At the University of Oklahoma, you will experience a stimulating academic community where you are a hands-on participant in the learning process. Discover the benefits of a major research institution while receiving the personal attention and support you deserve. Become part of the OU family and connect yourself to enriching opportunities that will equip you to excel in our global society.
Parrington Oval, or the North Oval, houses many of our academic departments and administrative offices. Seen here is Evans Hall, one of the most photographed buildings in Oklahoma. Evans Hall is an example of our iconic Cherokee Gothic campus architecture, coined by famous American architect Frank Lloyd Wright. Both the President’s Office and Office of the Provost can be found in Evans Hall.
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With over 5 million volumes, Bizzell Memorial Library is the largest research library in Oklahoma. It’s also home to the History of Sciences Collections, which include rare books and manuscripts on science technology and medicine. You can even see original works by Galileo written in his own handwriting!
Study in the Great Reading Room, which is the quietest room on campus and houses theses and dissertations written by OU students, or visit the Helmerich Collaborative Learning Center to work on group projects, edit video, analyze data, video conference or just enjoy coffee with friends from the Bookmark Cafe.
The Helmerich Collaborative Learning Center is a technology enabled, collaborative space where students can work together in groups. In this space, students can learn to create information, to explore it visually, and to synthesize it in new and different ways. Visit the Bookmark Café to grab a cup of coffee, and talk with a professor, colleague, or with friends.
Gaylord Family – Oklahoma Memorial Stadium holds over 86,000 Sooner fans. Boasting seven Heisman Trophy winners, 49 conference championships, seven national titles, and the longest winning streak of any college football team ever, ESPN has ranked OU as the No. 1 most prestigious college football program in the country. The field is called Owen Field after Bennie Owen, the coach who brought the team to prominence.
On-campus housing is guaranteed to all freshmen, and living on campus means that you are at the center of the university experience, including support, friends and convenience. Creating a sense of family matters at OU, and the residence halls will soon be your home away from home. Visit ou.edu/housingandfood for additional details.
Couch Restaurants, OU’s cafeteria, is the place to grab dinner with friends, study over lunch with free Wi-Fi or watch the cinema-style projection screen. Couch features 14 unique all-you-care-to-eat restaurants like customized stir-fry, gourmet hamburgers, bold vegan and vegetarian dishes, traditional Mediterranean food and more. There’s even the only all-you-care-to-eat Chick-fil-A in the universe!
Looking to stay in shape while you’re at OU? Look no further than the Sarkeys Fitness Center. Conveniently located near the Residential Halls, this massive recreation area is great for exercise and weight lifting. Students can also play basketball, volleyball or various racket sports, climb the rock wall or enroll in fitness classes like kickboxing bags, yoga and more.
The Oklahoma Memorial Union is a great place to grab lunch, study or meet with friends. Interested in campus involvement? The student union is also the place where you can meet with helpful advisors from offices like Student Life, Leadership Development & Volunteerism and the Union Programming Board, a student-run group that plans campus events. There’s always something fun going on in the Union!
The Van Vleet Oval, commonly called the “South Oval,” serves as the hub for student actives, and the majority of your courses will be located in buildings lining it. The location is named after Dr. Albert Van Vleet, the first holder of a doctorate degree to join the faculty at OU. Standing on one end of the South Oval is OU’s iconic Seed Sower statue, which represents David Ross Boyd, OU’s first president who sowed the seeds of knowledge, history, tradition and excellence at the university. Boyd also sowed literally seeds, planting many of the early trees on campus.
At OU, your education will be personal. Our student-to-instructor ratio is just 18:1, meaning our professors are accessible. We strive to keep class sizes small, ensuring you will be an active participant in the learning experience. OU professors will challenge you to think critically and participate in classroom discussions and debates to help you discover new ideas and develop as a professional.
OU’s ExxonMobil Lawrence G. Rawl Engineering Practice Facility (EPF) is a world-class, one-of-a-kind space where current engineering students benefit from a real-world interdisciplinary experience. Students can design concrete canoes, Formula One race cars and human-powered vehicles, among other projects. Often described as an “engineer’s playground,” the EPF provides limitless hands-on learning to OU students.
OU students have numerous avenues to engage in experiential learning, including through working for Lindsey + Asp, a student-run public relations and advertising agency that serves more than a dozen real-world clients and is housed in our Gaylord College of Journalism & Mass Communication. Here, students collaborate and brainstorm in an environment that fosters creativity, just as they will in their jobs after graduation. This hands-on experience sets our students apart from other college graduates and prepares them for success in their careers.
The OU Residential Colleges are living-learning communities committed to providing an intimate and supportive housing experience for OU undergraduates. Dunham and Headington College have established their own traditions, crests, and mottos to give each college their own individual personality. Each college has its own dining hall, creative common space, game room, library, courtyard, and classrooms.
Cross is OU’s newest student housing option, offering luxury apartment living for upperclassmen.
The OU Arts District is home to the Weitzenhoffer Family College of Fine Arts and an average of 400 performances and exhibits each year. Over a thousand students major in various disciplines in the Schools of Art & Art History, Dance, Drama, Music and Musical Theatre. Nationally ranked in numerous areas, it is the largest, most comprehensive fine arts program in Oklahoma and the premiere college of fine arts in the heartland of America.
Reynolds Performing Arts Center (RPAC) houses Holmberg Hall, Oklahoma’s only European-style opera house, built in 1918. An $18 million renovation in 2002 preserved turn-of-the-century design, while adding the latest technical equipment, practice rooms and 20,000 square feet of studio and classroom space to the OU School of Dance. RPAC is one of nine performance venues in the Weitzenhoffer Family College of Fine Arts, ranging from a 1,000-seat concert hall to small blackbox and lab theatres.
The National Weather Center (NWC) is home to about 500 research scientists, operational meteorologists and climatologists, engineers, technicians and OU students who work together to improve understanding of events occurring in Earth’s atmosphere. Our students are surrounded by the best and brightest in education, private industry and national and state organizations like the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Students also have access to the latest equipment like lab space and storm vehicles, a rooftop outdoor classroom and an enclosed weather observation deck.
The Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History is the largest natural history museum associated with a public university in the country. The world-class museum is always free to OU students and is home to the oldest piece of artwork ever found in North America and the largest Apatosauras fossil on display in the world.
Jacobson Hall, also known as the OU Visitor Center, is where all prospective students and visitors are welcomed through the university’s “front door.” Across the street from Jacobson Hall is Norman’s historic Campus Corner. Here, students shop at boutiques, grab a quick lunch with friends or spend time studying at a locally-owned coffee shop.
We hope you enjoyed your virtual visit, and we would love to see you on campus for a full tour soon. Schedule yours now!