Lawrence University is a nationally recognized undergraduate institution consisting of a college of liberal arts and sciences and a conservatory of music. Chartered in 1847, Lawrence was among the first colleges in the United States to be founded coeducational. In 1964, Lawrence College consolidated with Milwaukee-Downer College for Women to form the present-day Lawrence University.
The 84-acre Lawrence campus is situated on a bluff overlooking the historic Fox River and contains 58 instructional, residential, recreational and administrative facilities. Adjacent to downtown Appleton, the campus is bordered on two sides by attractive early 20th-century residential neighborhoods. Björklunden vid Sjön, a 425-acre estate on Lake Michigan in Door County, serves as the college’s northern campus, hosting curricular retreats and seminars for students each weekend throughout the academic year and continuing education seminars during the summer for alumni and the public.
Lawrence is a residential college, and more than 90 percent of all students live on campus in one of seven residence halls, 17 small houses and other student residences.
Lawrence is accredited as a degree-granting institution by the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools. The Conservatory of Music is an accredited institutional member of the National Association of Schools of Music.