Oregon State University facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Oregon State University

Former name	see "Early names"
Motto	"Out there"
Type	Public land-grant research university
Established	October 27, 1868; 156 years ago (October 27, 1868) (official designated charter day)
Accreditation	NWCCU
Academic affiliations	HECC ORAU Sea-grant Space-grant Sun-grant
Endowment	$819.6 million (2021)
Budget	$1.1 billion
President	Jayathi Murthy
Provost	Edward Feser
Total staff	4,700 (Spring 2023)
Students	37,121 (Spring 2023)
Undergraduates	32,014 (Spring 2023)
Postgraduates	4,439 (Spring 2023)
Doctoral students	1,458 (Spring 2023)
Location	Corvallis , Oregon , United States 44°33′50″N 123°16′29″W / 44.5639°N 123.2747°W / 44.5639; -123.2747
Campus	Small city, 400 acres (160 ha)
Other campuses	Bend Portland Newport
Newspaper	The Daily Barometer
Colors	Orange and black
Nickname	Beavers
Sporting affiliations	NCAA Division I FBS – Pac-12 MPSF
Mascot	Benny Beaver

Oregon State University (OSU) is a big public university in Corvallis, Oregon. It's known for its research and for being a "land-grant" university. This means it gets federal support to teach practical subjects like agriculture and engineering.

OSU offers over 200 different study programs for students getting their first college degree. It also has many programs for advanced degrees. In 2023, over 37,000 students attended OSU. This makes it the largest university in Oregon. Many students come from outside Oregon. Since it started, over 272,000 students have graduated from OSU.

The university is a top research school. It gets a lot of money for research, more than any other school in Oregon for over 50 years. OSU is also one of only three schools in the U.S. to be a land, sea, space, and sun grant university. This means it gets special support for research in farming, ocean studies, space, and renewable energy.

History of OSU

How it Started: The 1800s

Benton Hall was built in 1889. It was OSU's first main office building.

OSU began in 1856 as a small school called Corvallis Academy. It taught younger students and prepared them for college. The first teacher and principal was John Wesley Johnson. He was important in starting many early colleges in Oregon.

Within ten years, the school started offering college-level classes. This made it the first public college in the area. Many young people came to study for a job. The university changed its name many times over the years. This was common for land-grant colleges. It helped them get money for farming research.

Teachers in 1883.

Local groups helped build the early school. Many buildings are named after these founders. In 1865, the school offered its first college classes. This was under its first president, William A. Finley.

On October 27, 1868, OSU officially became Oregon's first public college. The state government made it Oregon's "agricultural college." This meant it would get special funding. The school could then give out Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Science, and Master of Arts degrees. The first students graduated in 1870. By 1900, science and technology classes became very popular.

The 1900s

Engineering students learning analytical geometry in 1904.

In 1914, the state decided to give specific subjects to OSU and the University of Oregon. OSU would focus on engineering and business. The University of Oregon would focus on liberal arts. This helped avoid teaching the same things at both schools.

In 1929, a new law put all public colleges in Oregon under one main board. In the 1930s, OSU started offering doctoral degrees. The first summer classes also began. Because the school offered so many different degrees, its name changed to "Oregon State College" in 1937.

Finally, on March 6, 1961, the name "Oregon State University" was chosen. This name has stayed the same ever since.

Campuses and Learning Places

Main Campus in Corvallis

An aerial view of the Memorial Union Quad.

The main campus is about 420 acres in Corvallis, Oregon. It has many trees and is like a park. The campus is 83 miles south of Portland. A famous landscape architect designed much of the campus in 1906. In 2008, this design was recognized as a historic district. This means it's a special place with important history. The Memorial Union building is known for its beautiful design.

OSU-Cascades in Bend

Tykeson Hall at OSU-Cascades.

In 2016, OSU opened a branch campus in Bend. It's called OSU-Cascades. This campus lets students in central Oregon take classes closer to home.

By 2023, this campus grew to 30 acres. It plans to grow even more. The goal is to have about 5,000 students per year in the next ten years. In 2023, about 1,400 students were enrolled there.

Ecampus (Online Learning)

Oregon State offers over 80 degrees and certificates online. Students can choose from more than 1,500 online courses. US News & World Report ranks OSU's online Ecampus as one of the best in the country. The same teachers who teach on campus also teach many online courses. Students who study online get the same diploma as students on campus.

OSU Portland Center

The historic Portland Building downtown.

In 2017, OSU moved its Portland offices to the historic Meier & Frank building. This building now has modern offices, classrooms, and meeting spaces. It's in downtown Portland, near Pioneer Square.

The Portland Center is a place for OSU offices like the Extension Service. It also has classrooms for teaching and research. It helps the university connect with businesses and hold international meetings.

Hatfield Marine Science Center (Newport)

A remote research submarine on display at the Hatfield Marine Science Center.

