Northern Kentucky University is a public university in Highland Heights, Kentucky. It is primarily an undergraduate institution, having for example a liberal arts program, but also features graduate programs. Total enrollment exceeds 14,000 students, with over 12,000 undergraduate students and nearly 2,000 graduate students. Northern Kentucky University is the third largest university, behind the University of Cincinnati and Miami University, of Greater Cincinnati's four large universities and the youngest of Kentucky's eight, although it joined the state system before the University of Louisville. Notable among the university's programs are the Salmon P. Chase College of Law and the College of Informatics, founded in 2006.

Northern Kentucky University began in 1948, when an extension campus for the University of Kentucky was opened in Covington, Kentucky, known as the UK Northern Extension Center. After 20 years in operation as an extension center for UK, it became an autonomous four-year college under the name Northern Kentucky State College (NKSC). In 1970, Dr. W. Frank Steely was hired as the first president. The following year, the Salmon P. Chase College of Law, formerly an independent law school in Cincinnati, merged with Northern Kentucky State College. The main campus moved from Covington to Highland Heights, Kentucky, in 1972. NKSC awarded its first bachelor's degrees in May 1973. Rapid expansion resulted in the school being upgraded to university status in 1976.

Since its founding in 1968 and elevation to university status in 1976, Northern Kentucky University has expanded with numerous construction projects, new colleges and a much larger, more diverse student body. One recent former president of the university, James C. Votruba, is largely credited with transforming the image of the university since his arrival in 1997, helping to build the university's reputation as a respected academic institution. As part of Votruba's administration, the university has increased its admissions standards and improved the academic performance of its students. Northern Kentucky University also launched a new university logo and branding effort in 2002. In recent years, the university has also concentrated on the construction of new and improved facilities across campus.