Welcome to the 6th installment of my series on great American universities and how to navigate our extensive, highly diverse system of higher education. Today I’ll be highlighting the University of Hawai’i campus at Mānoa.

The University of Hawai’i (“UH”) is an excellent example of the American phenomenon known as a “university system,” which is an integrated set of separately accredited tertiary education institutions within a particular geographic jurisdiction that share a name and an overall governing body.

Almost every one of our 50 States established and maintains such a public university system. In addition to UH, other great examples include the University of California (containing UCLA, Berkeley, and 8 other universities) and the State University of New York (the largest in the world, with 66 campuses and more than 468,000 students).

The University of Hawai’i system comprises 3 universities, 4 professional schools, 7 community colleges, and more than two dozen other educational, research, and training centers across the Hawaiian islands, with a total enrollment of more than 60,300 students. The University of Hawaii’s flagship campus is Mānoa (“UH Mānoa”).

The heritage Hawaii Hall, at the heart of campus.

Founded in 1907, UH Mānoa is located in the lush Mānoa Valley, a neighborhood at the edge of urban Honolulu only a mile (1.6 km) from the iconic beaches and entertainment of Waikīkī. Equally close is the vibrant Ala Moana shopping district. Downtown Honolulu is about 3 miles (4.8 km) from the school.

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