University of Miami

Overview

The University of Miami, also known as The U, UMiami, or simply UM, is spread across a 400-acre land that stretches from Coral Gables, Miami, and Dade City in Florida. A private university, UM is considered as a research powerhouse with its R1 Carnegie classification and dozens of research institutes and centers where UM’s scholars and students alike forge and nurture groundbreaking discoveries, ideas, and inventions. Among these innovations is the largest hurricane simulator in the world. This simulator is capable of generating and simulating the storm conditions brought by up to Category 5 hurricanes, including wind force and sea sprays.

Among UM’s notable schools is the Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine, which houses some of the leading centers and institutes dedicated to research about AIDS, patient safety, aging, diabetes, and other human health-related concerns and challenges. The medical school occupies 72 acres of the 153-acre UM/Jackson Memorial Medical Center complex where three university-owned hospitals are also located. Furthermore, Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science hosts several research centers that focus on climate change, disaster preparedness, and others.

When it comes to academic opportunities, UM encourages students to explore a broad range of studies such as architecture, communication, nursing, arts and sciences, engineering, and others. The university, however, is known for its notable programs on atmospheric sciences and oceanography. As for the university’s library resources, UM has a total of more than four million collections spread across the libraries in the main campus in Coral Gables, the Rosenstiel, and the Medical campus.
UM’s beginnings can be traced as far back as 1925 when a group of citizens realized that their community needed an institution of higher education to further the knowledge and growth of their youth. A year later, the university opened, offering programs under the College of Liberal Arts and the School of Music. There was also an Evening Division for students who could not attend regular daytime classes.
During its first 15 years, UM barely survived bankruptcy, World War II, and the struggles brought by the postwar era. The struggle to stay afloat, however, paid off when the university finally regained its foothold when the 1950s came and brought with it unprecedented growth with a total of more than 10,000 enrollees in 1953 alone. In the 21st century, UM has become one of the leading universities not only in the South but also in the whole country and the world.