OSU's Hatfield Marine Science Center is in Newport. It's one of the best marine science labs in the country. It has been there for over 50 years. This center is a base for ocean research. It also helps K-12 teachers and the public learn about the ocean.

OSU students can work as interns here in the summer. Graduate students do research all year. A new dormitory is being built for students and staff. It will have over 70 apartments.

How OSU is Organized

Colleges and Schools

Memorial Union building.

OSU uses a "quarter-system" for its classes. This means the school year is divided into four terms, each 11 weeks long. The university has 11 main colleges, an honors college, and a graduate school. Each college has a dean who leads it. Colleges are divided into smaller schools or departments. These departments offer specific degrees and programs.

Learning Beyond Campus

The OSU Educational Extension helps people who are not regular students. It offers programs for adults.

Extension Service

Researchers at the OSU N. Willamette Research & Extension Center checking hazelnuts.

The OSU Extension Service started in 1911. It has offices and research stations all over Oregon. It helps people with farming and natural resources. Programs include 4-H Youth Development, which is a great program for kids and teens. It also helps with gardening (Master Gardener) and outdoor education.

Funding for OSU

OSU's Beta Campanile Tower.

The Oregon State University Foundation helps raise money for the university. In 2007, they started a big fundraising campaign. They wanted to raise $625 million. They reached this goal early and kept going. By 2014, they had raised over $1.1 billion! This money helps support education, research, and outreach programs.

The Foundation is a non-profit group. It manages the university's money, which is over $1 billion. In 2022, they started a new campaign to raise $1.75 billion. This money will help students, teachers, buildings, and new projects.

Working with Other Countries

Weatherford Hall, 2009.

Oregon State has many partnerships with universities in other countries. These include schools in Australia, Bulgaria, New Zealand, and India. This helps students and teachers work together globally.

Academics at OSU

How to Get In

U.S. News & World Report says that getting into Oregon State is "selective." This means it's not super easy to get in, but it's not extremely hard either. OSU is the biggest university in Oregon. In 2023, it had a record number of students, almost 37,000.

For new students in Fall 2015, about 78% of those who applied were accepted. The average high school GPA (grade point average) for new students was 3.58. Students also take tests like the SAT or ACT.

What OSU Teaches

OSU has more majors, minors, and special programs than any other university in Oregon. This means there are many different subjects you can study!

Research at OSU

The R/V Taani, one of OSU's new research ships (launched in 2023).

Research is a very important part of OSU. Most research happens at the Corvallis campus. But some projects are in other parts of Oregon and even other countries. For example, there's a Seafood Laboratory in Astoria.

OSU is known for its "very high research activity." It's the only university in Oregon with this special classification.

OSU was one of the first schools to join the federal Space Grant program in 1991. This made it one of only 13 schools at the time to be a Land Grant, Sea Grant, and Space Grant university.

An OSU marine technician at Hatfield Marine Science Center getting ready for ocean research.

The College of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences (CEOAS) has several labs. They also operate research ships in Newport. CEOAS is leading a huge ocean science project called the Ocean Observatories Initiative (OOI). This project uses underwater robots to study the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. OSU is also building new research ships for the National Science Foundation. The first one, the Taani, was launched in 2023.

OSU also manages over 11,250 acres of forest land. This includes the McDonald-Dunn Research Forest.

The OSU Radiation Center.

In 1967, the Radiation Center was built on campus. It has a small nuclear reactor used for research. U.S. News & World Report ranked OSU's graduate nuclear engineering program as one of the best. OSU researchers also helped develop a new type of small nuclear reactor. These reactors could power large buildings and factories. OSU works with a company called NuScale on this technology.

The O. H. Hinsdale Wave Research Laboratory.

OSU's Wave Research Laboratory is one of the biggest labs in the world for studying waves. It helps with research on tsunamis and coastal areas.

OSU also has two test sites near Newport, Oregon for companies to test wave energy technology. These sites are in the ocean and help develop ways to get energy from waves.

OSU's Open Source Lab (OSL) is a non-profit group. It trains students in software development. It works on big coding projects for companies like Facebook, Google, and IBM.

Military Programs

The Oregon Agricultural College Armory (later McAlexander Fieldhouse) was finished in 1910.

Oregon State University is one of the few universities that has ROTC (Reserve Officers' Training Corps) programs for all branches of the US Military. ROTC helps college students train to become officers in the military after they graduate.

The Army ROTC program at OSU started in 1873. It's known for training many officers during World War II. It's sometimes called the "West Point of the West."

After World War II, a Naval ROTC program was added. It trains officers for the US Navy and US Marine Corps. It became one of the largest in the nation. In 1949, the Air Force ROTC program started. In 1977, two women from OSU's Air Force ROTC became the first women pilots in the Air Force.

