... an uncle who teaches history or something over at the University

[constantinusphilo]

...you've got an uncle who teaches history or something over at the University?"
The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett

What does 'over' mean here? is it like 'over there'?

 

[jutfrank]

It provides some sense of the location of the university. We know there's some distance between here and there but it isn't a considerable distance. In this case, we can imagine that the university is perhaps a short drive away.

Yes, the preposition 'over' in the phrase 'over there' has a similar sense. It means there's some distance to be covered between here and there but it's easily coverable.