where is the main campus of arizona state university
Arizona State University ASU's academic programs are spread across four distinct campuses in the Phoenix Metropolitan Area; however, unlike most multi-campus institutions, ASU describes itself as "one university in many places," inferring there is "not a system with separate campuses, and not one main campus with branch campuses."[8] The university considers each campus "distinctive" and academically focused on certain aspects of the overall university mission. The Tempe campus is the university's research and graduate school center. Undergraduate studies on the Tempe campus are research-based programs that prepare students for graduate school, professional school, or employment.[40] The Polytechnic campus is designed with an emphasis on professional and technological programs for direct workforce preparation. The Polytechnic campus is the site of many of the university's simulators and laboratories dedicated for project-based learning.[41] The West campus is focused on interdisciplinary degrees and the liberal arts, while maintaining professional programs with a direct impact on the community and society.[42] The Downtown Phoenix campus focuses on direct urban and public programs such as nursing, public policy, criminal justice, mass communication, and journalism.[43] ASU recently relocated some nursing and health related programs to its new ASU-Mayo Medical School campus. Inter-campus shuttles and light rail allow students and faculty to easily travel between the campuses. In addition to the physical campuses, ASU's "virtual campus" at the university's SkySong Innovation Center, provides online and extended education.