| Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México | |
|---|---|
| National Autonomous University of Mexico | |
Official seal |
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| Motto | Por mi raza hablará el espíritu |
| Motto in English | The spirit shall speak for my race. |
| Established |
22 September 1910[1][2][3][4][5] [6] |
| Type | Public university |
| President | José Narro Robles |
| Admin. staff | 35,679 (As of 2010[update])[7] |
| Students | 314,557 (2009–2010 academic year[update]) [7] |
| Undergraduates | 179,052 (As of 2010[update])[7] |
| Postgraduates | 25,036 (As of 2010[update])[7] |
| Location | Mexico City, Mexico |
| Campus | Urban, 7.3 km2 (2.8 sq mi), main campus only |
| Colors | Blue & Gold |
| Athletics | 41 varsity teams [8] |
| Mascot | Puma |
| Website | unam.mx/index/en |
The Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM) (National Autonomous University of Mexico) is a university in Mexico.[7] UNAM was 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 21 September 1551 by a royal decree of Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor and brought to a definitive closure in 1867 by the liberals).[9] 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 some claim boosts academic freedom and independence.[10]
The UNAM generates a number of different publications in diverse areas, such as mathematics, physics and history. It is also the only university in Mexico with Nobel Prize laureates among its alumni: Alfonso García Robles (Peace), Octavio Paz (Literature), and Mario Molina (Chemistry).
Besides being one of the most recognized universities in Latin America, it is one of the largest and the most artistically detailed. Its main campus is a World Heritage site that was designed by some of Mexico's best-known architects of the 20th century. Murals in the main campus were painted by some of the most recognized artists in Mexican history, such as Diego Rivera and David Alfaro Siqueiros.
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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 its 19th century precursor, the Royal and Pontifical University of Mexico, which had been founded on 21 September 1551 by a royal decree signed by Crown Prince Phillip on behalf of Charles I of Spain[11] and brought to a definitive closure in 1867 by Benito Juárez and his fellow Liberals.[9] Instead of reviving what he saw as an anachronistic institution with strong ties to the Roman Catholic Church,[12] he aimed to create a new university, secular in nature and national in scope, that could reorganize higher education within the country, serve as a model of positivism and encompass the ideas of the dominant Mexican liberalism.[2]
The project initially unified the Fine Arts, Business, Political Science, Jurisprudence, Engineering, Medicine, Normal and the National Preparatory schools;[13] its first rector was Joaquin Eguía y Lis.[14]
The new university's challenges were mostly political, due to the ongoing Mexican Revolution and the fact that the federal government had direct control over the university's policies and curriculum; some resisted its establishment on philosophical grounds. This opposition led to disruptions in the function of the university when political instability forced resignations in the government, including that of President Díaz. Internally, the first student strike occurred in 1912 to protest examination methods introduced by the director of the School of Jurisprudence, Luis Cabrera. By July of that year, a majority of the law students decided to abandon the university and join the newly-created Free School of Law.[14]
In 1914, initial efforts to gain autonomy for the university failed.[14] In 1920, José Vasconcelos became rector. In 1921, he created the school's coat-of-arms: the image of an eagle and a condor surrounding a map of Latin America, from Mexico's northern border to Tierra del Fuego, and the motto, "The Spirit shall speak for my race." Efforts to gain autonomy for the university continued in the early 1920s. In the mid-1920s, a second wave of student strikes opposed a new grading system. The strikes included major classroom walkouts in the law school and confrontation with police at the medical school. The striking students were supported by many professors and subsequent negotiations eventually led to autonomy for the university. The institution was no longer a dependency of the Secretariat of Public Education; the university rector became the final authority, eliminating much of the confusing overlap in authority.[15]
In 1943, initial decisions were made to move the university from the various buildings it occupied in the city center to a new and consolidated university campus; the new Ciudad Universitaria (lit. University City) would be in San Ángel, to the south of the city.[16] The first stone laid was that of the faculty of Sciences, the first building of Ciudad Universitaria. President Miguel Alemán Valdés participated in the ceremony on 20 November 1952. The University Olympic Stadium was inaugurated on the same day. In 1957, the Doctorate Council was created to regulate and organize graduate studies.[17]
Another major student strike, again over examination regulations, occurred in 1966. Students invaded the rectorate and forced the rector to resign. The Board of Regents did not accept this resignation, so the professors went on strike, paralyzing the university and forcing the Board's acceptance. In the summer, violent outbreaks occurred on a number of the campuses of the University-affiliated preparatory schools; police took over a number of high school campuses, with injuries. During August 1968, protests formed on the main campus against the police actions on the main campus and in the center of the city. The protests grew into a student movement that demanded the resignation of the police chief, among other things. More protests followed in September, gaining frequency and numbers. During a meeting of the student leaders, the army fired on the Chihuahua building in Tlatelolco, where the student organization supposedly was. They also fired on the crowd that was outside, with many dead, wounded and detained. Protests continued after that. Only ten days later, the 1968 Olympic Games opened at the University Stadium. The University was shut down for the duration. Finally, some progress was made toward restoring order.[18]
The 1970s and 1980s saw the opening of satellite campuses in other parts of Mexico and nearby areas, to decentralize the system. There were some minor student strikes, mostly concerning grading and tuition.[19][20] The last major student strike at the university occurred in 1999–2000 when students shut down the campus for almost a year to protest a proposal to charge students the equivalent of US$150 per semester for those who could afford it. Referendums were held by both the university and the strikers, but neither side accepted the others' results. Acting on a judge's order, the police stormed the buildings held by strikers on 7 February 2000, putting an end to the strike.[21][22][23]
In 2009, the university was awarded the Prince of Asturias Award for Communication and Humanities[24] and began the celebration of its centennial anniversary with several activities that will last until 2011.[25]
"Ciudad Universitaria" (University City) is UNAM's main campus, located within the Coyoacán borough in the southern part of Mexico City. It was designed by architects Mario Pani, Enrique del Moral, Domingo García Ramos, Armando Franco Rovira and others, and 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.
