The university offers bachelor's degrees, master's degrees, and doctoral degrees in 80 undergraduate and 49 graduate areas of study through nine academic schools and colleges. These schools and colleges include Arts and Sciences, Business, Education and Professional Studies, Engineering, Health Sciences, Environment and Life Sciences, Nursing, Pharmacy and Oceanography. Another college, University College for Academic Success, serves primarily as an advising college for all incoming undergraduates and follows them through their first two years of enrollment at URI. The university is classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity".[4] As of 2019, the URI enrolled 14,653 undergraduate students, 1,982 graduate students, and 1,339 non-degree students, making it the largest university in the state.[5][6]
History
The University of Rhode Island was first chartered as the state's agricultural school and agricultural experiment station in 1888. The site of the school was originally the Oliver Watson Farm in Kingston, whose original farmhouse is now a small museum. In 1892, the school became known as the Rhode Island College of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts.[7] The first class had only seventeen students, each completing their course of study in two years. In 1909, the school's name was again changed to Rhode Island State College as the school's programs were expanded beyond its original agricultural education mandate.
In 1951 the school was given its current title through an act of the General Assembly following the addition of the College of Arts and Sciences and the offering of doctoral degrees. The Board of Governors for Higher Education, appointed by the governor, became the governing body of the university in 1981 during the presidency of Frank Newman (1974–1983). The Board of Governors was replaced by the Rhode Island Board of Education in 2013,[8] and by a 17-member Board of Trustees in 2019.
Twelve individuals have served as president, and three others have served as acting president of the University of Rhode Island. Marc B. Parlange is the current president, having served since August 2021.[10]
Main campus
URI's main campus is located in northern South Kingstown, and is accessed via Rhode Island Route 138 from either the west (Interstate 95) or east (United States Route 1). The campus was mostly farmland when it was purchased by the state in 1888, and still includes the c. 1796 Oliver Watson Farmhouse. The early buildings of the campus are set around its main quadrangle, and were built out of locally quarried granite. The campus master plan was developed by the noted landscape architects Olmsted, Olmsted & Eliot in the 1890s. The central portion of the campus, where most of its pre-1950 buildings are located,[11] was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2017.
URI is accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education.[21] The student-faculty ratio at University of Rhode Island is 16:1, and the school has 43.1% of its classes with fewer than 20 students. The most popular majors at University of Rhode Island include: Registered Nursing/Registered Nurse; Psychology, General; Speech Communication and Rhetoric; Kinesiology and Exercise Science; and Health-Related Knowledge and Skills, Other. The average freshman retention rate, an indicator of student satisfaction, is 84%.[22]
Rankings
U.S. News & World Report ranks URI tied for 170th overall among 389 "national universities" and tied for 83rd out of 209 "top public schools" in 2021.[23]
The average incoming freshman at the Kingston campus for the fall of 2017 had a GPA of 3.54 and an SAT score of 1178 (out of 1600) (with ACT scores converted to SAT scale).[26]
URI also has over 300 student organizations and clubs including marching band, the Marine Science Society, SAGA (Sexuality and Gender Alliance), Ether(bound), Anime Club, musicians guild, We're Offering Women Wisdom (WOWW), Puppy Raisers, and Alima International Dance Association.
[28] The university's student newspaper, The Good Five Cent Cigar, was founded in 1971.[29] It is also home to several Greek-lettered organizations.[30]
Athletics
URI Athletics Logo
University of Rhode Island Rams Football at Meade Stadium
The Rhode Island Rams men's basketball competes in the Atlantic 10 Conference, and has appeared in the NCAA "March Madness” Tournament a total of 10 times since its first appearance in 1961. Two of these ten appearances occurred during the 2017 and 2018 seasons.[32][33]
Quadrangle on an early September evening at University of Rhode Island.
Off campus living
While 5600 students live in the 25 on campus residence halls, thousands more opt to commute from the surrounding area.[34] Narragansett, an abutting town to Kingston, is made up of hundreds of summer vacation homes which are rented to students for the academic year.
Notable University of Rhode Island alumni in politics and government include Lieutenant General Michael Flynn (B.Sc. 1981),[35] 38th mayor of Providence Jorge Elorza (B.Sc. 1998),[36] and governors of Rhode Island Lincoln Almond (B.Sc. 1959) and J. Joseph Garrahy (1953).
^"East Hall Turns 100". University of Rhode Island. January 7, 2010. Retrieved August 18, 2016. The 100th anniversary of the official opening of East Hall on October 15, 1909, was celebrated on October 15, 2009
![East Hall (1909)[12] and Washburn Hall (1921)](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4e/URI_East_Hall_and_Washburn_Hall.jpg/300px-URI_East_Hall_and_Washburn_Hall.jpg)
