Arizona State University (ASU) is (as of 2004) the third-largest university in the United States with a student body of 57,543. Founded in 1885 as a territorial normal school, the institution has gone through several name and purpose changes before becoming a state university in 1958. ASU's main campus is in Tempe, Arizona, at the site of the original school. Satellite campuses were created in 1984 in Phoenix (ASU West) and in 1996 in Mesa (ASU East).

Each year nearly 10,000 students graduate from the university's three campuses. ASU houses the world-renowned Institute of Human Origins. It is also home to the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism & Mass Communication. ASU attracts many National Merit scholars; there were 173 in the 2003 freshman class. Many are part of the Barrett Honors College, which produces nationally recognized students, including 54 Fulbright scholars, 28 Goldwater scholars, and 13 Truman scholars. ASU is becoming a major center for research. Under the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education ASU is classified as a Doctoral/Research University–Extensive; under the previous Carnegie classification, it was considered a Research I University.