National Autonomous University of Mexico
| National Autonomous University of Mexico | |
|---|---|
| Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México | |
 |
|
| Official seal | |
|
|
|
| Motto: | Por mi raza hablará el espíritu ("The spirit will speak for my people") |
| Established: | September 22, 1910 [1][2][3][4][5] |
| Type: | Public university |
| President: | José Narro Robles |
| Staff: | 33,141 |
| Students: | 286,484[6] |
| Undergraduates: | 158,824 (2006)[6] |
| Postgraduates: | 20,747 (2006)[6] |
| Location: | Mexico City,  Mexico |
| Campus: | Urban, 7.3 km² (1,803.86 acres), main campus only |
| Colors: | Blue & Gold |
| Mascot: | Cougar |
| Athletics: | 41 varsity teams [7] |
| Website: | www.unam.mx |
The National Autonomous University of Mexico (in Spanish: Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, UNAM) is a public university based primarily in Mexico City and generally considered to be the largest university in Latin America in terms of student population.[8] Founded on 22 September 1910 by Justo Sierra[1][2][3][4] as a liberal alternative to the Roman Catholic-sponsored Royal and Pontifical University of Mexico (founded on September 21, 1551 by a royal decree of Charles I of Spain and brought to a definitive closure in 1867 by the liberals),[9] is the only university in Mexico with Nobel Prize laureates among its alumni: Alfonso García Robles (Peace), Octavio Paz (Literature), and Mario Molina (Chemistry).
It also generates a number of different publications in diverse areas, such as mathematics, physics and history.
UNAM's autonomy, granted in the 1920s, has given it the freedom to define its own curriculum and manage its own budget without interference from the government. This has had a profound effect on academic life at the university, which is known for its academic freedom and independence.
Beside being one of the most recognized universities in Latin America, is one of the biggest and the most artistically detailed, being its main campus a World Heritage. It was built by some of the best Mexican architects of 20th Century and the mural in the campus were painted by some of the most recognized artists in Mexican history like Diego Rivera and Siqueiros.
Contents |
History
The university was founded on 22 September 1910 by Justo Sierra,[1][2][3][4] then Minister of Education in the Porfirio Díaz' regime, who sought to create a very different institution from the its 19th century precursor; the Royal and Pontifical University of Mexico, which had been founded on September 21, 1551 by a royal decree of Charles I of Spain and brought to a definitive closure in 1867 by Benito Juarez and his fellow Liberals.[9] Instead of reviving what he saw as an anachronistic institution with strong ties to the Roman Catholic Church,[10] he aimed to create new university, secular in nature and national in scope, that may reorganize higher education within the country, serve as a model of positivism and encompass the ideas of the dominant Mexican liberalism.[10]
In 1881 Justo Sierra presented a National University creation plan for the first time, but it was rejected; his idea was to merge all major schools in Mexico in order to create one National University of Mexico. He presented his project twice more, and, in 1907, it was approved by the president of Mexico. In order for the project to be realized, numerous scholars were sent to Europe to study the mechanics of education there. Therefore, the education system in the UNAM, is more similar to traditional European system, rather than American one. And it was in 1910, during the Independence centennial, that the University was founded.
As originally intended, the University enclosed all the major schools of Mexico under one name, and its original location was in the historic center of Mexico. Discussion took place in 1929 over the ruling of the university, and it was this year that it was declared an autonomous state organism.
In 1950, the first stone of Ciudad Universitaria was set, and in 1954 it was finished and opened for the first time.
In 1968, the Olympics were held in Mexico, and the main venue was the UNAM's Olympic Stadium. The events were overshadowed by the Tlatelolco massacre, which remains an issue for the university's activist students, that each year October 2nd held demonstrations in the Campus, and this issue was part of the spirit of the most recent student strike in 1999.
