Agricultural University of Athens
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The Agricultural University of Athens (AUA; el, Γεωπονικό Πανεπιστήμιο Αθηνών) is the third oldest university in Greece. Since 1920, it has made contributions to Greek agricultural and economic development, by conducting basic and applied research in Agricultural Science and Technology."''The EEC was impressed by the high quality of undergraduate and postgraduate programs and faculty research. The Agricultural University of Athens is committed to competitive research and extension activities in both scientifically and economically important areas, notably in agriculture, food science and natural resource management.''" The university is situated in the neighborhood of
Votanikos Votanikos ( el, Βοτανικός, ) is a neighborhood located 3 km west of the downtown part of the Greek capital of Athens. The area is named after a nearby botanical garden situated to the southwest (Athens Botanical Gardens). The easter ...
, on a 25-hectare green campus that straddles both sides of the historic Iera Odos (the
Sacred Way The Sacred Way ( grc, Ἱερὰ Ὁδός, ''Hierá Hodós''), in ancient Greece, was the road from Athens to Eleusis. It was so called because it was the route taken by a procession celebrating the Eleusinian Mysteries. The procession to Eleus ...
of antiquity), close to the
Acropolis An acropolis was the settlement of an upper part of an ancient Greek city, especially a citadel, and frequently a hill with precipitous sides, mainly chosen for purposes of defense. The term is typically used to refer to the Acropolis of Athens, ...
, at the heart of the ancient Olive Grove.


Academic Profile

The University today consists of two Schools and 6 Departments, offering five-year undergraduate programmes as well as a variety of postgraduate programmes.


Research

The university's main research focus is Agronutrition, Biotechnology, Environmental Ecology and Agricultural and Rural Economics.


Academic evaluation

In 2016 the external evaluation committee gave Agricultural University of Athens a ''Positive evaluation''.External Evaluation Reports of AUA Departments, Hellenic Quality Assurance Agency, 2011
Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition (2010)

Department of Crop Science (2011)

Department of Animal Science and Aquaculture (2011)

Department of Biotechnology (2011)

Department of Natural Resources Management and Agricultural Engineering (2011)

Department of Agricultural Economics and Rural Development (2011)
/ref> An external evaluation of all academic departments in Greek universities was conducted by the Hellenic Quality Assurance and Accreditation Agency (HQA).


Campus

The university is located on the alluvial plain of the Kifisos river. It is bordered by Kavalas avenue and Spyrou Patsi Street. To its east lies the ancient cemetery of
Kerameikos Kerameikos (, ) also known by its Latinized form Ceramicus, is an area of Athens, Greece, located to the northwest of the Acropolis, which includes an extensive area both within and outside the ancient city walls, on both sides of the Dipylon ...
and to the west was the location of Plato's olive, whose remains are exhibited inside the main building of the University. The site is split in two by the Iera Odos (Sacred Way) which connects
Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...
and
Eleusis Elefsina ( el, Ελευσίνα ''Elefsina''), or Eleusis (; Ancient Greek: ''Eleusis'') is a suburban city and Communities and Municipalities of Greece, municipality in the West Attica regional unit of Greece. It is situated about northwest ...
. Its buildings comprise a great number of auditoriums and laboratories, a library, computer rooms, agricultural facilities (arboretum, vineyard, experimental fields, flower garden, greenhouses, cowshed, sheep pen, chicken coop, dairy installations, and aquaculture tanks), museums, student center, indoor gym, and sports fields.


History

The plain where the university is located was created by the periodic flooding of the Kifisos river. In antiquity the district of Elaionas (olive grove in Greek) where the university is located was considered among the healthiest of Athens. The largest part of the site where the university is located was appropriated by
Hadji Ali Haseki Hadji Ali Haseki ( tr, Hacı Ali Haseki, el, Χατζή Αλής Χασεκής) was an 18th-century Ottoman Turk and for twenty years (1775–1795) on-and-off ruler of Athens, where he is remembered for his cruel and tyrannical rule. Biography ...
, an 18th-century Ottoman ruler of Athens and used as his personal farm. From his time survives one building of the University which is one of the very few of that time that still stands in
Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...
, though not in its original condition. After the 1821 revolution the plot was confiscated along with the rest of the Turkish property in Greece and became the Ruf National Farm. In 1888, after the national benefactor Triantifillides donated money to create three post-secondary schools of Agriculture, one of them was created on the site. By some this is considered as the founding of the university. Others though consider 1920 as the founding date, when the '' Athens College of Agriculture '' was founded by law submitted to parliament by Eleftherios Venizelos. No matter which date is used it is still the third oldest university of Greece, after the
University of Athens The National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA; el, Εθνικό και Καποδιστριακό Πανεπιστήμιο Αθηνών, ''Ethnikó ke Kapodistriakó Panepistímio Athinón''), usually referred to simply as the Univers ...
and the
National Technical University of Athens The National (Metsovian) Technical University of Athens (NTUA; el, Εθνικό Μετσόβιο Πολυτεχνείο, ''National Metsovian Polytechnic''), sometimes known as Athens Polytechnic, is among the oldest higher education institution ...
.