Libraries

The Valley Library.

In 1999, OSU finished a big renovation of its main library. It's called the Valley Library. It was chosen as the "Library of the Year" in 1999. This was the first time an academic library received this award.

Rankings and Awards

In 2023, the Center for World University Rankings (CWUR) said Oregon State University was in the top 1.4% of all universities worldwide. This ranking looks at how well students do after they graduate.

U.S. News & World Report ranked OSU tied for 139th nationally in 2021. It was also ranked among the top "most innovative" universities.

The Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU) ranked OSU's oceanography program 5th in the world in 2021. Its farming sciences program was in the top 50 worldwide.

QS World University Rankings said OSU's agriculture and forestry programs were 26th in the world in 2021.

Student Life

Dixon Recreation Center.

Corvallis is a smaller city, and many local events are connected to the university. OSU has over 400 student clubs and groups. The campus is close to many outdoor activities. Students can easily visit forests, the coast, deserts, rivers, and lakes. Portland, Oregon's largest city, is about 85 miles north.

Most older OSU students live off campus. But new students usually live in one of the 16 residence halls on campus.

Irish Bend Covered Bridge on the west side of campus.

The LaSells Stewart Center is where many conferences and performances happen. Famous speakers often visit. The Corvallis-OSU Symphony plays there regularly.

OSU has its own student media department called Orange Media Network. It includes The Daily Barometer student newspaper, a radio station (KBVR 88.7 FM), a TV station (KBVR-TV), and student magazines.

Student Government

The Associated Students of Oregon State University (ASOSU) is the official student government. It represents all students on campus. It also speaks for students at the state and federal levels.

Diversity at OSU

OSU works to have a diverse group of teachers and staff. The university wants to create a welcoming community for everyone.

Oregon State University has several cultural centers. These centers support students from different backgrounds. They include the Lonnie B. Harris Black Cultural Center, Native American Longhouse, Asian & Pacific Cultural Center, and Centro Cultural César Chávez. There is also a Pride Center for LGBTQ+ students.

In Fall 2022, 30% of OSU students were students of color.

Sports at OSU

Reser Stadium in 2005.

OSU mascot Benny Beaver.

In 2008, STACK magazine ranked Oregon State as one of America's "premier" universities for academics, sports, and overall performance.

The history of OSU sports goes back to 1893. The first mascot was "Jimmie the Coyote." In 1910, the beaver became the official mascot. It still is today! In 1915, OSU's sports teams joined the Pacific Coast Conference.

Reser Stadium is where the football team plays. The mascot, Benny the Beaver, first appeared in 1952. The football stadium was expanded in 2006 and 2007. In 1962, quarterback Terry Baker won the Heisman Trophy. This is a very famous award in college football. The University of Oregon is OSU's biggest sports rival. Their annual football game is one of the oldest rivalries in college football.

OSU's home golf course is called Trysting Tree's. Basketball games are held in Gill Coliseum. It's named after a former coach, Slats Gill. The Coliseum is also home to the wrestling team. Baseball is played at Goss Stadium at Coleman Field. The OSU baseball team won national championships in 2006, 2007, and 2018. Softball is played at the OSU Softball Complex.

Oregon State has won four NCAA championships. Besides the three baseball titles, the Beavers won the 1961 NCAA Men's Cross Country Championship. The men's rowing team won a national championship in 1975. The Oregon State racquetball team has won 10 national championships in a row!

People at OSU

Famous Faculty and Staff

OSU has had many famous teachers and staff, including:

• Bernard Malamud, a well-known writer.
• George Poinar Jr., a professor whose work on insects in amber helped inspire the movie Jurassic Park.
• Ernest H. Wiegand, who invented the modern Maraschino cherry.
• Pat Casey, the baseball coach who led the team to three national championships.
• Slats Gill and Ralph Miller, famous basketball coaches who are in the Hall of Fame.
• James Cassidy, a soil scientist who is also a musician in the band Information Society.
• Craig Robinson, a former basketball coach who is the brother-in-law of former President Barack Obama.

Famous Alumni

Oregon State University has many famous graduates. Over 200,000 students have graduated from OSU.

One of the most famous is Linus Pauling. He is the only person to win two Nobel Prizes by himself. He won one for chemistry and one for peace. Another very famous graduate is Jensen Huang, who started the company Nvidia.

Many OSU athletes have become professional sports players. This includes over 15 baseball players, over 20 basketball players, and over 130 football players.

Places to See

Hatfield Marine Science Center in Newport, 2022.

• Hatfield Marine Science Center
• Linus Pauling Institute
• O. H. Hinsdale Wave Research Laboratory
• Oregon State University Cascades Campus
• Oregon State University Radiation Center
• Peavy Arboretum

See also

In Spanish: Universidad Estatal de Oregón para niños