During the 1970s and 1980's the National Preparatory Schools (nine at the time) moved their locations from the center of Mexico City to satellite locations, in order to decentralize UNAM. Other campuses were built all around the city.
Seal
The University seal was designed in 1921 by then-Rector José Vasconcelos along with the motto it holds to this day. The seal has a map of Latin America with the motto being held by an eagle and a condor resting on nopales and volcanoes.[11]
Campuses
University City
"Ciudad Universitaria" (University City) is UNAM's main campus, located within Coyoacán borough in the southern part of Mexico City. Designed by architects Mario Pani, Enrique del Moral, Domingo García Ramos, Armando Franco Rovira and others, it encloses the Estadio Olímpico Universitario, about 40 faculties and institutes, the Cultural Center, an ecological reserve, the Central Library, and a few museums. It was built during the 1950s on an ancient solidified lava bed to replace the scattered buildings in downtown Mexico City where classes were given. It was completed in 1954 and is almost a separate region within Mexico City, with its own regulations, councils, and police (to some extent) in a more fundamental way than most universities around the world. Law enforcement officials from outside the university are not allowed to enter without the consent of the university authorities.
In June 2007, its main campus, Ciudad Universitaria, was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site. [12]
Satellite campuses
Apart from Ciudad Universitaria, UNAM has several campuses in the Metropolitan Area of Mexico City (Acatlán, Aragón, Cuautitlán, Iztacala and Zaragoza), as well as many others in several locations across Mexico (in Santiago de Querétaro, Morelia, Mérida, Ensenada, and Cuernavaca, mainly aimed at research and graduate studies. It has also four small foreign campuses in the United States and Canada, focusing on Spanish language and Mexico's culture: San Antonio, Texas; Chicago, Illinois; Los Angeles, California; Gatineau, Quebec.[13]
External buildings of interest
Palacio de Minería
Under the care of UNAM's Engineering Faculty, the Colonial Palace of Mining is located in the historical center of Mexico City. Formerly the School of Engineering, it has three floors, and houses the International Book Expo ("Feria Internacional del Libro" or "FIL") and the International Day of Computing Security Congress ("DISC"), among regular events. It also has a permanent exhibition of historical books, mostly topographical and naturalist works of 19th century Mexican scientists, in the former library of the School of Engineers. It has also several exhibitions related to mining, the prime engineering occupation during the Spanish colonization. It is considered to be one of the most significant of Mexican architecture of its period.
Casa del Lago
House of the Lake, in Chapultepec Park, is a place devoted to cultural activities including dancing, theatre plays and ballet. It also serves as meeting place for university-related organizations and committees.
Museum of San Ildefonso
A baroque building in downtown Mexico City, held the first schools that later became UNAM.
Chopo University Museum
Possessing an artistic architecture, large crystal panels and two iron towers designed by Gustave Eiffel; it served the National Museum of Natural History for almost 50 years. It is now devoted to the temporary exhibitions of visual arts.
National Astronomical Observatory
The National Astronomical Observatory is located in the Sierra San Pedro Mártir mountain range in Baja California, about 130 kilometers south of United States-Mexican border. It has been in operation since 1970 and it currently boasts three large reflecting telescopes, with plans for installing a large instrument sensitive to milimetric wavelengths already under way.
Organization
It consists of faculties rather than departments. Both undergraduate and graduate studies are available. UNAM is also responsible for the Escuela Nacional Preparatoria (ENP) (National Preparatory School), and the Colegio de Ciencias y Humanidades (CCH) (Science and Humanities College), which consist of several high schools, spread around Mexico City. Counting ENEP, CCH, FES (Facultad de Estudios Profesionales) undergraduate and graduate students, UNAM has over 269,000 students, making it one of the world's largest universities.
Faculties and National Schools
UNAM recognizes two different types of university schools: Faculties and National Schools. Faculties are the only institutions that have postgraduate studies. Currently, most of the schools, either inside or outside the University City, had this title. A National School is an institution that cannot offer all postgraduate studies (Master's degrees and Doctorates). This is the case of the National School of Music, the National School of Arts, the National School of Nursery and Obstetrics, and the National School of Social Work.
