/ ﻿ 42.3496°N 71.0997°W ﻿ / 42.3496; -71.0997 Boston University ( BU) is a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. The university is nonsectarian, but has a historical affiliation with the United Methodist Church. It was founded in 1839 by Methodists with its original campus in Newbury, Vermont, before moving to Boston in 1867.