The University of Uyo was founded in 1991 by the Federal Government of Nigeria. At the time, there existed in Uyo the University of Cross River State which was established in 1981 by the then Cross River State Government. In 1987 Akwa Ibom State with headquarters at Uyo was created out of the Cross River State and from that time up to the time of Federal Government take-over in 1991, the University was jointly owned by Akwa Ibom and Cross River State Governments.

When first proposed by the President, and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, the University was to be a Federal University of Technology (FUT) and the Campus of the University of Cross River State at Uyo was to be the nucleus of the proposed University.

Following representations and series of implementation strategy meetings, it was finally resolved by a letter dated 24th September 1991 that “the Federal Government has decided that University of Cross Rivers State should be converted into a Conventional University instead of a FUT”. Academic activities commenced in 1991/92 session.

What is today called the University of Uyo has a humble but unique historical metamorphosis. The campus where the University of Uyo is situated started in the 1930’s as a practising school and became a Teacher Training College in the 1940’s. It was upgraded to Advanced Teachers’ Training College in the 1960’s.

In 1975, it became a College of Education and was converted to the University of Cross River State (UNICROSS) in 1983. In 1991, the erstwhile University of Cross River State assumed a new status and nomenclature called the University of Uyo, a Federal University. It is a citadel of learning, research and community development.

The University is located in the heart of Uyo, capital of Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria. Uyo is accessible by road and there are two International Airport within 100km radius – the Margaret Ekpo International Airport, Calabar, Cross River State and the Ibom International Airport in Uyo,Akwa Ibom State.

The University runs a multi-campus system namely: The Main Campus, the Town Campus and Annex Campus, the College of Health Sciences Campus and the Ime Umanah Campus.

Though a third generation University in Nigeria, the University of Uyo is competing favourably with most first-generation Universities in Nigeria and has recorded various strides. 

Why UNIUYO?

The choice of a university depends on many factors which may vary with individuals. Few of many reasons people give why they choose UNIUYO are as follows:

• UNIUYO is situated in an easy accessible area from all different locations.
• UNIUYO is a federal University; the fees are affordable, unlike the state owned universities where they pay exorbitant fees.
• UNIUYO is the only university in the south-east where Electronics and Computer Engineering has been accredited by the National Universities Commission and COREN.
• In UNIUYO, admission is strictly by merit.
• The environment is intimidation and harassment-free, giving no room for cult activities. One can walk around freely at anytime of the day without fear of molestation, and this goes a long way to suggest that the security network is very active.
• Finally, it is the wish of every student to graduate as and when due with good grades; UNIUYO is known to support this, as it runs an uninterrupted academic calendar year in year out.
• The transportation system in UNIUYO can only be described as effective and efficient.