List of schools (Faculties and National Schools)
- Faculty of Accounting and Administration
- Faculty of Architecture
- Faculty of Chemistry
- Faculty of Economics
- Faculty of Engineering
- Faculty of Higher Studies (FES) Aragón
- Faculty of Higher Studies (FES) Acatlán
- Faculty of Higher Studies (FES) Cuautitlán
- Faculty of Higher Studies (FES) Iztacala
- Faculty of Higher Studies (FES) Zaragoza
- Faculty of Law
- Faculty of Medicine
- Faculty of Odontology
- Faculty of Philosophy and Literature
- Faculty of Political and Social Sciences
- Faculty of Psychology
- Faculty of Sciences
- Faculty of Veterinarian Medicine
- National School of Arts
- National School of Music
- National School of Nursery and Obstetrics
- National School of Social Work
Academics
Rankings
According to 2008 THES - QS World University Rankings, the University is the 150th best ranked university in the world and the best in Ibero-America.[14] According to the 2008 Academic Ranking of World Universities developed by the Institute of Higher Education of the Shanghai Jiao Tong University, UNAM is ranked in the 152-200 tier[15] and holds the 2nd place among Ibero-American universities in a tie between the University of Buenos Aires and the University of Barcelona but below the University of Sao Paulo (101-151 tier).[15]
Research
UNAM has excelled in many areas of research and houses many of Mexico's premiere research institutions. In recent years it has attracted students and hired professional scientists from all over the world (most notably from Russia, India and the United States), which has created a unique diverse scientific community.
Scientific research at UNAM is divided between faculties, institutes, centers and schools, and covers a range of disciplines in Latin America. Some of the more noted institutes include: Institute of Astronomy, Institute of Biotechnology, Institute of Nuclear Sciences, Institute of Ecology, Institute of Physics, Institute of Cell Physiology, Institute of Geophysics, Institute of Engineering, Institute of Materials Research, Institute of Chemistry, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, and the Applied Mathematics and Systems Research Institute.
Research centers tend to focus on multidisciplinary problems particularly relevant to Mexico and the developing world, most notably: Center of Applied Sciences and Technological Development, which focuses on connecting the sciences to real-world problems (e.g., optics, nanosciences) and Center of Energy Research, which does world-class research in alternative energies.
All research centers are open to students from Mexico and around the world. The UNAM holds a number of programs for students within the country to make scientific internships in order to impulse research in the country.
UNAM's scientific output continues to grow, despite numerous attempts by the Mexican government to curtail its budget, the University currently producing 60% of all scientific publications in Mexico.
As for basic sciences, UNAM currently has two Howard Hughes Medical Institute Scholars and endowment from the NIH extramural research program.
Students and faculty
Sports, clubs, and traditions
Professional football team
UNAM's football team Club Universidad Nacional participates in the Primera División de México of the Mexican Football League Division. The club became two-time consecutive champions of the Apertura, and the Clausura in 2004. Their home ground is the Estadio Olímpico Universitario stadium.
The University, has as a yearly tradition to make a gigant display of Ofrendas all over the main square of Ciudad Universitaria, each school builds an ofrenda, and in the center there is usually a biggest one that has a different theme each year, depending on the festivities of the University that year. [16]
Political activism
UNAM students and professors are regarded around Mexico as very politically aware and sometimes very politically active. While most of its students have been used as a representative part of left-wing political movements; this university is, as well, the alma mater of several prominent right-wing and neo-liberal politicians such as Carlos Salinas de Gortari or Manuel Gómez Morín.
