Serving approximately 4,000 students, the university offers undergraduate and graduate programs across several disciplines, including education, business, and law.

In 1997, Texas state senator Royce West suggested a feasibility study for a state university in southern Dallas County, an area of Dallas County that is predominantly African American and was then served only by the private Paul Quinn College.

[3] Enrollment on the UNT Dallas Campus initially grew at an average annual rate of 14 percent per year and reached the necessary full-time equivalent of 1,000 students during the spring semester of 2007.

In April 2009, the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board certified this enrollment and granted UNT Dallas status as an independent general academic institution.

[4] On March 26, 2013, the UNT Board of Regents announced that Ronald T. Brown would become the next President, effective July 1, 2013.

[9] In October, DART completed the extension of their Blue Line bringing rail service directly to the UNT Dallas campus.

The SERCH Institute at UNT Dallas (Service Education Research Community Hope) partnered with Mayor Mike Rawlings' GrowSouth initiative and began working with 10 AmeriCorps VISTA members working in approximately 32 neighborhoods in southern Dallas.

Founded in 2014, the college initially operated in the historic Titche-Goettinger Building before relocating to its permanent home at 106 S. Harwood St. in downtown Dallas.

[20] For transportation to and from campus, the university offers access via the Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) bus.

[22] The university plans to add men's and women's soccer at a later time after the initial launch of the athletic program.

[23] The basketball teams will initially compete at nearby Cedar Valley College until the university constructs an on-campus sports-and-events center.

[24] In addition to the special events center, the university's master plan includes a cross country course at the eastern end of the campus as well as future projects such as a baseball/softball complex, tennis courts, and department office space and fitness space for athletics and recreational use.