Samford, a Christian university, offers undergraduate and graduate degree programs, with 170 undergraduate majors, minors and concentrations. The university is divided into the School of the Arts, Howard College of Arts and Sciences, Brock School of Business, Beeson Divinity School, Orleans Bullard Beeson School of Education, Cumberland School of Law, Ida V. Moffett School of Nursing, McWhorter School of Pharmacy, School of Health Professions and School of Public Health. The faculty-to-student ratio at Samford University is 1:13.Approximately two-thirds of the university's classes have fewer than 20 students.

Samford's campus has moved several times during its history. Originally, Howard College was located in Marion, Alabama, a black-belt town between Selma and Tuscaloosa; it was the birthplace of Coretta Scott King. In 1887, the college moved to the East Lake community in Birmingham. The university is now located approximately 5 miles (8 km) south of downtown Birmingham in Homewood, Alabama's Shades Valley along Lakeshore Drive in Homewood, just 2 miles (3 km) from Interstate 65. It is built in the Georgian Colonial style based on Colonial Williamsburg as envisioned by Lena Vail Davis, beloved wife of then President Harwell Davis when the campus was moved to the Shades Valley area of Jefferson County in 1953-57. {https://www.samford.edu/about/history} The campus was designed by the Birmingham architectural firm Van Kuerten & Davis, and most later buildings have also been designed by the same firm, known as Davis Architects since 1986.

In 2020, Samford University enrolled 3,576 undergraduate and 2,153 graduate and professional students. Students from 47 states and 30 countries attend Samford, with 66 percent of the undergraduate student body coming from outside the state of Alabama.97 percent of all May 2019 undergraduate alumni were employed or enrolled in graduate school or in internships within six months of graduation.81 percent of May 2015 graduates completed an internship during their time at Samford. During 2015, Samford students completed 716,902 hours of community service.