Indiana University--Bloomington is a public institution that was founded in 1820. It has a total undergraduate enrollment of 32,371, its setting is urban, and the campus size is 1,926 acres. It utilizes a semester-based academic calendar. Indiana University--Bloomington's ranking in the 2014 edition of Best Colleges is National Universities, 75. Its in-state tuition and fees are $10,209 (2013-14); out-of-state tuition and fees are $32,350 (2013-14).
No one quite knows what a “Hoosier” is, but a murky definition does not stop students at Indiana University— Bloomington from fiercely identifying with the term. The school’s sports teams are notorious competitors in the NCAA Division I Big Ten Conference, and, since Indiana University does not have a mascot, all teams are known simply as Hoosiers. There are more than 650 student organizations on campus, and more than 5,000 students go Greek in the school’s large community of fraternities and sororities. Freshmen must live on campus unless they live at home with their parents, are over the age of 21, are married, or are pledging a fraternity or sorority. The Indiana campus is tobacco free, though students may smoke in their own vehicles. The Midwestern college town of Bloomington, or B-town, as it is known to many, is home to a lively cultural scene. Arts and entertainment performances, such as the annual Lotus World Music & Arts Festival, take place year round. Students can explore the surrounding area through the Indiana University Outdoor Adventures program, which coordinates boating, caving, and rock and gorge climbing trips. Active students can compete in the annual Little 500, the largest collegiate bike race in the nation and a fundraiser for university scholarships, or spend 36 hours on their feet in the IU Dance Marathon, a fundraiser for Riley Hospital for Children in Indianapolis.
Among IU Bloomington’s many graduate-level programs are the highly ranked Kelley School of Business, School of Education, and Maurer School of Law. Indiana’s law school is an innovative program renowned for its first-year team-based approach, a diversion from the typical legal education. Distinguished Indiana alumni include composer and songwriter Hoagy Carmichael, who penned “Georgia on My Mind;” screenwriter and producer Jeri Taylor, who wrote for Star Trek; and famed dieter Jared Fogle, who served as a spokesman for the Subway sandwich chain.