Discover the Most Sprawling College Campus in Nebraska

Written by Kyle Glatz
Updated: November 16, 2023
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Nebraska is a large midwestern state that is known for its assorted natural environments and agriculture. However, the state has more going for it than cool rock formations, soybeans, and corn. The Cornhusker State is also known for having some great universities. Today, we’re going to look at the most sprawling college campus in Nebraska! More specifically, this article will explore the largest college campus in Nebraska as measured by its total acreage.

About the Cornhusker State

Welcome to Nebraska sing.

Nebraska is the 16

th

largest state in the United States.

©Michael Kaercher/Shutterstock.com

Nebraska has a very unique environment. Generally, the eastern part of the state is filled with farmlands supported by the Missouri, Platte, and Niobrara Rivers. Meanwhile, the westernmost third of the state is semi-arid and features areas like the Sandhills.

The state encompasses 77,348 square miles, making it the 16th largest state in the country. Despite having a lot of area, the state is not heavily populated.

According to the 2020 U.S. Census, Nebraska had a population of 1,961,489 people living in the area. The same organization has posted estimates for 2022 that show an ongoing rise in population, leading to 1,967,923 people living in the state as of July 2022.

The state’s population is growing, but it is still ranked 37th in terms of state population. The state still has plenty of area for people, but most of the places people could live are used for farming. Now, that may make people believe that there are no sprawling college campuses in Nebraska, but that’s not the truth. After all, the Cornhusker State has plenty of land for campuses to spread out.  

What Is the Largest Campus in Nebraska?

University of Nebraska-Lincoln city campus

For the best collection of

elephant

fossils in the world, head over to the University of Nebraska State Museum in Lincoln.

©Hanyou23, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons – License

The largest college campus in Nebraska is the University of Nebraska-Lincoln at 856 total acres. The university campuses are not situated in a single, continuous area. Generally, three different campuses make up the college. They include:

  • City Campus
  • Campus Innovation
  • East Campus

The City Campus is the one most are familiar with in this area. This campus starts at O Street and travels north. This area features Memorial Stadium, the Sheldon Museum of Art, Hamilton Hall, and several other important buildings on the campus.

The Innovation Campus is northeast of the City Campus, comprising a few buildings including the Innovation Commons Creative Center, the Food Innovation Center, and the Greenhouse Innovation Center. This is the smallest campus in the area.

Finally, Lincoln also hosts the East Campus. As one may infer from the name, this campus is off to the east of the other two. It’s perhaps 1.5 miles northeast of the City Campus. East Campus has the Animal Science Complex, the Plant Pathology Greenhouse, the Dinsdale Family Learning Commons, and several other buildings.

Together, these three campuses and their associated lands comprise the largest college campus in Nebraska.

What Do People Study at the Largest College Campus in Nebraska?

Top view of soil in hands for check the quality of the soil for control soil quality before seed plant. Future agriculture concept. Smart farming, using modern technologies in agriculture

Students can learn all sorts of things at this university, including better farming techniques.

©Deemerwha studio/Shutterstock.com

The University of Nebraska-Lincoln is a multi-dimensional school. The college was originally a land-grant university. The school received its charter on February 15, 1869, and it has grown ever since. The school’s total enrollment for Fall 2022 was 23,805.

The students study a wide assortment of different courses at this university. Among the most commonly sought degrees are:

  • Psychology
  • Business Administration
  • Finance
  • Pre-Health
  • Mechanical engineering

However, a much wider variety of majors and courses await those who join the ranks of the school. Students can pursue studies in architecture, fine and performing arts, law, mass communications, and more. Students can even study agricultural sciences and the management of natural resources, a very important course of study for people in this state.

Where Is the University of Nebraska–Lincoln?

As the university’s name suggests, the main campus exists in Lincoln, Nebraska, the second most populous city in the state. The city of Lincoln is in Lancaster County, an area in southeastern Nebraska.

The sprawling college campus in Lincoln, Nebraska is situated in the northern half of the city, above Nebraska Highway 34, also called O Street.

The city of Lincoln is southwest of Omaha, the state capital and the largest city in the state by population. Only 50 miles or so separate downtown Lincoln from Midtown Omaha. Although the state is very large, many of its biggest cities are concentrated in the eastern part of Nebraska.

Still, like many other cities in this part of the country, people only need to travel outside the city limits to reach the vast farmlands for which this state is famous.

Wildlife Near the University of Nebraska-Lincoln

Tule Elk bull standing in the windy California Grizzly Island marshland

Elk are large mammals that live in parts of Nebraska.

©RelentlessImages/Shutterstock.com

The largest college campus in Nebraska is located in the southeastern portion of the state. The vast farmlands in the area provide a fantastic environment for many different animals to call home. We’re going to look at a few of the creatures that people can find when they come to this part of the state.

Consider some of the various mammals that thrive in this region, like:

  • Red fox
  • White-tailed deer
  • Coyote
  • Thirteen-lined ground squirrel
  • Domestic cat
  • Groundhog
  • Elk

These animals all live in this region. Many reptiles thrive around the university, too, including:

Of course, a variety of different birds also call this area home, such as:

While you may not see some of these animals while walking around campus, they’re certainly in the areas surrounding the city and within the same county.

All in all, the University of Nebraska-Lincoln is the largest college campus in Nebraska, much bigger than the other campuses in the state. Not only does it cover the most area of any campus, but it also has the greatest undergraduate enrollment within the state. This university is a thriving research university along with a proud member of the Big 10.

The photo featured at the top of this post is © iStock.com/Jacob Boomsma


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About the Author

Kyle Glatz is a writer at A-Z-Animals where his primary focus is on geography and mammals. Kyle has been writing for researching and writing about animals and numerous other topics for 10 years, and he holds a Bachelor's Degree in English and Education from Rowan University. A resident of New Jersey, Kyle enjoys reading, writing, and playing video games.

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