Florida International University
HighlightsFlorida International University is Miami’s first and only public research university. Founded in 1965 on an abandoned airfield, FIU offers more than 200 bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees.
FIU is home to the International Hurricane Research Center, a research group that can simulate a category five storm.
FIU also runs the Aquarius Reef Base 63 feet below the ocean’s surface in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary. One of FIU’s study-abroad programs takes students on a 15-day cruise to Chile through the Panama Canal.
At FIU’s annual Walk on Water event, architecture students compete to build shoes that can walk across the campus lake. Incoming students can participate in the week-long Panther Camp program, which teaches FIU traditions and chants to cheer on the university’s varsity sports teams, which compete in the NCAA Division I.
With an alumni network of over 200,000, notable people affiliated with the university include actor Andy Garcia, ex-Mayor of Miami Manny Diaz, NBA basketball player Carlos Arroyo, and author Carlos Alvarado-Larroucau.
Moreover, alumni include president of Condé Nast Entertainment Dawn Ostroff and former Kerzner International CEO Alan Leibman.
It consists of two main campuses: one in Modesto Maidique, which is the original home of FIU, and another in Biscayne Bay, overlooking the North Miami bay.
The university also has satellite centres throughout South Florida, and overseas in Tianjin, China, and in Nervi and Genoa in Italy. Through the MICEFA programme, students at FIU are able to participate in study abroad schemes in Paris, France.
FIU also operates the Aquarius Reef Base, an ocean laboratory located 63 feet below sea level in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary.
The university offers 68 baccalaureate programmes, 91 master’s and specialist programmes, 31 research doctorate programmes, and four professional doctorate programmes.
At a Glance
Student Population: 55,003
Undergraduate Population: 45,856
Student to Faculty Ratio: 27
Total Annual Cost: $36,086
In-State Tuition: $4,721
Out-of-State Tuition: $16,529
Percent on Financial Aidd: 82%
Average Grant Aid Received (FT/First-Time): $2,571
Percent Admittede: 50%
SAT Composite Range: 1030-1210
ACT Composite Range: 23-27