IPFW opened on September 17, 1964, following nearly two years of construction on a 114 acres (0.46 km2) site northeast of downtown Fort Wayne.

[2] The Main Academic Campus, bounded by East Coliseum Boulevard (Indiana State Road 930) to the south, Crescent Avenue to the east, St. Joseph River to the west, and Canterbury Green Apartment complex and golf course to the north, includes the majority of academic and administrative buildings and parking.

This area of the campus was acquired in 2007 after the Fort Wayne State Developmental Center's closure,[7] with the land donated between IPFW and Ivy Tech Community College of Indiana.

The Plex indoor soccer facility, Hefner Soccer Complex, Holiday Inn hotel, and Steel Dynamics Keith E. Busse Alumni Center are located on this portion of the campus, connected to the main academic campus via the pedestrian-only Ron Venderly Family Bridge.

The Holiday Inn operates on property leased from the Indiana–Purdue Foundation, and is affiliated with Purdue Fort Wayne's Hospitality Management Program.

Purdue University Fort Wayne is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission and offers more than 200 academic options.

The Learning Commons includes librarian research consulting, the Writing Center, IT services computing, and areas for group and individual study.