Northern Arizona University is a public research institution with a main campus at the base of the San Francisco Peaks in Flagstaff, Arizona, with statewide campuses and online programs. Governed by the Arizona Board of Regents and accredited by the Higher Learning Commission, the university offers 171 baccalaureate and graduate degree programs, with a total enrollment of 31,073 students—23,140 at the Flagstaff campus.

As a high-research institution, NAU conducts significant research in land management and climate sciences, microbiology, astronomy and planetary science, and health sciences. As our research increases in bioengineering, informatics and cyber systems, and the human microbiome, our interdisciplinary collaborations increase across the university and the region to find solutions to improve lives. The World University Rankings recently listed NAU in the top 10 percent worldwide for the frequency that other researchers cite our work. NAU rated No. 96 in the National Science Foundation’s 2018 national research ranking of universities without a medical school and No. 201 overall.

Since our founding in 1899, NAU has fostered a collaborative community and a student-centered approach that engages both undergraduate and graduate students in active research and professional growth. Students work closely with faculty mentors in small classes (average 19-to-1 student-faculty ratio), participating in rigorous scholarly activities involving research in the arts, business, education, the humanities, and the sciences. Surrounded by a spectacular natural laboratory and steeped in a rich history, the NAU Flagstaff Mountain Campus has nurtured a dynamic culture of academic inquiry and excellence that permeates through statewide campuses and online programs. 

Students participate in more than 400 professional, academic, service, sports, and social organizations. The NAU Lumberjacks compete at the NCAA Division I level in 15 sports, and NAU competes in the Big Sky Conference in all sports except swimming and diving, now part of the Western Athletic Conference. 

Perched at 7,000 feet (2,134 m) above sea level, NAU’s mountain campus is one of the highest-elevation, four-year college campuses in the nation and is surrounded by the largest ponderosa pine forest in the world.  Rated the third-best US college town by the American Institute of Economic Research in 2017, Flagstaff is the world’s first International Dark Sky City and enjoys a four-season climate with an average 266 days of sunshine. Winter skiing is accessible at Arizona Snowbowl, an alpine ski resort seven miles (11 km) northwest of Flagstaff. Notable alumni include Raúl Héctor Castro, former Arizona governor and US ambassador; Diana Gabaldon, New York Times best-selling author; R. C. Gorman, Native American artist; Robin Braun, United States Navy vice admiral; Lopez Lomong, South Sudanese-born US track and field Olympian; and Seamus Dever, actor in the TV series Castle.