SVSU offers over 100 academic programs at the undergraduate and graduate levels with approximately 8,500 students at its main campus in University Center.

Higher education in the Saginaw Valley region dates back to the founding of Bay City Junior College in 1922.

In 1955, civic leaders in the Saginaw Valley region met to discuss prospects for a local institution of higher education.

Articles of incorporation for what would become Saginaw Valley College (originally called Delta Senior University) were drawn up in 1963, and the state granted a charter to SVC as a private, four-year liberal arts institution.

The first commencement ceremony was held in 1966 at a Midland church for a graduating class of ten.

Saginaw Valley College received full accreditation by the North Central Association in April 1970.

In 1972, the Cardinals became a charter member of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, and in 1974 Frank "Muddy" Waters was hired as the college's first football coach.

On June 18, 2013, President Gilbertson announced his intention to retire when the university's board of control finds his replacement.

[8] In 2015, SVSU applied to the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching to receive a Community Engagement Classification.

The lecture hall in Wickes Hall was named in his honor, the Gladys and Samuel Marble Graduate Business Scholarship Fund was established in 1997, and the Samuel Marble Memorial Scholarship was established in 1990 to be awarded to a transfer student from Delta.

He initiated the successful construction of Brown Hall, the Zahnow Library, the science building, and the Ryder Center.

He was also instrumental in raising private gifts for the construction of Pioneer Hall, the Arbury Fine Arts Center, the Marshall M. Fredericks Sculpture Museum, and Wickes Stadium.

During his tenure, the university's endowment has increased twenty-fold and the campus physical plant has tripled in size.

[10][11] Dr. George Grant Jr. began serving as the fifth president of Saginaw Valley State University on January 1, 2023.

[12] Saginaw Valley State University is considered "selective" by U.S. News & World Report.

Saginaw Valley's most popular undergraduate majors, by 2021 graduates, were:[23] Saginaw Valley State University was accredited by the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association as a baccalaureate degree granting institution in 1970.

It houses classrooms and other facilities for the fine arts, including the Marshall M. Fredericks Sculpture Museum.

Pioneer Hall, the home of the College of Science, Engineering and Technology, was completed in 1978 and recently underwent a large renovation.

Eric R. Gilbertson Hall is home to the College of Education and other classes and departments, including the James A. Barcia Center for Public Policy and Service.

The building incorporates the largest aqua-thermal heating/cooling system in the state of Michigan to reduce energy costs by over 35%.

The Ryder Center for Health & Physical Education is the main athletic building on campus and also houses classrooms.

[5][25] The university is considered a political subdivision of the state government and, thus, is exempt from federal income tax.

The Saginaw Valley State University fields 18 varsity teams at the NCAA Division II level as members of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC).