The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is the flagship institution for higher education and research in the State of Illinois. The university is a vital force in the Urbana-Champaign community, which has a population of 100,000, not including students. Largely due to the university, Urbana-Champaign offers some of the most interesting restaurants, engaging exhibits, and innovative performing arts events available in downstate Illinois. The campus is only 140 miles south of Chicago, 120 miles west of Indianapolis, and 170 miles northeast of St. Louis.

The campus community is composed of more than 37,500 students (about 28,000 undergraduates) and 10,500 faculty and staff members. About 4,300 students come from foreign countries. Twelve percent of students are minorities and forty-seven percent of students are women. The Urbana-Champaign campus covers more than 1,450 acres and includes 252 major buildings. Nearby, the university owns and operates Willard Airport, the nature reserve and conference center at Robert Allerton Park, and more than 3,600 acres of agricultural research farms.

The scope of the University of Illinois is one of its strengths. Students can take more than 4,000 courses in 150 programs of study. Research undertaken at Illinois reaches every part of the globe. The campus is engaged with critical issues that in some way touch every community in Illinois and many beyond. Fundamental to the Illinois experience is interdisciplinary and international engagement. Our students and faculty collaborate with colleagues across the campus and around the globe to discover, create, and improve the world.