University Overview

The University of Maine, established in Orono in 1865 under the provisions of the Morrill Act, is located on Marsh Island in the homeland of the Penobscot Nation. UMaine’s regional coastal campus, the University of Maine at Machias, is located in the Passamaquoddy homeland. The universities are student-centered and community-engaged, with a foundational commitment to diversity, equity and inclusive excellence. 

UMaine is the state’s land grant, sea grant and space grant institution. As Maine’s research university, UMaine has a statewide mission of teaching, research and community engagement, with four agricultural field stations - Aroostook, Highmoor and Rogers farms, and J.F. Witter Teaching and Research Center - and one marine sciences research facility at Darling Marine Center; 17 interdisciplinary research centers and institutes; and University of Maine Cooperative Extension offices, camps and learning centers serving the 16 counties. UMaine Machias has an integral regional focus in Down East Maine, including a marine sciences field station at Downeast Institute. The universities extend the resources of the learning communities to address educational, economic, cultural and social needs of Maine, the nation and the world.

UMaine is the flagship institution of the University of Maine System, broadening opportunities for students, faculty and staff statewide. In 2020, the University of Maine System received a $240 million investment from the Harold Alfond Foundation - the largest gift ever given to a public institution of higher education in New England. The grant - $90 million for Black Bear athletics, $75 million for a Maine College of Engineering, Computing and Information Science, $55 million for the Maine Graduate and Professional Center, and $20 million for student success and retention - will propel UMaine to new heights as the state’s largest educational, research, innovation and talent development asset. It aligns with UMS unified accreditation goals and UMaine Strategic Vision and Values, which focus on fostering student success, discovering and innovating, and growing and advancing partnerships.

UMaine is a vibrant community of more than 11,700 students from Maine, the United States and the world, offering more than 90 undergraduate and 100 graduate programs taught by world-class faculty and grounded in research about how people best learn. It is featured in multiple national guides of best colleges and is one of the nation’s top 50 green colleges. UMaine Machias offers its nearly 500 students baccalaureate degrees within an active and diverse community of learners who share a commitment to exploration, leadership, collaboration, interdisciplinary problem solving and the Washington County region.

UMaine has the Maine Business School and five colleges - College of Engineering; College of Natural Sciences, Forestry, and Agriculture; College of Education and Human Development; College of Liberal Arts and Sciences; and Honors College. The Honors College offers one of the longest established programs in the country. UMaine Machias offers two-year and four-year programs through its divisions of Environmental and Biological Sciences; Professional Studies; and Arts and Letters.

Among the state’s public universities, UMaine awards 39% of all four-year degrees, 44% of all master’s degrees, and 87% of the state’s Ph.D.s and Ed.D.s. The newest graduates join approximately 110,000 alumni worldwide.

UMaine is home to Maine’s only Division I athletics program with 17 sports. The Black Bears boast numerous team and individual conference championships, many trips to the NCAA Tournament, academic champions, and two National Championships in Men’s Ice Hockey. Maine Athletics has developed student-athletes who have gone on to achieve much success, both in sports and in their chosen professions, including several professional athletes, Super Bowl Champions, Stanley Cup Champions and Olympians.

Fogler Library, the state’s largest library, is a regional depository for federal government publications, and official depository for Canadian federal and Maine state government publications. It also is the designated State Research Library for Business, Science and Technology, and is the only Patent and Trademark Resource Center in Maine. 

UMaine is a cultural hub for the state - with the Zillman Art Museum, Hudson Museum and Page Farm and Home Museum; visual and performing arts events at the Lord Hall Galleries, Collins Center for the Arts and School of Performing Arts; Versant Power Astronomy Center and more - that enhances and advances community engagement, learning for all ages, diversity and inclusion.

For more than a century, UMaine has conducted research of global and local relevance, contributing to the greater good in Maine and beyond. Faculty, staff and students have conducted nationally and internationally recognized research and scholarship in every county in Maine, on all continents and in all the oceans of the world. UMaine’s impact comes through research and innovation in climate change, engineering, advanced structures and composites, advanced manufacturing, forestry, marine sciences, agriculture, and the arts and humanities. 

UMaine and UMaine Machias partner with the private and public sectors to stimulate and support the state’s economic growth and development. With a sustained focus on research, innovation and entrepreneurship, and annual research expenditures exceeding $165 million, UMaine is advancing on its path to achieve the highest Carnegie Classification as a doctoral university with very high research activity (R1) through the outstanding work of faculty and students. 

The UMaine student experience in and out of the classroom reflects the breadth and depth of a research university, with interdisciplinary, immersive learning opportunities and mentoring by faculty and graduate students who are leaders in their fields. Those opportunities begin in the first year with the new Research Learning Experience at UMaine and UMaine Machias focused on education through creation, with students engaged in research, creativity and community - building a mindset that will help undergraduates solve problems for life. Immersive learning and community engagement - from volunteerism and capstone projects to internships - ignite passion in students, and help address issues globally and locally.

UMaine and UMaine Machias are committed to accessible lifelong learning for learners of all ages, the creation of new knowledge and research-based problem solving to address needs and inform the future, and comprehensive outreach to improve lives and communities. Providing opportunities in an atmosphere that honors heritage and diversity are cornerstones of our mission. Through integrated teaching, research, and outreach, UMaine and its regional campus improve the quality of life for people in Maine and around the world, and promote responsible stewardship of human, natural and financial resources.