Founded in 1873 as an institution that would “contribute to strengthening the ties that should exist between all sections of our common country,” Vanderbilt University is globally renowned for its transformative education and pathbreaking research. The university’s 10 schools reside on a parklike campus set in the heart of Nashville, Tennessee, contributing to a collaborative culture that empowers leaders of tomorrow and prizes free expression, open inquiry and civil discourse.
Top-ranked in both academics and financial aid, Vanderbilt offers an immersive residential undergraduate experience, with programs in the liberal arts and sciences, engineering, music, education and human development. The university also is home to nationally and internationally recognized graduate schools of law, education, business, medicine, nursing and divinity, and offers robust graduate-degree programs across a range of academic disciplines. Vanderbilt’s prominent alumni base includes Nobel Prize winners, members of Congress, governors, ambassadors, judges, admirals, CEOs, university presidents, physicians, attorneys, and professional sports figures.
Vanderbilt and the affiliated nonprofit Vanderbilt University Medical Center frequently engage in interdisciplinary collaborations to drive positive change across society at large. The two entities recently reached a combined total of more than $1 billion in external research funding in a single year. This landmark achievement reflects the university’s deep commitment to expanding the global impact of its innovation and research as it increases opportunities for faculty, students and staff to pursue bold new ideas and discoveries.
Noam Chomsky’s notion of the human instinct for freedom ties together his many intellectual pursuits, from educating creative, independent citizens to rejecting social and economic hierarchies.
Replacing windows and adding a heat pump in place of a furnace can save energy, reducing emissions.
Tristan Spinski for The Washington Post via Getty Images
Insulating attics, replacing windows and adding heat pumps can save money and reduce emissions − if residents can afford the upgrades. Carbon-offset purchases by local companies could help.
Your internal body clock can help wake you up without an alarm.
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Americans agree that democracy requires freedom of speech. But a large minority also thinks it’s acceptable to bar certain subjects or speakers from public debate.
A screenshot from ABC’s live reporting on the Columbia University pro-Palestinian protest on April 25, 2024, shows the ‘campus unrest crackdown.’
Vanderbilt Television News Archive
While people rely less on TV for their daily news than they used to, it remains influential − and the TV storytelling about student protests against Israel’s war in Gaza and more can shift opinions.
Roads divide what once was a larger wetland into four smaller pools in east-central North Dakota.
AP Photo/Charlie Riedel
The Supreme Court drastically reduced federal protection for wetlands in 2023. Two environmental lawyers explain how private businesses and nongovernment organizations can help fill the gap.
The future is (probably) female.
Julio Cesar Aguilar and Carl de Souza/AFP/Getty Images
AI chatbot makers’ restrictive use policies hinder people’s access to information.
Many cities prohibit duplexes and high-rises. Although residents enjoy the extra space, it contributes to housing costs.
Joe Sohm/Visions of America/Universal Images Group via Getty Images
Including the family in a patient’s treatment plan can help shorten hospital stays and assist in recovery. But caregivers often pay a price.
While that ‘extra’ hour of sunlight in the evenings can be exhilarating, it comes with significant health trade-offs.
Anna Blazhuk/Moment via Getty Images
Americans have long been divided over adopting permanent standard versus permanent daylight saving time. But support for permanent standard time grew dramatically between 2021 and 2024.
Protesters in El Salvador declare ‘Yes to democracy. No to authoritarianism’ during a demonstration on Jan. 14, 2024.
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A survey of people across 24 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean found widespread concern over the economy and crime.
Franz Roselbach, a Roma survivor of the Holocaust who was sent to Auschwitz when he was 15, attends a ceremony at the former Sachsenhausen concentration camp in 2006.
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Senior Advisor to the Chancellor, Head of Vanderbilt's Project on Unity and American Democracy, and Co-Director of Vanderbilt Poll, Vanderbilt University