The University of Alabama (UA), the State of Alabama's oldest public university, is a comprehensive doctoral level institution. The University's mission is to advance the intellectual and social condition of the people of the State through quality programs of teaching, research, and service. Located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, UA has a current enrollment of over 20,000 students, and offers more than 125 graduate and undergraduate degrees. The University awards more than 135 doctoral degrees annually. Colleges and schools include the College of Sciences, the College of Community Health Sciences, the College of Continuing Studies, the College of Education, the College of Engineering, the Graduate School, the College of Human Environmental Sciences, the School of Law, the Capstone College of Nursing, the School of Social Work, and the Honors College.

The University of Alabama receives more than $70M in externally sponsored programs, sustaining its reputation for excellence. The University has more than 50 research centers, institutes, and bureaus. Exemplary facilities relevant to aging are the Center for Mental Health and Aging (CMHA), Elder Law Clinic (ELC), Institute for Rural Health Research (IRHR), Institute for Social Sciences Research (ISSR) Center for Business and Economic Research (CBER), and the Alabama State Data Center (ASDC). Private gifts to The University of Alabama during the last year totaled in excess of $38M.

Graduate programs, concentrate on the development of original scholarship, research, and creative activity. Professional programs, including the State's only public law school, prepare students with high levels of competence and for leadership roles. As one of the major residential campuses in the State, the University enhances the academic and personal growth of students t~lrough the campus environment. At the undergraduate level, the University offers a broad range of baccalaureate programs in the arts and humanities, science and technology, pre-professional, and professional fields. A University-wide core curriculum provides a general education component as the keystone of every undergraduate program. Notably, in 2006 The University of Alabama led the nation with six undergraduate students named to USA Today's All-USA College Academic Team. In the past four years, UA has topped all other colleges and universities in the US, with a total of 20 students named to this team.