Early years (1920–1937)

The college was the first agricultural research facility in Greece. As its Greek name shows (Ανωτάτη Γεωπονική Σχολή Αθηνών) the college was originally modeled after the French
Grandes Ecoles Grandes may refer to: *Agustín Muñoz Grandes, Spanish general and politician *Banksia ser. Grandes, a series of plant species native to Australia * Grandes y San Martín, a municipality located in the province of Ávila, Castile and León, Spain ...
. First rector was Spyridon Hasiotis who is considered the father of agricultural science in Greece. In the early years the college lacked financial resources and teaching facilities. To help overcome this problem a special fund was set up in 1928. The main income of the university was from the sale of its produce, while the buildings of the Triantafillideios School of Agriculture were inadequate for the needs of a college. At that time the university was under the auspices of the Ministry of Agriculture which guaranteed employment to all of its graduates, thus making the university very attractive to people of poor background. Students and faculty were involved in politics, something that the
Metaxas dictatorship The 4th of August Regime ( el, Καθεστώς της 4ης Αυγούστου, Kathestós tis tetártis Avgoústou), commonly also known as the Metaxas regime (, ''Kathestós Metaxá''), was a totalitarian regime under the leadership of Gener ...
did not like and thus moved the college to
Thessaloniki Thessaloniki (; el, Θεσσαλονίκη, , also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece, with over one million inhabitants in its Thessaloniki metropolitan area, metropolitan area, and the capi ...
in 1937, to become part of the
Aristotle University of Thessaloniki Aristotle (; grc-gre, Ἀριστοτέλης ''Aristotélēs'', ; 384–322 BC) was a Greek philosopher and polymath during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. Taught by Plato, he was the founder of the Peripatetic school of phil ...
.


Exile (1937–1941)

In Thessaloniki the situation was tougher, since all the work that had been done to improve the site was now useless, due to relocation. After repeated pleads the Occupation Government allowed the return of the college to Athens, but did not abolish the Agriculture Faculty of the Aristotle University which thus exists to this day, as the Faculty of Geotechnical Sciences of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki.


Return and War (1941–1948)

Upon return the students and the faculty found the installations in poor condition. Also half the material was left in Thessaloniki to help continue the faculty there. At least though during the occupation, a time when over 300,000 Greeks died of hunger the fields of the university provided food for the students and faculty. The great famine of
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
gave a sense of urgency to the university's founding mission: to help Greece obtain self-sufficiency in food. To improve the level of education a fifth year was added in 1948 as specialization. 1948 is considered the beginning of the post-war era with the foundation of the central building.


After the War (1948–1990)

Using money from the
Marshall Plan The Marshall Plan (officially the European Recovery Program, ERP) was an American initiative enacted in 1948 to provide foreign aid to Western Europe. The United States transferred over $13 billion (equivalent of about $ in ) in economic re ...
the central building was completed in 1952. In 1960 specializations were extended to the fourth year. The 1967–1974 dictatorship brought turmoil to the College, culminating in the suicide of lab technician Theophilos Frangopoulos in 1969, by
cyanide poisoning Cyanide poisoning is poisoning that results from exposure to any of a number of forms of cyanide. Early symptoms include headache, dizziness, fast heart rate, shortness of breath, and vomiting. This phase may then be followed by seizures, sl ...
. Greece's entry to the
European Economic Community The European Economic Community (EEC) was a regional organization created by the Treaty of Rome of 1957,Today the largely rewritten treaty continues in force as the ''Treaty on the functioning of the European Union'', as renamed by the Lisb ...
allowed European funds to flow thus allowing and expansion both in facilities and departments. Thus in 1984 for the first time Departments were formed. In 1990 the college was renamed as the Agricultural University of Athens.


See also

*
National and Kapodistrian University of Athens The National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA; el, Εθνικό και Καποδιστριακό Πανεπιστήμιο Αθηνών, ''Ethnikó ke Kapodistriakó Panepistímio Athinón''), usually referred to simply as the Univers ...
, established in 1837, it is the oldest higher education institution in Greece. *
National Technical University of Athens The National (Metsovian) Technical University of Athens (NTUA; el, Εθνικό Μετσόβιο Πολυτεχνείο, ''National Metsovian Polytechnic''), sometimes known as Athens Polytechnic, is among the oldest higher education institution ...
*
List of universities in Greece Universities in Greece form one part of constitutionally-recognized institutions with degree awarding powers. According to Greece's Constitution, higher education institutions (HEIs) include universities, polytechnics, some specialist HEIs, a ...
*
List of research institutes in Greece This is a list of research institutes in Greece. __TOC__ State-run institutes * "Athena" Research and Innovation Center in ICT and Knowledge Technologies (formerly KETEP/IRIS) ** Industrial Systems Institute (INBIS/ISI) ** Institute for Langua ...
*
European Higher Education Area The European Higher Education Area (EHEA) was launched in March 2010, during the Budapest-Vienna Ministerial Conference, on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the Bologna Process. As the main objective of the Bologna Process since its ince ...
*
Education in Greece Education in Greece is centralized and governed by the Ministry of Education and Religious Affairs (Greek: , Υ.ΠΑΙ.Θ.) at all grade levels. The Ministry exercises control over public schools, formulates and implements legislation, adm ...
*
Open access in Greece Open access scholarly communication of Greece is preserved in repositories maintained by several academic institutions. Repositories There are a number of collections of scholarship in Greece housed in digital open access repositories. They co ...


References


External links


Agricultural University of Athens Official Website

Hellenic Quality Assurance and Accreditation Agency (HQA)

Agricultural University of Athens Quality Assurance Unit

Agricultural University of Athens DASTA Office (Career Office & Innovation Unit)

"ATHENA" Plan for Higher Education

Greek Research and Technology Network (GRNET)

Hellenic Academic Libraries Link (HEAL-Link))

Kallipos (e-books Greek academic publishing)

Study in Greece – Official portal for studies in Greece

Hellenic Qualifications Framework (HQF)
{{authority control Universities in Greece Agricultural universities and colleges Education in Athens Educational institutions established in 1920 1920 establishments in Greece