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Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana, United States, is a public research university and is the main campus of the Purdue University system. It was founded in 1869 after a donation of land and money from Lafayette businessman John Purdue to establish a college of science, technology, and agriculture in his name. The first classes were held on September 16, 1874, with six instructors and 39 students.
Nowadays Purdue's international student enrollment is tops among U.S. public universities. In its 2017 edition, U.S. News & World Report ranked Purdue University as tied for the 20th-best public university in the United States.
Two chemical faculty members have been awarded Nobel Prizes while at Purdue. Purdue alumni have achieved recognition in a range of areas, particularly in the science, engineering, and aviation industries. The university's alumni pool collectively holds over 15,000 United States patents.
Purdue has produced 23 astronauts, including Gus Grissom, America's second man in space and first to fly in NASA's program, Neil Armstrong, the first to walk on the moon, and Eugene Cernan, the last astronaut to do so. Over one third of all of NASA's manned space missions have had at least one Purdue graduate as a crewmember.
Purdue offers both undergraduate and graduate programs in over 200 major areas of study, and is well known for its competitive engineering curricula. The university has also been highly influential in America's history of aviation, having established the first college credit offered in flight training, the first four-year bachelor's degree in aviation, and the first university airport.
Besides, the school's selectivity for admissions is strictly selective: approximately 49% of applicants are admitted.
Purdue's campus is situated in the small city of West Lafayette, near the western bank of the Wabash River, across which sits the larger city of Lafayette. Academic buildings are mostly concentrated on the eastern and southern parts of campus, with residence halls and intramural fields to the west, and athletic facilities to the north. The Greater Lafayette Public Transportation Corporation (CityBus) operates eight campus loop bus routes on which students, faculty, and staff can ride free of charge with Purdue Identification.
The main campus in West Lafayette offers more than 200 majors for undergraduates, over 70 master’s and doctoral programs, and professional degrees in pharmacy and veterinary medicine. In addition, Purdue has 18 intercollegiate sports teams and more than 900 student organizations.
