[11] According to the National Science Foundation, it spent over $243 million on research and development in 2021, ranking 103rd in the U.S.[12] UNM is classified as a Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI) by the U.S. Department of Education, with nearly half its students being Hispanic.

[13] UNM's 16 varsity sports programs, known as the Lobos, compete in NCAA Division I (FBS for football) and are members of the Mountain West Conference; the school has won national championships in skiing and cross country running.

186 by the Legislative Assembly of the Territory of New Mexico, which stipulated that:[17] Said institution is hereby located at or near the town of Albuquerque, in the county of Bernalillo within two miles north of railroad avenue in said town, upon a tract of good high and dry land, of not less than twenty acres suitable for the purposes of such institution.The act also provided that UNM was "intended to be the state University when New Mexico shall [be] admitted as a state into the Union".

The third president of UNM, William G. Tight, who served from 1901 to 1909, introduced many programs for students and faculty, including the first fraternity and sorority.

Under Zimmerman, many new buildings were constructed, student enrollment increased, new departments were added, and greater support was generated for scientific research.

John Gaw Meem, an architect based in Santa Fe, was contracted to design many of the buildings constructed during this period and is credited with imbuing the campus with its distinctive Pueblo Revival style.

[19] Offices of the General Placement Bureau, Veterans Assistance, and Testing and Counseling Services were formed to assist students and Wernette required all seniors in 1946 to take the Graduate Record Examinations test to provide the school with a measurement of how well it was educating its students.

[22][23] Thomas L. Popejoy was appointed in 1948 as Wernette's successor, being the first native New Mexican to serve as university president.

During this time, enrollment jumped from nearly 5,000 to more than 14,000; new programs such as medicine, nursing, dental, and law were founded; and numerous new facilities were constructed, including Mesa Vista Hall, Mitchell Hall, Johnson Gymnasium, new dormitories, the current student union building, the College of Education complex, the business center, the engineering complex, the Fine Arts Center, the Student Health Center, University Stadium, University Arena (now officially known by its nickname of The Pit), and North Campus.

This period also saw the foundation of UNM's branch facilities in Los Alamos and Gallup and the acquisition of the D.H. Lawrence Ranch north of Taos.

The following day, tear gas was used against hundreds of demonstrators on campus and the situation continued to deteriorate, leading the university to declare a state of emergency.

An FBI wiretap on the phone of a prominent Lobo booster recorded a conversation in which basketball head coach Norm Ellenberger arranged with assistant coach Manny Goldstein to transfer bogus credits from a California junior college to the office of the UNM registrar.

Further investigation uncovered alleged incentives like cars and apartments doled out to prime players and exposed a vast network of sports gambling.

The scandal forced Ellenberger to resign and defined the term of William E. Davis, UNM's eleventh president.

[citation needed] The schools of law and business had some of the largest Hispanic student populations of any university in the country.

In 2016, UNM was the first university in the country to launch a Signature School Program with the Central Intelligence Agency, which enables students to interact with analysts and learn how to join the CIA once they graduate.

The New Mexico Department of Health assisted in the effort, paying for signs and stickers around campus as well as a PSA shown during orientation.

[28] The school has launched several programs and initiatives aimed at fostering more technology startups, often in collaboration with local, state, and federal agencies as well as other southwestern universities.

[30] In 2021, the Directed Energy Center at UNM became established hrough a cooperative agreement with the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL).

[31] On April 22, 2024, UNM students joined other campuses across the United States in protests and establishing encampments[32] against the Israel–Hamas war and the genocide of Palestinians in Gaza.

So far, an expansion of Castetter Hall and the Technology and Education Center are the only LEED-certified buildings on campus, with a Gold and Platinum rating respectively.

[60] The average GPA of enrolled freshmen was 3.44, while the middle 50% range of SAT composite scores were 1000–1290, 520–640 for evidence-based reading and writing, and 520–630 for math.

The rivalry is celebrated at UNM by the Red Rally, a large bonfire that takes place the Thursday before the UNM-NMSU football game.

[citation needed] The Lobo football team plays at University Stadium which is located across the street from The Pit.

Placekicker Katie Hnida made history in the 2003 Las Vegas Bowl when she became the first woman to play in an NCAA Division I-A game, attempting but missing an extra point in the Lobos's 27–13 loss to UCLA.

There are over 400 student-run organizations on campus, which include academic, athletic, ethnic, honorary, political, religious, and service groups, as well as fraternities and sororities.

[63] The University of New Mexico is home to several fraternities and sororities; on-campus sources claim that around 5% of the UNM student body is involved in Greek life.