Alleged links between UNAM and FARC
- See also Faculty of Philosophy and Literature links with FARC
On June 2003 former Colombian ambassador in Mexico Luis Guzmán said that there were FARC offices on the UNAM Faculty of Philosophy and Literature and these offices were making propaganda and recruiting people to participate on the guerrilla. [1]
Noted alumni
- See also Category:National Autonomous University of Mexico alumni
Many of the most prominent figures in the economical, political, scientific and artistic life in Mexico have been a member of the UNAM alumni or faculty:
Presidents of a nation
- Carlos Salinas de Gortari (President of Mexico 1988–1994)
- Miguel de la Madrid Hurtado (President of Mexico 1982–1988)
- José López Portillo y Pacheco (President of Mexico 1976–1982)
- Luis Echeverría Álvarez (President of Mexico 1970–1976)
- Miguel Alemán Valdés (President of Mexico 1946–1952)
- Abel Pacheco de la Espriella (President of Costa Rica 2002–2006)
- Alfonso Portillo (President of Guatemala 2000–2004)
Politicians
- Antonio Carrillo Flores (cabinet minister in several previous administrations)
- Andrés Manuel López Obrador (Head of Government of the Federal District from 2000 to 2005 and candidate for the Presidency of Mexico in 2006)
- Alan Cranston, U.S. Senator from California.
- Alfonso Caso y Andrade, a very noted archaeologist.
- Álvaro García Linera, vice-president of Bolivia.
- Veton Surroi, Kosovo publicist and leader of the Kosovar Party ORA.
Diplomats
- Antonio Carrillo Flores, former Ministry of Mexicain Foreign Affairs during the Díaz Ordaz administration.
- Alfonso García Robles, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate.
- Antonio Gómez Robledo, former Ministry of Mexican Foreign Affairs during the López Portillo administration.
- Narciso Bassols, one time ambassador to Russia, France, and Great Britain. Former director of UNAM School of Law.
- Rosario Green, former Ministry of Mexicain Foreign Affairs during the Zedillo administration.
Artists, writers and humanists
- Alfonso Reyes, writer, philosopher and diplomat.
- Jaime Torres Bodet, writer and politician.
- Adolfo Sánchez Vázquez, philosopher and writer.
- Elena Poniatowska, journalist and writer.
- Salvador Elizondo, writer and a member of El Colegio Nacional.
- Carlos Fuentes, writer, essayist and a member of El Colegio Nacional.
- Enrique Krauze, historian, essayist and publisher (director of Letras Libres journal.
- Carlos Monsiváis, editorialist and writer.
- José Emilio Pacheco, writer and a member of El Colegio Nacional.
- Fernando del Paso, writer.
- Octavio Paz, poet and essayist; a Literature Nobel Prize laureate (he never graduated).
- Alfonso García Robles, a Peace Nobel Prize laureate.
- Jaime Sabines, poet.
- Enrique Semo, historian, writer, activist, Mexico City Secretary of Culture
- Alfonso Caso, archaeologist.
- Eduardo Pareyón Moreno, archaeologist.
- Agustín Landa Verdugo, architect and urban planner.
- Audre Lorde, writer, poet and activist.
- Jorge Volpi, novelist and essayist; current director of Canal 22 in Mexican free television.
- Jacobo Zabludovsky, journalist and first TV Anchorman in Mexico.
- William F. Buckley, writer and political philosopher; attended in 1943 prior to being commissioned in the US Army during the World War II.
Physicians and surgeons
- Carlos Fernández del Castillo, M.D. (pancreatic diseases, pancreatobiliary surgery, gastrointestinal surgery) (Massachusetts General Hospital, USA)[2] [3] [4]
- Guillermo Soberón Acevedo, biochemist and a member of El Colegio Nacional.
- Ruy Pérez Tamayo, pathologist.
Scientists
- Luis E. Miramontes, co-inventor of the contraceptive pill.
- Dr. Rodolfo Neri Vela, the first Mexican in space.
- Mario J. Molina, a Chemistry Nobel Prize laureate.
