University of Kentucky

"Kentucky University" redirects here. For the historic college in Lexington, see Transylvania University.
University of Kentucky
Former names
Agricultural and Mechanical College of Kentucky (1865–1908)
State University, Lexington, Kentucky (1908–1915)
State University of Kentucky (1915–1922)
Motto"United We Stand, Divided We Fall"
TypePublic land-grant research university
EstablishedFebruary 22, 1865; 159 years ago (February 22, 1865)
AccreditationSACS
Academic affiliations
Endowment$2.13 billion (2023)[1]
Budget$8.4 billion (2024–25)[2]
PresidentEli Capilouto
ProvostRobert S. DiPaola
Administrative staff
14,167 (2018–19)[3]
Students33,885 (fall 2023)[4]
Undergraduates23,971 (fall 2023)[4]
Postgraduates8,784 (fall 2023)[4]
Location
Lexington
,
Kentucky
,
United States

38°01′57″N 84°30′09″W / 38.03250°N 84.50250°W / 38.03250; -84.50250
CampusLarge City, 784 acres (3.17 km2)[5]
Other campuses
NewspaperThe Kentucky Kernel
ColorsBlue and white[6]
   
NicknameWildcats
Sporting affiliations
Mascot
  • The Wildcat
  • Blue
  • Scratch
[7][8]
Websiteuky.edu

The University of Kentucky (UK, UKY, or U of K) is a public land-grant research university in Lexington, Kentucky, United States. Founded in 1865 by John Bryan Bowman as the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Kentucky,[9] the university is one of the state's two land-grant universities (the other being Kentucky State University). It is the institution with the highest enrollment in the state, with 32,710 students in the fall of 2022.[10]

The institution comprises 16 colleges, a graduate school, 93 undergraduate programs, 99 master programs, 66 doctoral programs, and 4 professional programs.[11][needs update] It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Universities – Very high research activity".[12] According to the National Science Foundation, Kentucky spent $476.5 million on research and development in 2022, ranking it 61st in the nation.[13]

The University of Kentucky has seven libraries on campus.[14] The largest is the William T. Young Library, a federal depository that hosts subjects related to social sciences, humanities, and life sciences collections. Since 1997, the university has focused expenditures increasingly on research, following a compact formed by the Kentucky General Assembly. The directive mandated that the university become a "Top 20" public research institution, in terms of an overall ranking to be determined by the university itself, by 2020.[15] Two alumni from the university have won Nobel Prizes.

  1. ^ As of June 30, 2023. UK Endowment | University Financial Services (Report).
  2. ^ As of June 13, 2024. Largest budgets ever approved for the city of Lexington + University of Kentucky (Report). Retrieved June 13, 2024.
  3. ^ "Quick Facts". University of Kentucky. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
  4. ^ a b c "CPE Interactive Data Center". Retrieved April 20, 2024.
  5. ^ "Fact Booklet 2006–2007" (PDF). University of Kentucky. 2006. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 21, 2007.
  6. ^ "Primary Color Palette". UK Graphic Standards. University of Kentucky. April 6, 2016. Archived from the original on December 8, 2020. Retrieved February 27, 2018.
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference UK TRAD was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ "Kentucky Wildcats Official Athletic Site – Traditions". Ukathletics.com. Archived from the original on November 19, 2012. Retrieved December 3, 2012.
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference UK_HIS1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  10. ^ "Enrollment & Demographics". University of Kentucky. Retrieved October 12, 2023.
  11. ^ "Consolidated Financial Statements" (PDF). University of Kentucky. June 30, 2006. Archived (PDF) from the original on June 15, 2007. Retrieved June 12, 2007.
  12. ^ "Carnegie Classifications Institution Lookup". carnegieclassifications.iu.edu. Center for Postsecondary Education. Archived from the original on July 26, 2020. Retrieved July 25, 2020.
  13. ^ "Table 20. Higher education R&D expenditures, ranked by FY 2022 R&D expenditures: FYs 2013–22". ncsesdata.nsf.gov. National Science Foundation. Retrieved January 25, 2024.
  14. ^ "UK Libraries Hours & Locations". University of Kentucky Libraries. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
  15. ^ Cite error: The named reference TOP20_why was invoked but never defined (see the help page).