Indiana University Bloomington is the flagship campus of a large state school, based in a small, vibrant college town. Its 34,000 undergraduate students come from all over the U.S. and 138 countries for an education at one of the country's top-ranked state schools. The beautiful campus includes several buildings that are on the National Register of Historic Places.
The university offers a staggering 200-plus majors, minors and certificates spread across 12 colleges and schools. It also offers classes in 80 languages, the most of any public university.
IU has a multimillion-dollar athletic endowment for its 24 varsity sports teams, and Greek life comes standard for Hoosiers. Still, it offers alternatives to party-filled weekends, including a bowling alley in the student union and the Little 500, a huge collegiate bike race not unlike the Indianapolis 500.
Though the size of the institution can seem intimidating, it's also IU's greatest asset — where else can you study Hungarian and enjoy one of the largest harp departments in the world?
The university stands out in Money's rankings in part for its relative affordability with an estimated net price of a degree (not including federal or state aid) coming in under $96,000. Fewer than 11% of colleges in Money's rankings can say the same.
