The University of Madras in Chennai was established on 5 September 1857 by an Act of the Legislative Council of India and was organised on the model of the University of London. A university document dated 5 August 2026 describes it as a state university established under the Act of Incorporation XXVII of 1857 and the Madras University Act 1923. Its jurisdiction now covers the Chennai, Thiruvallur and Kancheepuram districts.
Its departments of study and research are spread over four campuses and organised into 18 schools, while undergraduate and postgraduate teaching is also delivered through affiliated institutions and its Institute of Distance Education. Its NIRF 2026 data submission reports 3,159 postgraduate students and 2,299 PhD scholars in university departments in 2024-25. The website states that a convener committee administers the university in place of a Vice-Chancellor.