Established by royal decree in 1986, it has since become the largest institution of higher education in Bahrain, with three campuses (Sakhir, Isa Town, and Salmaniya) and more than 30,000 registered students.

[1] The university comprises nine colleges: Arts, Applied Studies, Business Administration, Engineering, Health and Sport Sciences, Information Technology (IT), Law, Science, and the Bahrain Teachers' College.

The College of Health Sciences is based in a 10,000 m2 (110,000 sq ft) campus next to the Salmaniya Medical Complex.

The College of Engineering is based in a 10,000 m2 (110,000 sq ft) campus alongside the Bahrain Polytechnic.

[4] Since 1986, more than 5,000 research papers and books were published by academics in the university, 80% of which was produced by the Colleges of Science and Engineering respectively.