Tufts University is a private research university in Medford and Somerville, Massachusetts. The university is organized into ten schools, including two undergraduate programs and eight graduate divisions, on four campuses in Massachusetts and the French Alps. Tufts has a total enrollment of just over 5,500 undergraduate students and 2,100 graduate students.
In fact, Tufts was founded in 1852 as Tufts College upon the merger of two educational institutions: Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine (founded 1884) and the Boston University School of Law (founded 1848). In 1954 the college name changed to Tufts University. It is named after textile merchant and philanthropist Samuel Tufts (1793–1881) who bequeathed his estate to the city of Boston to establish a veterinary school that would bear his name.
The first female student was admitted in 1871. A graduate program in education was established in 1925. The first African American student graduated from Tufts in 1883; he had been barred from entering Harvard Medical School due to his race.
The university has three campuses: two in Massachusetts—Medford/Somerville and Lowell—and one in France: Le Puy-en-Velay. Tufts’ main campus is located near the border between Medford and Somerville with additional facilities throughout Massachusetts; it also maintains academic facilities at its two international campuse in China.
