuition and Flagstaff offers an affordable locked-in tuition.
The College of Arts and Letters (CAL) houses the Asian Studies Program, Cinema Studies, Comparative Cultural Studies (formerly Humanities, Arts, and Religion), English, History, Latin American Studies, Modern Languages, Museum Studies, Philosophy, School of Art, School of Music, and Theatre. The college also oversees the NAU Art Museum, Martin-Springer Institute (promoting lessons of the Holocaust), Northern Arizona Writing Project, Ardrey Memorial Auditorium, and Ashurst Hall. The College of Arts and Letters Film Series has been providing quality classic films to the NAU and Flagstaff community for more than nine years, and the NAU International Film Series has recently been established. Department faculty and students share their scholarly work and artistic achievement through more than 300 performances, lectures, films, and exhibitions a year.
The College of Social and Behavioral Sciences undergraduate programs include anthropology, applied indigenous studies, criminology and criminal justice, ethnic studies, geography, planning and recreation, political science, psychology, communication, sociology/social work, and women's and gender studies. The W.A. Franke College of Business's primary focus is undergraduate education, but it also offers a master's level education and research opportunities. Businessman Bill Franke's commitment of $25 million resulted in the renaming of the college in his honor. The W.A. Franke College of Business was fully re-accredited in fall 2008 by the national accrediting body AACSB International - The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business. The NAU program is one of about 400 accredited programs among the more than 1,000 throughout the nation. In 2006, the college moved into a new 111,000-square-foot (10,300 m2), LEED-certified building.