Arizona State University (ASU) offers more than 350 programmes and majors for undergraduates, and more than 450 graduate degree programmes or certificates. 

ASU has ranked #1 for innovation nationally for the past 6 years (US News & World Report, 2016-2021) and ASU degree programmes also rank among the top 25 in the country, with 30 of these programmes ranking in America’s top 10 (U.S. News & World Report).  

Lecturers and faculty include Nobel laureates, Pulitzer Prize winners and Fulbright Scholars, ensuring students’ education is in the hands of those who have achieved some of the greatest feats in their fields. 

The academic colleges of ASU are as follows:

• Business, W. P. Carey School of 
• Design and the Arts, Herberger Institute for 
• Engineering, Ira A. Fulton Schools of 
• Global Futures, College of 
• Global Management, Thunderbird School of 
• Health Solutions, College of 
• Integrative Sciences and Arts, College of 
• Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences, New College of 
• Journalism and Mass Communication, Walter Cronkite School of 
• Liberal Arts and Sciences, College of 
• Nursing and Health Innovation, Edson College of 
• Public Service and Community Solutions, Watts College of 
• Teachers College, Mary Lou Fulton

Arizona State University consists of five campuses, four in the Phoenix area and one at Lake Havasu:

• Downtown Phoenix Campus - this urban campus has state-of-the-art facilities housed in iconic Phoenix architecture. The student-to-faculty ratio is 15:1 here and the main degree subjects taught here are health care, public service, corporate communities and journalism at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism.  
• Polytechnic Campus - with around 5,000 students based here, this campus is positioned in East Valley where industry partners are located close to the campus. Advanced laboratory spaces include flight simulators, semiconductor fabrication spaces and more. 
• Tempe Campus - the largest of the campuses with over 53,000 students based here and a student-to-faculty ratio of around 20:1, this is the home of most of the academic colleges. Tempe is also a hub of research activity at the Biodesign Institute, Julie Ann Wrigley Global Institute of Sustainability, and more. The sports scene at Tempe is also eclectic and exciting. 
• West Campus - a close-knit campus of just under 5,000 students focusing mostly on liberal arts with a subtropical landscaping backdrop. 
• ASU@Lake Havasu - this is ASU’s western Arizona location by the beautiful Lake Havasu with a student population of around 150 undergraduates, this campus harnesses its location to give students hands-on experiences. 

The university has a history of excellent startup support, with startups linked to ASU employing over 500 people today and in 2016 ASU was dubbed “the entrepreneurial university” at the Deshpande Symposium for Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Higher Education. ASU’s entrepreneurship MBA is also ranked #22 globally (Inc. magazine, 2021).

J. Orin Edson Entrepreneurship + Innovation Institute is ASU’s centre for students to grasp the university’s wide network of alumni, industry partners, resources and spaces to best further their entrepreneurial talents. Their 3-step system of Learn, Engage, and Launch, can range from basic business information to newcomers, to sourcing funding and commercialisation of products and services. 

ASU has launched over 160 startups and has generated around $575 million in gross state product.

ASU has many opportunities for aspirational researchers to prove their worth, with the university recently rising to 6th in the US for research expenditures among universities without a medical school (National Science Foundation Higher Education Research and Development Survey). The university is also one of the fastest-growing research universities in the country, with an estimated total of $660 million in research expenditures in FY20. 

The research taking place across the university is varied and adaptable, with the Biodesign Institute pivoting its research last year to develop COVID labs to benefit the communities and developed a robotic system to run thousands of tests per day. ASU’s affiliation with the Space Grant has also seen the university become the 3rd highest NASA-funded university in terms of research expenditures (National Science Foundation, 2019).

In addition to its research prowess and startup support, ASU’s graduate employability and careers preparation is similarly impressive. ASU is #3 in the world for student-employer connections (QS, 2020) and 87% of their masters students were employed within 6 months of graduation (ASU, 2019-2020). 

Handshake is the university’s internship and jobs online hub, where students can book appointments with career advisors, take part in events and more. Volunteering is also highly incentivised at ASU and the opportunities are plentiful so can often be tailored towards relevance in a student’s studies. These work experiences contribute towards a student’s employability, which is why ASU undergraduates command higher salaries: undergraduates with a median salary of $55,000 and postgraduates with a median salary of $64,000. 

Phoenix, Arizona is an incredible place to study because of its welcoming, laid back nature. Phoenix is the sunniest major city in the world (World Meteorological Organisation) and #1 best place to find a job (WalletHub), particularly within the tech industry. 

Three national parks are in Arizona, including Grand Canyon National Park and the food scene in Phoenix is award-winning for its invention and variety; southwestern cuisine, food trucks, international dishes and vegetarian and vegan options are all readily available. 

Sky Harbor International Airport is one of America’s busiest and friendliest airports allowing for travel around the country and internationally, with more that 1,200 flights arriving and departing daily.  

Sports plays a large part of life at ASU with a 53,000+ seater American football stadium in Phoenix, and on-campus there are plenty of fitness facilities and sports and athletics clubs to take part in and get to know fellow students.

Arizona State University is a leading example of what a successful university could and should be. Academically, it competes with the greatest and most prestigious universities that America has to offer and its academic staff truly have impressive honours to their names. Its campuses are stimulating, both visually and in their contents and facilities, with wonderful opportunities for high-end research. 

For students with an eye on what their degree will do for their career, ASU has impeccable startup support, backed by impressive statistics on what these startups have achieved. In terms of industry connections and graduate employability, ASU is also exemplary, with students easily finding employment after life at ASU. In addition to these points, its setting in one of America’s most beautiful states should make this university high on any student’s list.