About Missouri State
Missouri State University is a public, comprehensive university system with a mission in public affairs. Our purpose is to develop fully educated persons with a focus on ethical leadership, cultural competence and community engagement.
The Missouri State University system has four physical campuses:
Springfield
The main campus in Springfield, Mo.
West Plains
Offering two-year associate's degrees
Mountain Grove
Focusing on fruit science and agriculture research
Dalian, China
In partnership with Liaoning Normal University
Start your application
Apply now to become a Missouri State Bear.
Explore your options
Specialize your application with this guide for future students.
Plan your trip
Schedule a visit, explore a campus map, get directions and more for your campus tour.
#GoMaroon
Discover digital resources to maroonify your MSU experience.
By the numbers
The Missouri State community includes:
- A total of 26,216 students in the Missouri State system, making us the second largest university in the state
- More than 24,000 students enrolled on the Springfield campus
- More than 3,000 students from underrepresented groups, a 5.5 percent increase from the 2016-2017 academic year
- Seven academic colleges and one Graduate College
- More than 180 bachelor's degree options, 10 of which can be completed entirely online
- Almost 4,000 faculty and staff members with 90 percent of full-time ranked faculty holding the most advanced degree in their field
- More than 1,500 international students studying on the Springfield campus
- 17 NCAA Division I teams with 58 NCAA championship appearances
- More than 110,000 alumni applying their education around the world
Profile of a Bear
Our students:
- Represent all 50 states and 88 foreign countries
- Study in one of our 85+ undergraduate majors leading to 180+ academic options or 90+ graduate degree programs
- Participate in nearly 300 student organizations and more than 25 fraternities and sororities
- Play about 20 intramural sports
- Receive more than $150 million in financial aid with 74 percent of students receiving some form of assistance annually
- Volunteer more than 420,000 hours per year at government and nonprofit organizations through the Campus Volunteer Center, cooperative education and service-learning
Our freshmen:
- Earned an average ACT score north of 24 (state and national averages)
- Entered with a high school GPA of 3.50 or higher (63 percent)
- Placed in the top half of their high school classes (83.5 percent)
Go Maroon!
Missouri State spirit includes:
School colors
Maroon and white
Athletic teams
Bears and Lady Bears
Mascots
Boomer Bear and Growl Bear
BearWear Friday
A day to wear MSU gear
Cheer squad
Supports our teams
Sugar Bears
Dance team
University honors
- Recipient of the 2014 Higher Education Excellence in Diversity (HEED) Award
- Named to America’s Top Colleges list by Forbes magazine
- Received Best in the Midwest and Green College distinction from The Princeton Review
- Ranked among Best Colleges: Regional Universities (Midwest) by U.S. News & World Report
- Named Military Friendly School by G.I. Jobs magazine
- Selected as a Carnegie Foundation Community Engaged University
- Listed on the President's Roll for Higher Education Community Service
- Issued a Silver rating in the Sustainability Tracking, Assessment and Rating System
- Ranked as having one of the best online education options by Affordable Colleges Foundation
- Earned a Tree Campus USA designation by the Arbor Day Foundation