The University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) traces its roots to the 1859 founding of the Medical College of Alabama and the 1936 opening of the Birmingham Extension Center of The University of Alabama. In 1945 the Medical College of Alabama was moved from Tuscaloosa to Birmingham and the University's Medical Center was founded. Later, in November of 1966, the Extension Center and the Medical Center were merged to form the "University of Alabama in Birmingham," an organizational component of The University of Alabama (in Tuscaloosa). In 1969 UAB became an independent institution, one of the autonomous universities within the newly created three-campus University of Alabama System.

Today, UAB is a comprehensive urban university with a nationally recognized academic health center. UAB is the only public, four-year degree granting university in the state's largest metropolitan area. UAB is the largest research institution in the state of Alabama and the university is the largest employer in Birmingham.