University of Illinois - Urbana-Champaign

The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is one of the original 37 public land-grant institutions created after President Abraham Lincoln signed the Morrill Act in 1862. The University community of students, scholars, and alumni is changing the world. Since its founding in 1867, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign has earned a reputation as a world-class leader in research, teaching, and public engagement.

The undergraduate division offers nearly 5,000 courses in more than 150 fields of study and awarding about 7,000 new degrees each spring. The university also offers more than 100 graduate and professional programs. Many academic programs are ranked among the best in the world. A talented and highly respected faculty is the university’s most significant resource. Many are recognized for exceptional scholarship with memberships in such organizations as the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the National Academy of Sciences, and the National Academy of Engineering.

Academic resources on campus are among the finest in the world. The University Library is one of the largest public university collections in the world with 13 million volumes in its 37-unit libraries. Annually, 53,000,000 people visit its online catalog. Students have access to thousands of computer terminals in classrooms, residence halls, and campus libraries for use in classroom instruction, study, and research.

As a major center for the arts, the campus attracts dozens of nationally and internationally renowned artists each year to its widely acclaimed Krannert Center for the Performing Arts. The university also supports two major museums: the Krannert Art Museum and Kinkead Pavilion, and the Spurlock Museum, a museum of world history and culture. Other major facilities include the multipurpose State Farm Center (16,500 seats), Memorial Stadium (70,000 seats), site of Big Ten Conference football games, and the Activities and Recreation Center (ARC), one of the largest recreational facilities of its kind on a university campus. Illinois has 10 men’s NCAA teams and 11 women’s NCAA teams with 15 major facilities. Its alumni include Olympians, Paralympians, and other professional athletes. The campus community also enjoys intramural sports and two newly expanded recreation and wellness centers.

The university is in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana in east-central Illinois and is situated about 140 miles south of Chicago, 125 miles west of Indianapolis, and 180 miles northeast of St. Louis. It is home to two National Historic Landmarks and several buildings on the National Register of Historic Places.