University Place is a city in Pierce County, Washington, United States. Its population was 34,866 at the 2020 census. University Place receive…University Place is a city in Pierce County, Washington, United States. Its population was 34,866 at the 2020 census. University Place received its name in the 1800s when the University of Puget Sound, a private liberal-arts college in North Tacoma, purchased land along the primary north–south route of Grandview Drive.