It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida. The university traces its origins to [ 13 ] and has operated continuously on its Gainesville campus since September After the Florida state legislature's creation of performance standards in , the Florida Board of Governors designated the University of Florida as a "preeminent university".
It is the third largest U. It offers multiple graduate professional programsβincluding business administration , engineering , law , dentistry , medicine , pharmacy and veterinary medicine βon one contiguous campus and administers master's degree programs and 76 doctoral degree programs in 87 schools and departments. The university's seal is also the seal of the state of Florida, which is on the state flag, though in blue rather than multiple colors.
As of , [update] University of Florida students and alumni have won Olympic medals, including 69 gold medals. The modern University of Florida traces its origins to , when the East Florida Seminary , the oldest of its four predecessor institutions, was founded in as the East Florida Seminary in Ocala, Florida.
The Florida Legislature, looking to expand FAC's curriculum beyond agricultural and engineering offerings, changed the school's name to the "University of Florida" for the β academic year.
This name was in use for two years. In , the Florida Legislature passed the Buckman Act , which reorganized the state's publicly supported institutions of higher education. Under the act, Florida's six state-supported institutions were merged to form the State University System of Florida under the newly established Florida Board of Control.
