It was established in 1935 in New Brockton, Alabama, as Southeastern Bible Institute, relocated to Lakeland in 1946, and became a liberal arts college in 1970.

Originally located in a former high school building in New Brockton, Alabama, it opened its doors to students on November 4, 1935, under the direction of four faculty members.

[citation needed] SEBI continued classes in New Brockton until 1940 when a decision was made to consolidate the school with Beulah Heights Bible Institute in Atlanta, Georgia.

[citation needed] SEBI became South-Eastern Bible College in 1956 when the school began offering four-year bachelor's degree programs.

The football expansion included the construction of a stadium that seats 3,500 spectators and an athletic training center.

In 2015, construction began on several new academic buildings, a new athletic complex including a gymnasium, and an 8-lane track.

The 125,000 square-foot facility was completed in the fall of 2016 and includes classrooms, faculty offices, student housing, and a food court.

[citation needed] In 2017, the university was granted an exception to certain provisions of Title IX expressed in several regulations under 34 C.F.R., which allowed Southeastern to legally discriminate regarding gender identity and sexual orientation for religious reasons.

[8] The library collection contains over 100,000 books, 800 periodical titles, 2,500 videos, and other multimedia for class courses and research.

The Steelman Library houses a Curriculum Lab that includes children's materials and textbooks for education students.

Steelman Library also supplies electronic access to research databases that include over 15,000 full-text periodicals and 32,000 e-books.

[9] Southeastern University views gay marriage as a sin against the will of God, and as an "illegitimate moral option" for any Christian.

In the fall of 2015, during the University of Southern Mississippi tournament, SEU Debate took home 17 individual awards and were the only institution to advance all of their teams.

[11] Held annually on the university's Lakeland campus, the Forum at SEU provides actionable leadership training to the students.

Men's wrestling was added in the 2015–2016 academic year, becoming the state's first collegiate scholarship program in decades.