<P> Big Ten member institutions are predominantly major flagship research universities with large financial endowments and strong academic reputations . Large student enrollment is also a hallmark of Big Ten universities, as 12 of the 14 members feature enrollments of 30,000 or more students . Northwestern University, one of just two full members with a total enrollment of fewer than 30,000 students (the other is the University of Nebraska--Lincoln), is the lone private university among Big Ten membership (the University of Chicago, a private university, left the conference in 1946). Collectively, Big Ten universities educate more than 520,000 total students and have 5.7 million living alumni . Big Ten universities engage in $9.3 billion in funded research each year . Though the Big Ten existed for nearly a century as an assemblage of universities located primarily in the Midwest, the conference's geographic footprint now spans from the state of Nebraska in the west to the Atlantic Ocean in the east . </P> <P> Big Ten universities are also members of the Big Ten Academic Alliance, an academic consortium . In 2014--2015, members generated more than $10 billion in research expenditures . Despite the conference's name, the Big Ten has grown to fourteen members, with the following universities accepting invitations to join: Pennsylvania State University in 1990, the University of Nebraska--Lincoln in 2011, and both the University of Maryland and Rutgers University in 2014 . Johns Hopkins University was invited in 2012 to join the Big Ten as an associate member participating in men's lacrosse only . In 2015, it was also accepted as an associate member in women's lacrosse . Notre Dame has joined the Big Ten on July 1st, 2017 as an associate member in men's ice hockey . </P> <Table> <Tr> <Th> Institution </Th> <Th> Location </Th> <Th> Founded </Th> <Th> Joined </Th> <Th> Type </Th> <Th> Enrollment </Th> <Th> Nickname </Th> <Th> Colors </Th> </Tr> <Tr> <Th_colspan="9"> East Division </Th> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Indiana University </Td> <Td> Bloomington, Indiana </Td> <Td> 1820 </Td> <Td> 1899 </Td> <Td> Public </Td> <Td> 48,514 </Td> <Td> Hoosiers </Td> <Td> </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> University of Maryland </Td> <Td> College Park, Maryland </Td> <Td> 1856 </Td> <Td> 2014 </Td> <Td> Public </Td> <Td> 38,140 </Td> <Td> Terrapins </Td> <Td> </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> University of Michigan </Td> <Td> Ann Arbor, Michigan </Td> <Td> 1817 </Td> <Td> 1896 </Td> <Td> Public </Td> <Td> 43,625 </Td> <Td> Wolverines </Td> <Td> </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Michigan State University </Td> <Td> East Lansing, Michigan </Td> <Td> 1855 </Td> <Td> 1950 </Td> <Td> Public </Td> <Td> 50,085 </Td> <Td> Spartans </Td> <Td> </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Ohio State University </Td> <Td> Columbus, Ohio </Td> <Td> 1870 </Td> <Td> 1912 </Td> <Td> Public </Td> <Td> 58,322 </Td> <Td> Buckeyes </Td> <Td> </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Pennsylvania State University </Td> <Td> University Park, Pennsylvania </Td> <Td> 1855 </Td> <Td> 1990 </Td> <Td> Public </Td> <Td> 45,518 </Td> <Td> Nittany Lions </Td> <Td> </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Rutgers University </Td> <Td> New Brunswick--Piscataway, New Jersey </Td> <Td> 1766 </Td> <Td> 2014 </Td> <Td> Public </Td> <Td> 40,720 </Td> <Td> Scarlet Knights </Td> <Td> </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th_colspan="9"> West Division </Th> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> University of Illinois </Td> <Td> Urbana and Champaign, Illinois </Td> <Td> 1867 </Td> <Td> 1896 </Td> <Td> Public </Td> <Td> 43,603 </Td> <Td> Fighting Illini </Td> <Td> </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> University of Iowa </Td> <Td> Iowa City, Iowa </Td> <Td> 1847 </Td> <Td> 1899 </Td> <Td> Public </Td> <Td> 33,334 </Td> <Td> Hawkeyes </Td> <Td> </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> University of Minnesota </Td> <Td> Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota </Td> <Td> 1851 </Td> <Td> 1896 </Td> <Td> Public </Td> <Td> 51,147 </Td> <Td> Golden Gophers </Td> <Td> </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> University of Nebraska </Td> <Td> Lincoln, Nebraska </Td> <Td> 1869 </Td> <Td> 2011 </Td> <Td> Public </Td> <Td> 25,260 </Td> <Td> Cornhuskers </Td> <Td> </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Northwestern University </Td> <Td> Evanston, Illinois </Td> <Td> 1851 </Td> <Td> 1896 </Td> <Td> Private, non-sectarian </Td> <Td> 21,000 </Td> <Td> Wildcats </Td> <Td> </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> Purdue University </Td> <Td> West Lafayette, Indiana </Td> <Td> 1869 </Td> <Td> 1896 </Td> <Td> Public </Td> <Td> 39,464 </Td> <Td> Boilermakers </Td> <Td> </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td> University of Wisconsin </Td> <Td> Madison, Wisconsin </Td> <Td> 1848 </Td> <Td> 1896 </Td> <Td> Public </Td> <Td> 49,193 </Td> <Td> Badgers </Td> <Td> </Td> </Tr> </Table> <Tr> <Th> Institution </Th> <Th> Location </Th> <Th> Founded </Th> <Th> Joined </Th> <Th> Type </Th> <Th> Enrollment </Th> <Th> Nickname </Th> <Th> Colors </Th> </Tr>

When did michigan state join the big ten