Rutgers University–New Brunswick: A Legacy of History, Academics, and Campus Life
Rutgers University-New Brunswick stands as the flagship campus of Rutgers University, a renowned public land-grant research university with campuses across New Jersey. With a rich history dating back to its founding in 1766, Rutgers-New Brunswick has evolved into a dynamic institution offering a diverse range of academic programs and a vibrant campus life.
A Journey Through History
Chartered in 1766, the institution was originally established as Queen's College, affiliated with the Dutch Reformed Church. The eighth of nine colleges established during the American colonial period, Rutgers was chartered as Queen's College on 10 November 1766. Ministers of the Dutch Reformed Church sought to establish a college to train those who wanted to become ministers within the Dutch Reformed Church in the colony. In 1825, it was renamed Rutgers College in honor of Colonel Henry Rutgers, an American Revolutionary War hero and philanthropist whose substantial gift helped stabilize the school's finances. Early trustees considered merging the college with the College of New Jersey, in Princeton, but the measure failed by one vote. They later considered relocating it to New York City.
After several years of closure resulting from an economic depression after the War of 1812, Queen's College reopened in 1825 and was renamed "Rutgers College". With the development of graduate education, and the continued expansion of the institution, the collection of schools became Rutgers University in 1924. Rutgers College continued as a liberal arts college within the university. The newly-designated state university absorbed the University of Newark in 1946 and then the College of South Jersey and South Jersey Law School in 1950. These two institutions became Rutgers University-Newark and Rutgers University-Camden, respectively.
Rutgers has undergone significant transformations throughout its history, evolving from a private liberal arts college to a comprehensive public research university. In 1945, Rutgers College was renamed Rutgers University, and became the state university of New Jersey under legislation passed in 1945 and 1956. In 2016, Rutgers celebrated its 250th anniversary. In January 2020, Jonathan Holloway made history as the first African American and person of color to be named president of Rutgers.
Academic Excellence
Rutgers-New Brunswick is a top-tier academic institution, consistently ranked among the best national universities. In the 2026 edition of Best Colleges, Rutgers University-New Brunswick is ranked No. #42 in National Universities. It's also ranked No. #16 in Top Public Schools. The university offers a wide array of undergraduate, graduate, and professional programs across its various schools and colleges.
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The School of Arts and Sciences is the largest academic unit, offering a diverse range of disciplines in the humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences. Other notable schools include the School of Engineering, the Ernest Mario School of Pharmacy, the Rutgers Business School, and the Mason Gross School of the Arts.
Rutgers-New Brunswick is particularly recognized for its strong programs in history. Rutgers New Brunswick is in the top 10% of the country for history. More specifically it was ranked #40 out of 418 schools by College Factual. It is also ranked #1 in New Jersey. During the 2021-2022 academic year, Rutgers University - New Brunswick handed out 79 bachelor's degrees in history. In 2022, 3 students received their master’s degree in history from Rutgers New Brunswick. In addition, 15 students received their doctoral degrees in history in 2022, making the school the #4 most popular school in the United States for this category of students.
The student-faculty ratio at Rutgers University-New Brunswick is 16:1, and it utilizes a semester-based academic calendar.
Opportunities for Research
Rutgers is known as a research university, it's quite common for undergraduates "to conduct research and work with professors in any number of fields." They even have opportunities to present their work, like at the annual Aresty Undergraduate Research Symposium.
Tuition and Financial Aid
As a state university, Rutgers charges two separate rates for tuition and fees depending on an enrolled student's residency. In the 2022-2023 academic year, in-state tuition was $13,674, while out-of-state tuition was $32,436. Fees were $3,565 for both in-state and out-of-state students. Forty-five percent of first-year students receive need-based financial aid, and the average net price for federal loan recipients is $22,675.
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In the 2010-2011 academic year, undergraduate students at Rutgers, through a combination of federal (53.5%), state (23.6%), university (18.1%), and private (4.8%) scholarships, loans, and grants, received $492,260,845 of financial aid. 81.4% of all undergraduates, or 34,473 students, received some form of financial aid. During the same period, graduate students, through a combination of federal (61.9%), state (1.8%), university (34.5%), and private (1.9%) scholarships, loans, and grants received $182,384,256 of financial aid.
Rutgers is an active participant of the EOF program giving financially or academically disadvantaged students resources to success. Furthermore, the Scarlet Guarantee covers any tuition cost for students whose aid might not if the student's household income is below a certain amount.
Prospective (and current!) students should be pleased to discover that, according to PayScale.
Campus Life
Rutgers-New Brunswick offers a vibrant and diverse campus life, with a wide range of activities and organizations to suit every interest. The university's five campuses - College Avenue, Busch, Livingston, Cook, and Douglass - each have its own unique character and amenities.
From city streets and solar rooftops to quiet ponds and historic landmarks, each Rutgers-New Brunswick campus has its own story and its own community. A great place to spend the semester or an afternoon, the G.H. Journey to the past as you surround yourself with colonial architecture and sprawling lawns, as well as historic Douglass Residential College. Set yourself up for success at Rutgers-New Brunswick with hundreds of resources designed to help students thrive in and out of the classroom.
