Auburn University

Auburn University, public, coeducational institution in Auburn, Alabama. Originally chartered in 1856 as East Alabama Male College, the school was reorganized as Alabama Agricultural and Mechanical College in 1872. The name Alabama Polytechnic Institute was adopted in 1899, and the present name was adopted in 1960. The university confers bachelor’s, master’s, doctoral, and professional degrees in a broad range of fields. It offers courses of study in the liberal arts, the arts and sciences, the fine arts, graphic arts, architecture, agriculture, dairy sciences, business administration and management, computer science, education, engineering, aerospace engineering, aviation administration, construction management, textile engineering and management, forestry, wood sciences, wildlife management, human resources, health sciences, pharmaceutical sciences, religious studies, and performing arts.

Auburn University offers a wide variety of research and extension programs. Research facilities at the university include the Alabama Agricultural Experiment Station, the Center for Commercial Development of Space, the Space Power Institute, the Center for Arts and Humanities, and the Biological Control Institute. Notable alumni include novelist Anne Rivers Siddons and professional athlete Bo Jackson.