Overview
Roosevelt University Overview
Roosevelt University is a private, secular institution with an enrollment of 7,700 undergraduate and graduate students among its College of Arts and Sciences, Walter E. Heller College of Business Administration, College of Education, Evelyn T. Stone College of Professional Studies, and Chicago College of Performing Arts.
Roosevelt University Undergraduate Academic Programs and Faculty
Roosevelt University offers more than 60 academic undergraduate degree programs, so there is a wide variety from which to choose. The most popular programs include acting, biology, business administration, chemistry, education, English, journalism, music performance, political science, psychology, and sociology. Featured new programs are sports hospitality management, integrated marketing communications, and criminal justice.
Some of Roosevelt's most highly regarded professors come from these programs. Recent Fulbright winners include Professor of Musical Theatre Luis Perez, Professor of English Ellen O'Brien, Professor of Marketing Gordon Patzer, and Professor of Sociology Heather Dalmage.
In addition, Professor of Psychology Steven Meyers was selected as the 2007 Illinois Professor of the Year by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. Most recently, Professor of Music Composition Kyong Mee Choi was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship to create a multimedia opera.
Roosevelt University is committed to a mission of academic excellence through which it offers small class sizes so students can get individual attention from their professors. Unlike large universities, Roosevelt does not have large lecture halls for classes of hundreds of students, and it does not have classes solely taught by graduate teaching assistants.
The university's dedicated full- and part-time faculty members are active in their fields through research, publishing, community service, and professional practice, all of which help them create a progressive learning environment for students. The student to faculty ratio at Roosevelt is 13:1.
Roosevelt's mission also includes a dedication to social justice, which follows the democratic ideals of Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt. Classes with service-learning components and social justice themes are a core part of the curriculum. Faculty members also direct several centers and institutes that offer co-curricular activities involving politics, urban affairs, and community activism.
Roosevelt University Student Body
Roosevelt University was one of the nation's first institutions of higher learning to admit academically qualified students from all social, racial, ethnic, and religious backgrounds. That tradition continues to the present; the university is ranked as the second most diverse private university or college in Illinois and the 10th most diverse institution nationally.
Since Roosevelt students come from all walks of life, they learn from one another and form a community of individuals who are bound by the belief that integration and mutual understanding are the keys to good citizenship and equal opportunity.
Roosevelt University Financial Aid
More than 95 percent of new Roosevelt students receive monetary assistance in the form of grants, Roosevelt University scholarships, work-study opportunities, tuition reimbursement, or loans. Individual programs and colleges offer various merit-based scholarships to qualifying students. The university's policy is to provide maximum financial assistance for students who demonstrate financial need. Students must submit the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) to be considered.
Roosevelt University Extracurricular Opportunities
There are many opportunities for students at Roosevelt to participate in college life. The university has a number of organizations that represent the diverse backgrounds and interests of the student body, and which serve the needs of students at both campuses.
These include Alpha Gamma Delta Women's Fraternity, Black Student Union, Future Teachers Association, Gamma Theta Chi Multicultural Sorority, Hospitality Student Association, International Student Union, Psi Chi: National Honor Society in Psychology, RU Crafters, RU Green, RU Latinos, RU Proud, Society for Human Resource Management, Student Ambassadors, Student Government Association, Students for a Sensible Drug Policy, The Torch (student-run newspaper), and WRBC: The Blaze (student-run radio station).
Roosevelt University Campus
Roosevelt University has an urban campus in downtown Chicago and a suburban campus in Schaumburg, Illinois. Both campuses offer comprehensive academic programs and services to students with classrooms, computer labs, academic advisers, libraries, bookstores, career and counseling services, and admission and financial aid offices.
In addition, both campuses are centrally located in areas that are busy with culture and commerce, which allows students the chance to learn inside and outside the classroom. Opportunities for internships, part-time employment, networking with professionals, and participating in cultural activities are plentiful in both communities and complement the university's curriculum.
Residence halls are located at Roosevelt's Chicago campus. The University Center of Chicago is shared by students from Roosevelt University, Columbia College, and DePaul University and is ideal for freshmen and sophomores, while Roosevelt on Washington in Fornelli Hall offers apartment-style rooms for juniors, seniors, and graduate students.