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Campus Locations
College Avenue Campus: This campus includes the historic seat of the university, a block known as Old Queens campus. It is within walking distance of shops, restaurants, and theaters in downtown New Brunswick, as well as the NJ Transit train station which provides easy access to New York and Philadelphia. The New Brunswick NJ Transit station also provides Amtrak service, with connections to Washington, D.C. and other major cities. Many classes are taught in the area around Voorhees Mall and river-side dorms. The Yard is a popular spot for students featuring restaurants, housing, and a grassy area. There are also many off-campus housing options on this campus specifically including apartments and houses. Student life is at its peak almost every night on this campus.
Busch Campus: Busch Campus is located entirely within Piscataway Township, New Jersey. The campus is named after Charles L. Busch (1902-1971), a wealthy benefactor, who unexpectedly donated $10 million to the university for biological research at his death in 1971. The campus was formerly known as "University Heights Campus" and the land was donated to the university by the state in the 1930s. The land was formerly a country club and the original golf course still exists on the campus. The campus is home to the SHI Stadium, and provides a high-tech and suburban atmosphere focusing on academic areas primarily related to the natural sciences; Physics, Engineering, Mathematics & Statistics, Pharmacy, Chemistry, Geology, Biology and Psychology.
Cook Campus: Farms, gardens, and research centers are found on the George H. Cook Campus, including the School of Environmental and Biological Sciences (formerly Cook College), the Institute of Marine and Coastal Sciences, Rutgers Gardens, and the Center for Advanced Food Technology. It is also home to community improvement programs, such as Rutgers Against Hunger, the New Brunswick Community Farmers Market and statewide programs under the Rutgers Cooperative Extension. Several farm animals, and plant exhibits are kept on this campus.
Douglass Campus: Adjacent to New Brunswick's second ward, it shares many of its open fields with the adjacent Cook campus. The school has many stately buildings with traditional architecture. Douglass Campus is home to the Douglass Residential College for women and has four women's-only housing options.
Livingston Campus: Livingston Campus is home to many of the social science departments and the Rutgers Business School. The Rutgers Athletic Performance Center, or APC (previously known as the Rutgers Athletic Center), is found here, located next to the Jersey Mike's arena, host to Rutgers Basketball games and other events. The student-founded Livingston Theater, and the Rutgers Ecological Preserve are also found here. The campus is situated in Piscataway Township although it extends into parts of Edison Township and Highland Park. Livingston Campus was recently expanded and renovated. This campus is home to several restaurants for students such as Henry's Diner, Kilmer's Market, Qdoba, Starbucks, etc.
Student Life and Activities
Rutgers offers more than 500 academic, service, social, and athletic clubs, so you're bound to find an organization that strikes your fancy. There's even an annual Involvement Fair every fall, making it easy to meet student leaders and explore what's available. Undergrads also enjoy Late Knights, twice monthly late-night programming that ranges from trivia to open mics. Additionally, they love to support their more athletically inclined classmates.
The campus is home to over 80 fraternities and sororities, including African-American, Latino/a, multicultural, and Asian-interest. Several organizations maintain houses for their chapters in the area of Union Street, known locally as "Frat Row", adjacent to the College Avenue Campus.
The Grease Trucks were a group of truck-based food vendors located on the College Avenue Campus. They serve traditional grill fare, Middle-Eastern specialties, and are especially well known for serving "Fat Sandwiches", a sub roll containing various ingredients such as cheesesteak, burgers, pork roll, chicken fingers, French fries, mozzarella sticks, eggs, bacon, gyro meat, marinara sauce, etc. The Rutgers Grease Trucks were located in a designated lot for nearly two decades until August 2013.
The Dance Marathon is a student-run organization that consists of a year-long series of fundraisers and culminates with the annual Marathon on April 5-6 in the College Avenue Gym. At the Marathon over 400 dancers pledge to raise funds and remain standing for 32 hours without sleeping.
RutgersFest was a day-long cultural event staged variously on either Livingston Campus or Busch Campus. It was designed to promote college spirit through student organization participation with activities and entertainment throughout the day, culminating with a free concert and fireworks at night.
Rutgers University is referred to as The Birthplace of College Football as the first intercollegiate football game was held on College Field between Rutgers and Princeton on November 6, 1869, on a plot of ground behind where the present-day College Avenue Gymnasium now stands.
Housing and Dining
With over 15,000 resident students, 5 different campuses each with its own identity, 58 residence halls, 4 dining halls and 30-plus food courts/cafés, students can find everything they need right on campus. Libraries are located on every campus for student/faculty use. Libraries provide access to printing and computer services, as well as a variety of books and designated study spaces.
Residence halls provide many facilities for students. Despite some over-crowding, students wishing to live on-campus are usually accommodated, with a lottery system for non-incoming freshmen determining the order in which students choose their preferred housing. Single, double, and triple-occupancy rooms (in traditional residence halls), apartments housing four students each, and suites housing six (or four, as in BEST Hall) students each are available. Rooms and apartments are single-sex, with the exception of married graduate student housing, which also permit children of students.
The dining services claim to be the third largest student dining operation in the US, serving 4.5 million meals annually. There are four student dining facilities which also provide catering for over 5000 University events yearly. All student centers also provide food services, mostly "fast food" style. The Food Pantry started in 2016 located in the College Ave student center. It is offered to any Rutgers students who shows a valid RUID card.
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