Orissa State Legislature passed the Sambalpur University Act on the 10th of December 1966 to meet the long felt educational requirement of the people of western Orissa for a university.

The functioning of the university began on the 1st of January 1967 and it was inaugurated on the 4th of January the same year. Initially, the functioning of the university began in a borrowed building and later it was shifted to a building belonging to government, where it functioned from 1968-1972. After this, in the year 1973, it was transferred to the current campus at Burla popularly called as Jyoti Vihar.

A total of 10 districts in the state of Orissa are coming under the jurisdiction of this university and more than 20 post-graduate departments are functioning under it. The list of colleges affiliated to the university is given below:

B. Ed Colleges:

• Chaitanya College of Education

• Nabakrushna Choudhary College of Teacher Education

• District Institute of Education and Training

• D.A.V. College of Teacher Education

• Berhampur Government Primary Teachers Training Institute

• B.J. Training College

• Anandpur Anchalika Training College

• Dr. P M Institute of Advanced Study in Education, Sambalpur

• Government Training College, Balangir

Nursing College:

• Sambalpur Nursing College

Medical Colleges:

• Indira Gandhi Memorial Ayurvedic Medical College & Hospital

• Kaviraj Ananta Tripathy Sharma Ayurved Mahavidyalaya

• Mayurbhanj Ayurved Mahavidyalaya

• Govt. Ayurved College, Balangir

• Orissa Medical College of Homoeopathy & Research, Sambalpur

• Sri Nrusinghnath Ayurved College & Research Institute, Sambalpur

• Utkalmani Homoeopathic Medical College & Hospital, Rourkela

• V S S Medical College, Burla, Sambalpur

Law Colleges:

• Balgangadhar Tilak Law College, Sonepur

• Bargarh Law College, Bargarh

• Dr. B.R. Ambedkar Law College, Dharmagarh

• Kalahandi Law College, Kalahandi

• Bolangir Law College, Bolangir

• Kalahandi Law College, Kalahandi

• Lajpat Rai Law College, Sambalpur

• Rourkela Law College, Rourkela

Pharmacy Colleges:

• K M Institute of Pharmacy

• Kanak Manjari Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Rourkela

Engineering Colleges:

• University College of Engineering, Burla, Sambalpur

• Regional Engineering College, Rourkela, Sundargarh

Other Colleges:

• Panchayat Samiti Degree College

• Rourkela Institute of Management Studies

• Tushra Degree College

• U H College, Rourkela

• A E S College, Tarva, Balangir

• Agalpur Panchayat Samiti College, Routh, Balangir

• Anchal College, Padmapur, Bargarli

• Anchallik Kisan College, Bheden, Sambalpur

• Asian Workers Development Institute, Rourkela, Sundergarh

• Athmalik College, Athmalik

• Attabira College, Attabira, Sambalpur

• Bamara College, Bamara

• Barpali College, Barpali, Bargarh

• Bhima Bhoi College, Rairakhol, Sambalpur

• Bijepur College, Bijepur

• Birmaharajpur College, Birmaharajpur, Subarnnapur

• Bonaigarh College, Bonaigarh, Sundergarh

• Boudh Panchayat College, Boudh, Boudh

• Brajrajnagar College, Brajrajnagar, Sambalpur

• Burla College Burla, Sambalpur

• Burla N A C College, Burla, Sambalpur

• College of Arts, Science & Technology, Bandonurda

• D A V College, Titilagarh, Bolangir

• D S College, Loida, Sambalpur

• Dalima College, Jharbeda Campus Rajganpur, Sundargarh

• Deogarh College, Deogarh, Sambalpur

• Dharamgarh Panchayat College, Dharamgarh, Kalahandi

• Dr J K Sahu College, Parmanpur, Sambalpur

• Dunguripali College, Dunguripali

• Evening College, Sambalpur

• Gandhi Mahavidyalaya, Rourkela, Sundargarh

• Gangadhar Maher College, Sambalpur, Sambalpur

• Gangadhar Maher Govt. (Evening) College, Sambalpur

• GHESS College, Ghess, Bargarh, Sambalpur

• Gokal Parvati Rural College, Kuntra, Sambalpur

• Government College, Rourkela, Sundergarh

• Government Evening College, Rourkela, Sundargarh

• Govt Women’s College, Sundergarh

• Ispat College, Rourkela, Sundargarh

• Janta College, Boinda, Dhenkanal

• Jawaharlal College, Patnagarh, Bolangir

• Kesinga Mahavidyalaya, Kesinga, Kalahandi

• Khariar College, Khariar, Braj Bihar Nawpara, Kala Hani

• Kuchinda College, Kuchinda, Sambalpur

• Larambha College, Larambha, Bargarh

• Laxminarayan College, Jharsuguda, Jharsuguda

• Lohani Para College, Lohani Para

• Loisingha College, Loisingha

• Madanpur Rampur College, Madanpur Rampur, Kalahandi

• Municipal College, Rourkela, Sundargarh

• N A C College, Hirakud, Sambalpur

• N S C B College, Sambalpur

• National College, Nawapara, Nawpara

• Nehashaila College, Jagada, Rourkela

• P M Mahavidyalaya, Jaida

• P S College, Loisingha

• Pallishree College, Chichinda, Sambalpur

• Panchayat Govt. College, Bargarh, Distt. Bargarh

• Panchayat College, Dharamgarh, Dist Kalahandi

• Panchayat Samiti College, Bargaon, Sundargarh

• Panchayat Samiti College, Belpara, Bolangir

• Panchayat Samiti College, Saintala

• Rajendra College, Bolangir, Distt. Bolangir

• Rourkela Evening College, Rourkela

• S G Women College, Rourkela, Sundargarh

• S M College Rampela Dist. Sambalpur

• Sabati Devi Women’s College, Raigangpur, Sundargarh

• Science (Govt) College, Rourkela, Sundargarh

• Shamasakti College, Biramitrapur, Sundargarh

• Siddhartha College, Binka, Bolangir

• Sinapali College, Sinapali

• Sonepur College, Sonepur Raj, Subarnapur

• Sri Ram College, Rampur, Bolangir

• Sundargarh College, Sundargarh

• Surajmal College, Rampela, Sambalpur

• Sushilavati Govt. Women’s College, Rourkela, Sundergarh

• Trust Fund College, Sambalpur

• Ulunda College, Ulunda, Sarmbalpur

• Vedavyas Mahavidyalaya, Vedavyas Pamposh

• Vesaja Patel College, Hemgir, Sundargarh

• Women’s College, Bargarh

• Women’s College, Bolangir

• Women’s College, Jharsuguda, Sundergarh

• Women’s College, Sambalpur

• Women’s College, Sundargarh

The campus of Sambalpur University includes 10 post-graduate hostels, of which 6 are for gents and 4 are for ladies. The campus includes several facilities like study room with magazines and newspapers, common room with television, STD booth, first aid room, guest room, central canteen, etc…

In addition to these there are also two nationalized banks, a police out-post, a community center, a faculty house, an auditorium, health center and post office. Above all, the campus also includes a central library called as Prof. B. Behera Central library and the library contains books under different categories with a number of periodicals and the library is a member of University Grants Commission’s infonet and is partly computerized with SOUL software.