In March 2013, the university announced it had bought the former broadcast centre at the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park as a second campus.

[3] The university traces its roots back to 1909, when the Loughborough Technical Institute was founded in the town centre.

There followed a period of rapid expansion led by principal Herbert Schofield, during which there was renaming to Loughborough College and development of the present campus.

In early years, efforts were made to mimic the environment of an Oxbridge college, e.g. students wore gowns to lectures, while maintaining a strong practical counterbalance to academic learning.

Its rapid expansion from a small provincial college to the first British technical university was due largely to its principals, Herbert Schofield, who led it from 1915 to 1950, and Herbert Haslegrave, who oversaw its further expansion from 1953 to 1967 and steered its progress first to a College of Advanced Technology and then to a university in 1966.

He oversaw the building of the original Hazlerigg and Rutland halls of residence, which are now home to the university's administration and the vice-chancellor's offices.

[11] In 1963, the Robbins Report on higher education recommended that all colleges of advanced technology be given university status.

These additions have shifted the technological leaning of the institution, causing it to function more as a traditional university, with a combination of humanities, arts and sciences.

In the central quadrangle of the campus stands a famous cedar tree of veteran status, with a girth of 5.12 m.[15] The cedar has often appeared as a symbol for the university and it was heavy snowfall in December 1990 that led to the collapse of the upper canopy which gave the tree its distinctive shape.

[citation needed] It has graduated a number of world-class athletes including Paula Radcliffe and Lord Coe.

In keeping with this tradition, Loughborough students have won the British Universities & Colleges Sport Association (BUCS) championship every year for four decades.

The university is the home of the England and Wales Cricket Board's National Academy, opened in November 2003.

[citation needed] The university (and Loughborough College before it) once had a "mascot" consisting of an oversized knight's helmet with a lowered visor, commonly called "Thor".

[26] The university has 20 academic departments and over 100 research groups, institutes and centres currently divided between nine schools.

The university has won seven Queen's Anniversary Prizes for Higher and Further Education for work with the aeronautical and automotive industries (1994); support for developing countries (1998); for a pioneering role in developing applications of modern optics and laser technologies (2000); for its world leading roles in sports research, education and development (2002); for its world leading role in social policy in recognition of its outstanding and widely respected work in evaluating and helping develop social policy-related programmes, such as those for cared for children, social security policy, crime prevention, education initiatives and young carers (2005); for recognition of its vehicle, road and driver safety research (2007); and for its impact through research and skills development in High Value Manufacturing to create economic growth (2013).

[27] The university has the largest sports scholarship programme in the UK, with over 250 international athletes studying and training.

[37] In the 2016–17 academic year, the university had a domicile breakdown of 79:5:16 of UK:EU:non-EU students respectively with a female to male ratio of 39:61.

[50] Loughborough kept its position as the best university in the world to study sports-related subjects in the global 2018 QS higher education league table.

[60] Loughborough was chosen by the British Olympic Association as the training base and official Preparation Camp for Team GB in the run-up to the London 2012 Games.

[63] Loughborough-linked coaches also played a key role in the Games, with alumni guiding Team GB, Canada and Fiji to gold medals.

[64] At the Paralympic Games, 21 medals – six gold, six silver and nine bronze – were won by athletes with Loughborough connections.

[66] Loughborough has a wide range of research centres and institutes,[67] including: In 2023, The Times Higher Education Impact Rankings, which assess universities against the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals, placed Loughborough first in the UK and 15th globally for affordable and clean energy (SDG 7).

[68] The Union building sits in the north-eastern corner of the campus, and offers a range of facilities for clubs and societies, retail, entertainment and other activities.

[69] The School of the Arts, English and Drama runs The Lamplight Press, the UK's first student-led publishing company.

The agreement enables taught master's and PhD students to study at the university's two campuses in the East Midlands and London.