Northern Kentucky University: A Comprehensive Overview

Northern Kentucky University (NKU) is a public university located in Highland Heights, Kentucky, seven miles (11 km) southeast of Cincinnati, Ohio. Situated just off Interstate 275 and Interstate 471, the campus is easily accessible. Established in 1968, NKU is the youngest of Kentucky's eight public universities. Since its founding in 1968 and elevation to university status in 1976, Northern Kentucky University has expanded with construction projects, new colleges and a larger, more diverse student body.

A History of Growth

Northern Kentucky University began in 1948 as an extension campus for the University of Kentucky in Covington, known as the UK Northern Extension Center. After 20 years as an extension center, it became an autonomous four-year college named Northern Kentucky State College (NKSC). In 1970, W. Frank Steely was hired as the first president. The following year, the Salmon P. Chase College of Law, formerly an independent law school in Cincinnati, merged with Northern Kentucky State College. The main campus moved from Covington to Highland Heights, Kentucky, in 1972. NKSC awarded its first bachelor's degrees in 1973. The campus located in Covington, Kentucky, closed in 2008.

Campus and Facilities

The main campus in Highland Heights was built beginning in the early 1970s, with the first building, Nunn Hall, opening in 1972. Although most of the university's students commute daily to the campus, approximately 2,000 students live on campus. In recent years, the university has been in the process of expanding its campus and facilities.

Key facilities include:

Truist Arena: A 9,400-seat arena completed in 2008, serving as the primary venue for athletics and entertainment.
Student Union: Opened in 2008, providing a central hub for student activities and services.
Landrum Academic Center: Houses an Anthropology Museum.
W. Frank Steely Library: Completed in 1975 and named after the first president, the library contains over 850,000 volumes, more than 18,000 bound periodicals, and approximately 1.4 million microforms.

Academic Programs and Colleges

Northern Kentucky University's academic programs are organized into seven colleges:

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Arts and Sciences
Business (Haile College of Business)
Education and Human Services
Informatics
Health Professions
Salmon P. Chase College of Law

The College of Informatics, founded in 2006, replaced the College of Professional Studies. In July 2015, the School of the Arts was created, uniting the Music, Theatre & Dance, and Visual Arts programs within the College of Arts & Sciences.

NKU offers a wide range of academic programs, including:

Art & Design
Business
Communication
Design
Economics
Education
Engineering
Finance/Accounting
Government/Political Science
Health Science
Human Services
Informatics
Liberal Arts
Music
Nursing
Performing Arts
Research
Science
Social Science
Technology
Visual Arts

Student Experience

NKU provides a diverse student experience with opportunities for:

Athletics
Co-op/Internship Opportunities
Disability Services
Distance/online learning
Greek Life
Honors
Intramural/Club Sports
Military/Veteran Services
Night Class Offerings
On-Campus Housing
ROTC Program
Study Abroad
Undergraduate Research
Veteran Fee Waiver

Northern Kentucky University students are also a part of individual chapters in numerous honor societies. There are several fraternities and sororities on campus.

Application Information

First-year students are students applying to NKU for the first time after high school graduation and have not attended any other institutions following high school. The application and high school transcripts are all required to be reviewed for admission. If you have over a 2.75 unweighted GPA you will be eligible for Direct Admit. Regarding test scores, NKU uses a Test Optional admission policy. Test scores are strongly encouraged if you have less than a 2.75 unweighted GPA. Test scores are required if you wish to be considered for our Presidential Scholarship program.

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Rankings and Recognition

Northern Kentucky University has been recognized for its quality and value. NKU ranked in Newsweek’s top 50 list of America’s Top Online Colleges 2026. Northern Kentucky University has been ranked 47th on Newsweek’s list of America’s Top Online Colleges for 2026 out of 250 universities and colleges nationwide. This is the first time NKU has been recognized by Newsweek for its high value online programing, and it is the only university in Kentucky ranked in the top 50. For the 11th year in a row, Northern Kentucky University has been named as one of America’s Top Colleges by Forbes.

Norse Media

NorseMediaTV is the PEG access Public-access television cable TV station run by Northern Kentucky University. It airs on channel 818 on Cincinnati Bell Fioptics cable and 18 digital/96 analog on Insight Cable of Northern Kentucky. NorseMediaTV students and faculty produce many original programs, a weekly talk show, various sporting events, and entertainment programming. Many NorseMedia programs have won awards at the local (Blue Chips), regional (Philos) and national (Telly) levels, usually in the professional categories.

Athletics

The university's teams for both men and women are nicknamed "Norse". Their mascot is named Victor E. Students have also organized club teams in bowling, ice hockey, men's soccer club, taekwondo fencing, boxing, lacrosse, rugby, kickball, skeet & trap, and men's wrestling.

Alumni

Northern Kentucky University has over 60,000 living alumni, approximately 41,000 of them in Ohio and Kentucky.

Partnerships

Corporate and university partnerships include The Scripps Howard Center for Civic Engagement the Fifth/Third Entrepreneurial Center the Metropolitan Education and Training Services Center, the Center for Applied Informatics, and Fidelity Investments.

Community

Just over 7,000 people reside in Highland Heights, a town in Northern Kentucky between the Licking and Ohio Rivers. However, around 15,000 people visit Highland Heights throughout the year to attend Northern Kentucky University, most of whom commute to the school from nearby towns.

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