University of Tennessee

Also known as UTK, UT Knoxville, UT-Knoxville, UT, utk.edu, the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, University of Tennessee, Knoxville

public university in Knoxville, Tennessee, United States

Key facts

Other name: Tennessee (colloquially), UT, UTK, UT Knoxville, UTenn
Former names: Blount College (1794–1807), East Tennessee College (1807–1840), East Tennessee University (1840–1879)
Motto: Veritatem cognoscetis, et veritas vos liberabit. ( Latin )
Motto in english: "You will know the truth and the truth shall set you free .", On seal: "Agriculture, Commerce"
Type: Public land-grant research university
Established: September 10, 1794 ; 231 years ago ( 1794-09-10 )
Parent institution: University of Tennessee system
Accreditation: SACS
Academic affiliations: ORAU URA Sun Grant
Endowment: $1.92 billion (2025), (system-wide)
Chancellor: Donde Plowman

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Article

The University of Tennessee, Knoxville (or the University of Tennessee; UT; UT Knoxville; or colloquially UTK or Tennessee) is a public land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1794, two years before Tennessee became the 16th state, it is the flagship campus of the University of Tennessee system, with 14 colleges. It hosts more than 30,000 students from all 50 states and more than 100 foreign countries.

UT's ties to nearby Oak Ridge National Laboratory, established under UT president Andrew Holt and continued under the UT–Battelle partnership, allow for considerable research opportunities for faculty and students. Also affiliated with the university are the Howard H. Baker Jr. School of Public Policy and Public Affairs, the University of Tennessee Anthropological Research Facility, and the University of Tennessee Arboretum, which occupies 250 acres (100 ha) of nearby Oak Ridge. The university is a direct partner of the University of Tennessee Medical Center, which is one of two Level I trauma centers in East Tennessee.