[5] With 1,110 faculty members and over 18,000 students, it is the largest university in the Merrimack Valley and the second-largest public institution in the state.

The 10th and final normal school to be established in Massachusetts, it opened in 1898 with 108 students and five faculty members.

The original classroom building opened the next year at the corner of Broadway and Wilder streets, and quickly became a landmark in the city.

[11] Designed by local firm Stickney & Austin, it reflects the fashion of the time: high-style Beaux Arts with classical symmetry, arches, cast-iron lampposts and yellow brick.

[12] After being threatened with closure during the Great Depression, school administrators rallied local support to help keep it open.

A delegation of prominent individuals representing Lowell's powerful interest groups traveled to Boston and convinced state officials of the school's importance.

[13] As the demand for more qualified teachers grew, the legislature reorganized the Normal School into Lowell State College in 1960 with a curriculum that expanded beyond education to include baccalaureate degrees in other fields including nursing and music.

Under the guidance of founder James T. Smith, Lowell Textile opened its doors in February 1897 in the upper floors of a downtown commercial block located on Middle Street.

The school offered three-year training programs in cotton and wool manufacturing, design, textile chemistry and dyeing.

[16] In 1953, President Martin Lydon expanded the curriculum to include programs in plastics, leather, paper and electronics technology, increased the liberal arts offerings and renamed the school the Lowell Technological Institute.

[26] In 2019, a sexual harassment complaint against Associate Dean Oliver Ibe was settled by the university.

The university's main facilities are located in Lowell, Massachusetts, 25 miles (40 km) northwest of Boston on both sides of the Merrimack River.

Between 2013 and 2018, the university increased student housing by more than 2,500 beds,[31] including opening three new residence halls in 2013, 2015, and 2017.

[33] Marty Meehan, former UMass Lowell Chancellor, is currently the president of the entire University of Massachusetts system.

[18] The college is home to nearly 150 full-time faculty members and 14 research centers, and is fully accredited by ABET.

[42] The Roy J. Zuckerberg College of Health Sciences includes the Solomont School of Nursing, elevated from a department as of June 1, 2013.

The College of Fine Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences is the largest college at UMass Lowell and offers 24 undergraduate and graduate degree programs and houses seven centers and institutes, including the Kerouac Center for Public Humanities, named for writer Jack Kerouac, a Lowell native.

[48] Computer Science professor and NERVE director Holly Yanco is currently collaborating with Northeastern University professors Taskin Padir and Robert Platt in developing NASA's Valkyrie robot to research advancements in cutting-edge humanoid robotics.

[51] The school was named after Manning, a 1984 graduate of UMass Lowell, after he and his wife donated $5 million to the university.

[52] The Manning School of Business consists of five departments: Accounting, Finance, Management, MEI (Marketing, Entrepreneurship, and Innovation), and OIS (Operations and Information Systems).

[8] Many of the research and development opportunities include Working in a campus research lab, helping a community organization, conducting reviews of program-related scholarship, or working on a business or marketing plan for a local start-up.

Forbes ranked UMass Lowell as the 10th best value among all universities and colleges nationwide for 2013 and fourth-best value among non-military academies.

[79] PayScale also ranked UMass Lowell 40th in the Northeast Region for highest mid-career salary among graduates of state universities ($95,100) and 80th overall (tied with Boston College).

[78] UMass Lowell has been listed as one of the most underrated colleges in America on multiple occasions.

[80][81] Total enrollment for the 2019–2020 academic year is 18,338, including 2,481 students in online and continuing education.

[84] Greek life was banned from the university campus after a hazing incident in 1987, where a student suffered overheating when left with a sleeping bag over his head near a space heater.

[85] UMass Lowell athletic teams compete in a variety of men's and women's sports in Division I.

Men's sports include baseball, basketball, cross country, ice hockey, lacrosse, track and field, and soccer.

The River Hawks, with the exception of men's ice hockey, previously competed in the Northeast-10 Conference at the Division II level.

The dedication of the Richard Miner School of Computer & Information Sciences occurred on October 26, 2022.