The University of Minnesota Twin Cities (historically known as University of Minnesota) is a public land-grant research university in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States. It is the flagship institution of the University of Minnesota System and is organized into 19 colleges, schools, and other major academic units.
Founded by the Minnesota Territorial Legislature as a territorial university in 1851, seven years before Minnesota achieved statehood, the Twin Cities campus is the oldest and largest in the University of Minnesota System. Its enrollment of 56,666 students as of fall 2024 places it among the ten largest U.S. campuses by enrollment. The campus comprises locations in Minneapolis and St. Paul, approximately 3 mi (4.8 km) apart.
The University of Minnesota is classified as an "R1: Doctoral Universities – Very high research activity" by the Carnegie Classification. It is a member of the Association of American Universities. The National Science Foundation ranked the University of Minnesota 22nd among American universities for research and development expenditures in 2022 with $1.202 billion.
The Minnesota Golden Gophers compete in 21 intercollegiate sports in NCAA Division I as a member of the Big Ten Conference and have won 29 national championships. As of March 2024, Minnesota's current and former students have won a total of 90 Olympic medals. There are 25 Nobel laureates associated with the university.