- Guillermo Haro, astronomer, co-discoverer of Herbig-Haro objects.
- Carlos Frenk, astronomer, a pioneer in simulations of large-scale structures.
- Nabor Carrillo Flores, a soil mechanics expert, a nuclear energy advisor and former president of UNAM.
- Miguel José Yacamán, physicist.
- Miguel Alcubierre, theoretical and computational physicist (see Alcubierre metric).
- Marcos Moshinsky, a theoretical physicist.
- Antonio Lazcano, a notable biologist working in the field of origin of life.
- Víctor Neumann-Lara, a pioneer in the graph theory in Mexico.
- Salvador Zubirán, a physician, founder of the National Institute of Nutrition.
- Miguel de Icaza, free software programmer (dropped out).
Tycoons
- Carlos Slim Helú, the second richest man in the world, according to the latest Forbes list (see the 2008 Forbes Billionaire List).
Sports stars
- Hugo Sánchez Márquez, one of Mexico's most acknowledged football players and former Real Madrid player.
- Maria Eugenia "Cuca" Huerta, one of Mexico's top Females Football Flag players and multiple champion at local and international leagues.
Noted faculty
- See also Category:National Autonomous University of Mexico faculty
- Max Cetto, architect.
- Alejandro Corichi, astrophysicist.
- Axel Didriksson Takanayagui, a writer education researcher and current Secretary of Education working for the Government of Mexico City.
- Erich Fromm, a German-born philosopher and psychoanalist, founder of the Mexican Institute of Psychoanalysis.
- Paul Kirchhoff, anthropologist and ethnohistorian, one of the founders of anthropologic studies at UNAM.
- José Gaos, philosopher.
- Florian Luca,mathematician
- Jorge González Torres, politician, former presidential candidate.
- José Miguel Insulza, a Chilean politician, secretary of the Organization of American States.
- Imanol Ordorika, a specialist in education.
- Maricela Ortega Villalobos, physiology.
- Kiyoto Ota, sculptor.
- Arturo Rosenblueth, physiologist.
- Adolfo Sánchez Vázquez, a Spanish-born philosopher.
- Sara Sefchovich, writer.
- Larry Laudan, philosopher
- Manuel Sandoval Vallarta, physicist and cosmic ray researcher.
- Miguel León-Portilla, historian and náhuatl language researcher.
- Edmundo O'Gorman, historian and writer.
- Rodolfo Neri Vela, former astronaut.
See also
- XHUNAM-TV ("TVunam", UNAM's educational and cultural television channel)
- DGSCA (Dirección General de Servicios de Cómputo Académico, Hub of Computer Sciences/Engineering in UNAM)
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México. "UNAM Through Time". "Later, on April 26th, [1910] he set the National University's founding project in motion. The new institution would be composed of the National Preparatory High School and the School of Higher Studies, along with the schools of Jurisprudence, Medicine, Engineering and Arts (Architecture). The project was approved and the National University of Mexico was solemnly inaugurated on September 22nd. The universities of Salamanca, Paris and Berkeley were its 'godmothers'."
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Justo Sierra (1910-09-22). "Discurso en el acto de la inauguración de la Universidad Nacional de México, el 22 de septiembre de 1910" (PDF) (in Spanish). "¿Tenemos una historia? No. La Universidad mexicana que nace hoy no tiene árbol genealógico"
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Annick Lempérière. "Los dos centenarios de la Independencia mexicana (1910-1921): de la historia patria a la antropología cultural" (PDF) (in Spanish). University of Paris I. "La universidad soñada por Justo Sierra, ministro de Instrucción Pública, última creación duradera del régimen porfirista, se inauguró al mismo tiempo que la Escuela Nacional de Altos Estudios, que debía ceder su lugar a las humanidades, junto a los programas científicos de los cursos porfiristas. El discurso inaugural de Sierra iba a tono con el espíritu de las celebraciones. La universidad naciente no tenía nada en común, insistía, con la que la precedió: no tenía 'antecesores', sino 'precursores'."
