Boston University

Boston University is a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. It traces its origins to the Newbury Biblical Institute, a Methodist seminary founded in Vermont in 1839. The seminary later moved to Boston, and Massachusetts chartered the university in 1869. BU is not affiliated with any church today. Its main Charles River Campus runs along Commonwealth Avenue, and its Medical Campus in the South End adjoins Boston Medical Center.

BU has 17 schools and colleges. They include the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, the College of Engineering, the Questrom School of Business and the School of Law. Others are the Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine, the School of Public Health, the Pardee School of Global Studies, the College of Fine Arts and the School of Theology. Wheelock College of Education and Human Development joined in 2018. Research centers include the National Emerging Infectious Diseases Laboratories, the Photonics Center and the Rafik B. Hariri Institute for Computing.

BU enrolls more than 36,000 students, and nearly half are in graduate and professional programs. International students make up about a quarter of enrollment and come from more than 130 countries. Martin Luther King Jr. earned his PhD in theology at BU in 1955. The Nobel Peace laureate Elie Wiesel taught there for decades. Other alumni include the actor Geena Davis.

Graduate study includes funded PhDs across the sciences, engineering and humanities. BU also offers the JD and LLM, the MBA, the MD, the MPH and many professional master's degrees, including part-time and online options through Metropolitan College. Doctoral students are generally supported through fellowships and research or teaching assistantships. The year runs on semesters. Graduate students have access to the Longwood medical area, Kendall Square and the other universities of greater Boston.

In the Grad School Navigator directory, Boston University lists 346 graduate programs across 50 subjects: 227 master's programs and 98 doctoral programs, with the widest choice in education, health & medical sciences and public health. Boston University holds rank 85 in the GSN Overall University Ranking.