Basics: Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana is the flagship university of the six-campus Purdue University system. Purdue is especially known for its competitive courses offered in engineering, technology, and agriculture. A place is known as The Cradle of Astronauts, Purdue is the home of highly advanced curricula in aviation and spaceflight, and of world-renowned astronauts like Neil Armstrong (the first man to walk on the moon), Gus Grissom (one of the original Mercury Seven astronauts), and Eugene Cernan (the last person to walk on the moon).
Academics: Purdue offers over 200 majors to its undergraduates, along with 70 master’s and doctoral programs, and professional degrees in pharmacy and veterinary medicine. It has arguably one of the most distinguished and coveted programs for engineering in the United State, making it an attractive option for a big chunk of the Indian student population studying abroad.
Demographics: It enrolls the second largest student body of any university in the state of Indiana and also the fourth largest international student population all over the country.
Collegiate sports: Purdue is a member of the Big Ten Conference. It has 18 intercollegiate sports teams and over 900 student organizations. Purdue has recently made big splashes in men’s basketball and women’s volleyball player at the collegiate level.
Student life: Purdue is a big campus and offers its students various housing options both on and off-campus. While West Lafayette is a small town by itself, it is not uncommon for almost all students to take weekend trips to Indianapolis and Chicago. One thing to beware of though is the bone-chillingly cold weather in the snowy winters at Purdue.