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Javier Garciadiego. "De Justo Sierra a Vasconcelos. La Universidad Nacional durante la Revolución Mexicana" (PDF) (in Spanish). El Colegio de México. "El mayor esfuerzo en la vida de Sierra fue, precisamente, revertir tal postura; así, se afanó obsesivamente en crear una universidad de ese tipo, pues era la institución que mejor encabezaba "los esfuerzos colectivos de la sociedad moderna para emanciparse integralmente del espíritu viejo". Al margen de numerosas diferencias sustanciales con los liberales, los positivistas, que dominaron el sistema nacional de instrucción pública superior desde 1867, también eran contrarios al establecimiento de una universidad, tanto por conveniencias políticas como por principios doctrinales. Esto hace más admirable el esfuerzo de don Justo, pues era un miembro destacado —canonizado, dice O'Gorman— del grupo de positivistas mexicanos. Su lucha no fue sólo pedagógica sino también política. Si bien no se puede coincidir con [Edmundo] O'Gorman respecto al carácter de Sierra como jerarca del positivismo mexicano, pues siempre fue cuestionado por los más ortodoxos como un pensador ecléctico, falto de disciplina, es de compartirse la admiración que profesa a don Justo, pues su lucha por la fundación de la Universidad Nacional implicó serios distanciamientos de sus principales compañeros políticos e intelectuales, ya fueran liberales o positivistas."
- ↑ Manuel López de la Parra. "La casi centenaria UNAM" (in Spanish). ""Ciertamente no ha transcendido el hecho de que la Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México; autónoma desde 1929, está próxima a cumplir su primer centenario de vida académica, pues fue inaugurada el 22 de septiembre de 1910, en ocasión de los festejos del primer centenario del inicio de la Revolución de Independencia durante los últimos tiempos del Gobierno de don Porfirio Díaz, y con base en un proyecto elaborado por don Justo Sierra, por entonces, secretario de Instrucción Pública y Bellas Artes con la participación técnica de don Ezequiel A. Chávez, de acuerdo con el modelo típico de las universidades europeas, precisamente con mucho de la Universidad de París; por ese entonces la influencia europea estaba presente, y en especial, la cultura francesa."
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 DGPL UNAM. (2006). Agenda estadística 2006. Población escolar 2005-2006. [2007]
- ↑ http://www.deportes.unam.mx/?option=com_content&task=view&id=17&Itemid=38
- ↑ Preston, Julia (2000-01-20). "University, Mexico's Pride, Is Ravaged by Strike".
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Javier Garciadiego. "De Justo Sierra a Vasconcelos. La Universidad Nacional durante la Revolución Mexicana" (PDF) (in Spanish). "Durante el siglo XIX los gobiernos liberales consideraron una "obligada muestra" de sus convicciones suprimir la Universidad, heredera de la Nacional y Pontificia, como para los conservadores reinstalarla era signo de lealtad a sus principios."
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Justo Sierra. "Discurso en el acto de la inauguración de la Universidad Nacional de México, el 22 de septiembre de 1910" (PDF) (in Spanish). Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México.
- ↑ http://info4.juridicas.unam.mx/unijus/cmp/leguniv/198-1.pdf|Reglamento del escudo y lema de la Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México
- ↑ UNESCO
- ↑ Contenidos versión imprimible
- ↑ "THES - QS World University Rankings 2008 - Top 200 Universities" (2008). Retrieved on 2008-10-10.
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 Institute of Higher Education (2008-08-15). "Top 500 World Universities (101-200)". Shanghai Jiao Tong University. Retrieved on 2008-09-24.
- ↑ Noticias - En Día de Muertos en la UNAM imponen récord; decenas de calles del DF tienen nombres alusivos a La Catrina
External links
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||