In 1942, state legislation elevated the institutution from a normal school to the Oswego State Teachers College and. In 1948, Oswego became one of SUNY's charter members. The institution broadened its academic perspective in 1962, becoming a full-fledged arts and sciences institution in the SUNY system and featuring a range of liberal and professional studies.

Oswego's student body quadrupled during the 1960s and early 1970s, which was a time of building on campus as well. The institution created the College of Arts and Sciences, School of Business and School of Education in 1992 and the School of Communication, Media and the Arts in 2007. The College of Arts and Sciences became the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences in 2008.

The campus today consists of 45 buildings with classroom, laboratory, residential and athletic facilities. Recent years have witnessed the launch of a $250 million campus-wide renovation and renewal program, highlighted by the October 2006 opening of the Campus Center – the college's first new building in 35 years.

Oswego is one of 13 university colleges in the SUNY system. More than 8,000 students enroll, and there are more than 70,000 living alumni with known addresses. Oswego offers more than 100 undergraduate majors and minors and graduate programs.