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The University of Missouri is the designated public research and land-grant university system in the State of Missouri. There are four campuses: All four campuses are of equal standing and degrees are centrally conferred through the University of Missouri. Columbia is the flagship campus for full-time study and research, the Rolla campus is highly regarded for its engineering programs, and the Kansas City and St. Louis campuses are largely composed of part-time commuter students. All campuses are doctoral degree-granting institutions. The generic University of Missouri title is often used in reference to the Columbia campus, especially in the context of national recognition or NCAA sports.
History The University of Missouri was founded in 1839 in Columbia. It was the first public institution of higher learning established west of the Mississippi River. In 1870, the University established the Missouri School of Mines and Metallurgy in Rolla. The system was expanded in 1963 when the University of Kansas City (which had been a private institution) was acquired and renamed UM–Kansas City, and a new campus was created for UM–St. Louis. The School of Mines was renamed UM–Rolla in 1964. The UM System offices are located in Columbia. Campus acquisition In 2004, the University of Missouri entered into an agreement with Northwest Missouri State University in Maryville to make it the fifth school in the system. It was to be named University of Missouri–Northwest. The addition would have required Northwest to increase its tuition, raise its entrance requirements and increase the pay scale for its employees. Northwest approached the University of Missouri noting that Columbia is the only state school north of the Missouri River to offer doctorate degrees while six state schools south of the river offer the degrees (the UM campuses in Kansas City, Rolla, and St. Louis, along with the state universities at Cape Girardeau, Springfield, and Warrensberg). Northwest was motivated to approach the system after Missouri Western State University in St. Joseph proposed changing its status so that it could offer masters degrees—a move that was perceived to encroach on Northwest's masters turf since the two schools are close geographically. Northwest proposed to offer doctorate degrees in quality management, fuel science, geographic information science, recreation, and business. The move required enabling legislation. In 2005, the Missouri Legislature approved the expansion of Missouri Western but let the agreement for UM–Northwest sunset in early 2006. There have been no reports regarding whether the plan will be put back in motion at a later date. | ||||||||
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