With over a million residents, the largest city in north Florida is Jacksonville. The University of North Florida is a public university based in Jacksonville with 16,317 students enrolled in 2010. Students can choose from five main colleges in the fields of health, business, arts and sciences, engineering and construction, and education. Florida State University is a public university based in Tallahassee where competition for admission is high: Around 6,200 freshman are enrolled each year out of an applicant pool of about 30,000. The University of Florida in Gainesville, located southwest of Jacksonville, is Florida's leading university, offering over 100 undergraduate majors and 200 graduate programs. With high admission standards, UF ranked number two in Kiplinger's "Best Values in Public Colleges" in 2010.
The University of Central Florida is a public university based in Orlando, which is the largest city in Central Florida. It is located on a 1,145 acre campus and provides a range of educational and sporting facilities. Students can choose from 13 academic colleges and 200 majors. The freshman class of 2009/2010 had 3,657 students. High school graduates might also choose Warner University, a private Christian university in Lake Wales. Its mission is to graduate students with "academic excellence and Christian character." Students must rank in the top half of their high school class to be eligible for entry. The university has three main academic colleges, in education, business, and arts and sciences.
The largest cities on the Gulf Coast of Florida are Tampa and St. Petersburg, located in the Tampa Bay region. The University of South Florida is a public university based in Tampa. This is a large university with 40,429 students enrolled in 2010/2011. Students can choose from 11 academic colleges and 232 degrees programs at the undergraduate and graduate level. High school graduates might also choose Florida Gulf Coast University. This is a public university based in Fort Myers about 125 miles to the south of the Tampa Bay region. It has five academic colleges in education, arts and sciences, health, professional studies, and business. The campus also boasts a range of sporting facilities, including its own golf course.
Miami and Fort Lauderdale are two large cities on the Atlantic coast of Florida. The University of Miami is a private university based in the Coral Gables district of Miami. US News & World Report recognized the university in 2010 as the best in Florida. It is also a major research university focusing mainly on medical and health research. The university offers 114 undergraduate degrees from 11 different academic colleges. Nova Southeastern University is a private university based in Fort Lauderdale on a 300 acre campus. There are 16 academic colleges to choose from, in fields such as medical sciences, arts and sciences, business, law, and education.