About the University of Alabama at Birmingham The University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) is a research university and academic health center building the future through new ideas and initiatives in the classroom, the laboratory, the studio, and the clinic. UAB was recently ranked as the top young university in the United States, and no. 10 worldwide, in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings, 2018 Young University Rankings.  Forging Ahead, UAB's five-year strategic plan for 2024-2028, builds on the success of past plans and outlines the mission, vision, values, peers, foundations and pillars, as well as outlines institutional goals and strategies to achieve them, and measurements of success. The monumental success experien