In June 2007, its main campus, Ciudad Universitaria, was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.[26]
Apart from Ciudad Universitaria, UNAM has several campi 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, Cuernavaca and Leon), mainly aimed at research and graduate studies. It has also four small foreign campuses in the United States and Canada, focusing on the Spanish language and Mexican culture: UNAM San Antonio, Texas; Chicago; Los Angeles; Gatineau, Quebec.
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 hosts the International Book Expo ("Feria Internacional del Libro" or "FIL") and the International Day of Computing Security Congress ("DISC"). 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 also contains several exhibitions related to mining, the prime engineering occupation during the Spanish colonization. It is considered to be one of the most significant examples of Mexican architecture of its period, conceived by Manuel Tolsa during de spanish colonial rule in a neoclassical style (18th century).
The 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.
This museum and cultural center is considered to be the birthplace of the Mexican muralism movement.[27][28] San Ildefonso began as a prestigious Jesuit boarding school, and after the Reform War, it gained educational prestige again as National Preparatory School, which was closely linked to the founding of UNAM. This school, and the building, closed completely in 1978, then reopened as a museum and cultural center in 1994, administered jointly by UNAM, the National Council for Culture and Arts and the government of the Federal District of Mexico City. The museum has permanent and temporary art and archaeological exhibitions, in addition to the many murals painted on its walls by José Clemente Orozco, Diego Rivera and others.[29][30] The complex is located between San Ildefonso Street and Justo Sierra Street in the historic center of Mexico City .[27]
The Chopo University Museum possesses an artistic architecture, large crystal panels and two iron towers designed by Gustave Eiffel. It opened with part of the collection of the now-defunct Public Museum of Natural History, Archeology and History, which eventually became the National Museum of Cultures.[31] It served the National Museum of Natural History for almost 50 years, and is now devoted to the temporary exhibitions of visual arts.
The National Astronomical Observatory is located in the Sierra San Pedro Mártir mountain range in Baja California, about 130 km south of United States-Mexican border. It has been in operation since 1970, and it currently has three large reflecting telescopes.
UNAM is organized in 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, in Mexico City. Counting ENEP, CCH, FES (Facultad de Estudios Profesionales) undergraduate and graduate students, UNAM has over 314,557 students, making it one of the world's largest universities.[7]
UNAM recognizes two different types of university schools: Faculties and National Schools. Only faculties have postgraduate studies. Currently, most of the schools, either inside or outside the University City, have 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.[32]
According to the 2009 THES - QS World University Rankings, the University is the 190th best-ranked university in the world and the second best in Ibero-America.[33] According to the 2008 Academic Ranking of World Universities, developed by the Institute of Higher Education of Shanghai Jiao Tong University, UNAM is ranked in the 152–200 tier,[34] and holds second place among Ibero-American universities in a tie between the University of Buenos Aires and Brazilian University, below the University of São Paulo (101–151 tier).[34] The university was also ranked joint 169th with University of São Paulo in the 2011 QS World University Rankings.[35]
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 and 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: the Institute of Astronomy, the Institute of Biotechnology, the Institute of Nuclear Sciences, the Institute of Ecology, the Institute of Physics, the Institute of Cell Physiology, the Institute of Geophysics, the Institute of Engineering, the Institute of Materials Research, the Institute of Chemistry, the 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, the 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 conducts 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, using scientific internships to encourage 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 produces 60% of all scientific publications in Mexico.
As for basic sciences, UNAM currently has two Howard Hughes Medical Institute Scholars and an endowment from the NIH extramural research program.
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 an annual tradition to make a large display of Ofrendas all over the main square of Ciudad Universitaria. Each school builds an ofrenda, and in the center, there is usually a large ofrenda made according to a theme corresponding to the festivities of the University for that year.[36]
UNAM students and professors are regarded throughout Mexico as very politically-aware and sometimes intensely politically active. While most of its students usually adhere to left-wing political ideologies and movements, the University has also borne a number of prominent right-wing and neo-liberal politicians, including Carlos Salinas de Gortari and Manuel Gómez Morín.
The UNAM contains several associations of current students and alumni that provide extra-curricular activities to the whole community, enriching the University's activities with cultural, social and scientific events.
Many of the most prominent figures in the economical, political, scientific and artistic life in Mexico were members of the UNAM alumni or faculty:
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