In exchange for agreeing to the Champaign-Urbana location, Chicago-area legislators were promised that a "polytechnical" branch would open in Chicago.

In 1936, the first act of newly elected state representative Richard J. Daley was to introduce a resolution calling for the establishment of an undergraduate Chicago campus of the University of Illinois.

Among other benefits, it provided educational funding, making college degrees far more attainable to a much-wider selection of the American public.

[11] In 1946, realizing that they would be "besieged with applications," University of Illinois officials opened what was to be a temporary branch campus called the Chicago Undergraduate Division (CUD) on Navy Pier.

(Navy Pier makes an appearance in Robert Pirsig's Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance; its protagonist taught freshman English there.

Students at CUD generally needed to transfer after two years to a more expensive private college in Chicago,[a] or go to the main campus in Champaign–Urbana, where there were fewer opportunities for work, while at the same time as going to school.

[17] Florence Scala led the fight against Mayor Richard J. Daley's plan to demolish her Italian-American neighborhood to construct the campus.

[18][17] In 1963, construction began on the university's new Chicago campus at Harrison and Halsted Streets south of the Greektown neighborhood.

UICC was designed in the brutalist style by Walter Netsch of Skidmore, Owings and Merrill, a Chicago-based architectural firm responsible for many of today's tallest skyscrapers.

The expansion of UIC south of Roosevelt Road increased on-campus living space and research facilities.

"[26] UIC is Chicago's largest university with more than 33,000 students, 12,000 employees, 16 colleges and the state's major public medical center.

The juxtaposition of campus and commercial density was a direct result of large-scale urban renewal led by Mayor Richard J.

The Pink Line serves UIC's west campus on Polk Street and runs directly to the Loop.

Courtyard and Commons North are cluster-style buildings with rooms grouped to share a small private bathroom.

These four buildings are connected to the Student Center East which houses a cafeteria, the campus bookstore, a convenience store, bowling/billiards, a barber shop, and the Inner Circle (an assortment of fast food restaurants).

[34][35] The brand new Academic and Residential Complex, ARC, was opened in response to the ongoing enrollment increase at the university.

The building consists of large lecture halls, smaller discussion section classrooms, meeting rooms, and student housing.

Opened in spring 2006, the SRF features a three-story climbing wall, multipurpose courts for games, and a pool with adjoining lazy river.

[37] Campus Recreation hosts a variety of programs that promotes the wellness and well-being of students throughout the academic year.

In popular culture, UIC College of Medicine was the Medical School affiliated with Cook County Hospital in the television series E.R.

[38] The renovated buildings use solar and geothermal power which required digging fifty wells 500 feet into the ground east of University Hall.

The first year it was held was in 2010 where Kid Cudi was the headliner, followed by Lupe Fiasco in 2011, Childish Gambino in 2012, Kendrick Lamar in 2013, and J. Cole in 2014.

[78] Demographic statistics for the student body as of 2023[update] were: The chancellor operates six diversity-related committees on Asian Americans, Blacks, Latinos, LGBT issues, persons with disabilities, and women.

The university is a member of the Division I level of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), primarily competing in the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) since the 2022–23 academic year.

In September 2006, the men's soccer team earned its highest ranking in school history when the SoccerTimes.com College Coaches Poll pegged the Flames at No.

UIC finished the 2006 season as the nation's best defensive squad after allowing a mere eight goals in over 1993 minutes of play during 21 matches for a goals-against average (GAA) of 0.36.

At season's end, UIC had a record of 13–6–6 and was named a top 10 team by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA).

UIC's baseball team recorded 30 or more victories in a nine-year stretch from 2001 to 2010, won seven straight Horizon League Championships, and advanced to an NCAA regional four times (2003, 2005, 2007, 2008).

The 1996 men's gymnastics team finished the season in 9th place, the school's highest final ranking among all sports.

UIC Men's Gymnastics individual Division I All America honorees include: Paul Fina (Rings), Mike Costa (Pommel Horse, twice), Barry McDonald (Parallel Bars), Shannon Welker (Floor Exercise), Neil Faustino (Vault), and Andrew Stover (Horizontal Bar).