The University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) is a comprehensive public university located in downtown Birmingham, Alabama, the state’s largest city. UAB is part of the University of Alabama System, alongside the University of Alabama (UA) in Tuscaloosa and the University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH). UAB was established as a separate campus of the system in 1966.

UAB is recognized for its excellence in education, healthcare, and research. It is a globally impactful university with over $717 million in annual research expenditures, positioning it as a leader in cutting-edge research. The institution also ranks among the top 5% of all public U.S. universities in terms of research funding, and in the top 6% among all U.S. universities. UAB is ranked 6th in clinical trials expenditures among public institutions. The Harbert Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (HIIE) has recorded eight straight years with a positive bottom line (among the top 20% nationally). All six UAB health-related schools are in the top 20 among public universities with NIH funding (#2 Health Professions, #4 Nursing, #5 Optometry, #12 Medicine, #15 Dentistry, #19 Public Health). UAB is committed to continued growth and innovation, aiming to expand its influence as a premier academic medical center and research institution.

As a center of learning, UAB offers a variety of academic programs, including 59 baccalaureate programs, 72 master’s programs, 43 doctoral programs, and multiple professional degrees. These programs span across the College of Arts & Sciences and 10 schools, including Business, Dentistry, Education, Engineering, Health Professions, Graduate School, Medicine, Nursing, Optometry, and Public Health.

In addition to its traditional degree programs, UAB is known for its innovation in education. Majors and research opportunities in fields such as immunology, digital forensics, genetics, bioinformatics, cancer biology, and public health are available to both undergraduate and graduate students. The UAB Honors College provides more than 2,000 high-ability undergraduates with advanced research and learning opportunities, including the prestigious Science and Technology Honors Program.

UAB is home to one of the leading academic medical centers in the country. UAB Hospital is the third-largest public hospital in the U.S. and continues to expand its services to meet the needs of a growing patient population.

In fall 2023, UAB had a total enrollment of 21,160 students, highlighting UAB’s appeal to top students from Alabama, across the nation, and nearly 40 countries. As the largest single employer in Alabama, UAB has a significant impact on both the local and state economy. It generates an annual economic impact of $12.1 billion, providing essential services to the Birmingham business and professional communities. UAB also plays a key role in advancing technological innovation, economic development, and public health in the state and beyond.

Guiding Principles

The University of Alabama at Birmingham

Vision

UAB is a world-class research university and academic health system committed to understanding and improving the human experience.

Mission

UAB enriches society and improves health and well-being through transformational educational experiences, groundbreaking research, innovation and entrepreneurship, community engagement, and world-class patient care while serving our UAB, local and global communities.

Shared Values

At our core, we are here to make people’s lives better, and that starts right here at UAB with our own students, faculty and staff. We are committed to supporting their success and empowering them to make a positive difference in our local and global communities.

FINANCIAL SUSTAINABILITY

Strategic Goal: Increase giving from alumni and supporters and ensure that all resources available to UAB are used and managed effectively.

• Strategic Objective 1: Increase fiscal year giving.
• Strategic Objective 2: Increase alumni giving.
• Strategic Objective 3: Promote financial stewardship and increase spendable cash and investments to operations.
• Strategic Objective 4: Maintain or enhance the credit rating for UAB.

DIVERSITY

Strategic Goal: Support a campus community that values wide-ranging experiences and perspectives.

• Strategic Objective 1: Strengthen pathways to institutional access and educational success for all students.
• Strategic Objective 2: Nurture an educational climate that embraces wide-ranging perspectives.
• Strategic Objective 3: Engage in research, scholarship and creative activities that explore the impact of wide-ranging perspectives and life experiences that improve the quality of life for all people across diverse populations.
• Strategic Objective 4: Enhance excellence and connection to wide-ranging perspectives and life experiences through community engagement.
• Strategic Objective 5: Deliver excellence to a divers patient base.

ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIP

Strategic Goal: Educate the UAB community on environmental stewardship and sustainability, and encourage sustainable practices.

• Strategic Objective 1: Promote environmental stewardship/sustainability-related learning outcomes in applicable courses and majors.
• Strategic Objective 2: Support interdisciplinary and interprofessional research, scholarship and creative activities related to environmental stewardship/sustainability and encourage sustainable research practices.
• Strategic Objective 3: Engage the community in environmental stewardship/sustainability education and programs.
• Strategic Objective 4: Design, construct and maintain buildings to provide a safe and healthy indoor environment for students, faculty, staff and patients while mitigating the building’s impact on the outdoor environment.

Guiding Principles

The University of Alabama

Mission

The University of Alabama System, an institution of higher education created for learning, exists to improve the lives of everyone we affect through the teaching, research and service rendered by our component campuses and health system.

Values

• Integrity
• Leadership
• Accountability
• Respect

Vision

We will be the preeminent public system of higher education and health care in the United States.

Core Principles

• Assure that everything we do is for the purpose of improving the lives and health of the citizens of the State of Alabama.
• Make higher education accessible and diverse,prepare our students for success, and meet the workforce needs of the State.
• Be accountable for every dollar we receive while maintaining the highest standards of excellence in every program and endeavor.
• Work to lead a unified approach to improving education at every level in Alabama.
• Work to help lead a unified approach to improving the economy, opportunities, and comprehensive health care for all citizens of Alabama.
• Elevate the status, stature and influence of the University of Alabama System so that we can call on all people devoted to the University of Alabama,UAB, UAH, and the UAB Health System to unite for common purposes.