The University of Fribourg (french: Université de Fribourg; german: Universität Freiburg) is a

public In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individual people, and the public (a.k.a. the general public) is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept to the sociological concept of the ''Öffentlichkei ...

university A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...

located in Fribourg,

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

. The roots of the university can be traced back to 1580, when the notable Jesuit Peter Canisius founded the

Collège Saint-Michel Collège Saint-Michel (German: Kollegium St. Michael) is a Gymnasium school located in Fribourg, Switzerland. It was established in 1582 by the Jesuit order as a boys' school. Personalities Rectors * Pierre Michel (1582–1888) * Jean- ...

in the City of Fribourg. In 1763, an academy of law was founded by the state of Fribourg which formed the nucleus of the present Law Faculty. The University of Fribourg was finally created in 1889 by an Act of the parliament of the Swiss

Canton of Fribourg The canton of Fribourg, also canton of Freiburg (french: Canton de Fribourg ; german: Kanton Freiburg ; frp, Canton de Fribôrg rm, Chantun Friburg it, Canton Friburgo) is located in western Switzerland. The canton is bilingual, with French ...

. The University of Fribourg is Switzerland's only bilingual university and offers full curricula in both French and German, two of Switzerland's national languages. Students number about 10,000; there are about 200 tenured professors and 700 other academic teaching and research personnel. The Misericorde Campus, constructed between 1939 and 1942, was designed by the architects Honegger and Dumas, students of Swiss architect

Le Corbusier Charles-Édouard Jeanneret (6 October 188727 August 1965), known as Le Corbusier ( , , ), was a Swiss-French architect, designer, painter, urban planner, writer, and one of the pioneers of what is now regarded as modern architecture. He was ...

. There are five faculties:

Catholic theology Catholic theology is the understanding of Catholic doctrine or teachings, and results from the studies of theologians. It is based on canonical scripture, and sacred tradition, as interpreted authoritatively by the magisterium of the Catholic ...

, law,

natural sciences Natural science is one of the branches of science concerned with the description, understanding and prediction of natural phenomena, based on empirical evidence from observation and experimentation. Mechanisms such as peer review and repeatab ...

humanities Humanities are academic disciplines that study aspects of human society and culture. In the Renaissance, the term contrasted with divinity and referred to what is now called classics, the main area of secular study in universities at the t ...

, and

economics Economics () is the social science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and intera ...

social sciences Social science is one of the branches of science, devoted to the study of societies and the relationships among individuals within those societies. The term was formerly used to refer to the field of sociology, the original "science of soci ...

History

The university owes its earliest origin to the foundation of the Jesuit College St. Michel on Belze Hill by Peter Canisius in 1580 at the invitation of the government of Fribourg. In 1763, an Academy of Law was founded, housed in the Albertinium (now a Dominican residence). In 1834, the cantonal library was formed from works brought to Fribourg (from Catholic monasteries) for safekeeping. The College St. Michel was closed following the expulsion of the

Jesuits The Society of Jesus ( la, Societas Iesu; abbreviation: SJ), also known as the Jesuits (; la, Iesuitæ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

from Fribourg after the canton's defeat in the Sonderbund war. In 1886, Georges Python, founder of the cantonal bank and State Counsellor for Fribourg (M.P. in the upper house of the Swiss parliament) became Director of Public Education. He raised funds through a lottery and was granted some 2,500,000 CHF by the canton. The cantonal library became integrated with that of the university and the academy became the Faculty of Law. In 1939, the university moved to a new campus constructed on the former cemetery of Misericorde, ceding St. Michel to one of Fribourg's gymnasia, which took the name College St. Michel. During the Second World War, the university set up "university camps" along with the University of Zürich, HEC in St. Gall and a Lycée camp at Wetzikon provided a wide variety of courses to educate Polish prisoners of war. The Perolles campus was constructed on the site of a former wagon factory. Although many lectures were originally in Latin, Fribourg is now the only French/German bilingual university in the world (45% French and 55% German). The town itself is 70% French and 30% German. This fact, coupled with the traditional dominance of French as the language of the city aristocracy explains why French has remained so dominant in university administration and in the AGEF (Association Générale des Etudiants Fribourgois), the Student's Union. To commemorate the centenary of the university, La Poste issued a stamp depicting the figures Science and Sagesse.

Recent developments

In 2005, the university inaugurated its Perolles 2 campus, to which the Faculty of Economics and Social Science relocated. The university has the third largest collection of Biblical antiquities in the world after the British Museum and the Cairo Museum. Fribourg has also developed FriMat, a centre of excellence in nanotechnology. As part of the BeNeFri association comprising the Universities of Berne, Neuchâtel and Fribourg, students at any one of these universities may take courses at another in the association and still receive credit at their home institution. The academic degrees were the Demi-Licence, Licence,

DEA The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA; ) is a United States federal law enforcement agency under the U.S. Department of Justice tasked with combating drug trafficking and distribution within the U.S. It is the lead agency for domestic enf ...

/ DESS,

Doctorate A doctorate (from Latin ''docere'', "to teach"), doctor's degree (from Latin ''doctor'', "teacher"), or doctoral degree is an academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism ''l ...

. The university now follows the requirements of the Bologna process. The University of Fribourg launched for the 2009–2010 academic year a new postgraduate law programme, the

Master of Laws in Cross-Cultural Business Practice The University of Fribourg (french: Université de Fribourg; german: Universität Freiburg) is a public university located in Fribourg, Switzerland. The roots of the university can be traced back to 1580, when the notable Jesuit Peter Canisius ...

(MLCBP), an

LL.M A Master of Laws (M.L. or LL.M.; Latin: ' or ') is an advanced postgraduate academic degree, pursued by those either holding an undergraduate academic law degree, a professional law degree, or an undergraduate degree in a related subject. In mos ...

taught entirely in English.

Campuses

Fribourg has no central campus and its buildings are located throughout the city. The main sites are: *Misericorde - Humanities and central administration (including the famous Senate room) *Perolles - Science *Perolles 2 - Economics & Social Sciences *Regina Mundi - Psychology *BCU centrale - Main Library *Pierre Aeby - Department of Classical Philology *Bonnesfontaines - Pedagogy * Stade St. Leonard - University Stadium

Faculties

The Fribourg University is divided into five faculties: * The ''Faculty of Humanities'' is the largest faculty with about 4,600 students. They follow courses and seminars in the fields of philosophy, historical sciences, languages, literature, education, psychology or social sciences. * The ''Faculty of Law'' has about 1,900 students. The program includes national and international law; both subjects areas can be followed bilingual. * The ''Faculty of Theology'' is the largest and the most international of Switzerland, and, with Lucerne, it is the only state university in Switzerland to have a Faculty of Catholic Theology. * Approximately 1,400 students are enrolled in one of the four Bachelor programmes and one of the seven Master programmes of the ''Faculty of Management, Economics and Social Sciences''. The faculty is composed of four departments: business management, economics, computer science, media and communication. In addition, the ''international institute of management in technology (iimt)'' and the '' Verbandsmanagement Institute (VMI)'' are attached to the Faculty. * The ''Faculty of Science and Medicine'' was founded in 1896 and comprises seven departments: biology, chemistry, geosciences, computer science, mathematics, medicine and physics. These cover 14 fields: biochemistry, biology, chemistry, geography, computer science, human medicine and dentistry (Bachelor), mathematics, neuroscience, pharmacy, physics, biomedical sciences, environmental sciences, earth sciences (geology) and sport. The

Adolphe Merkle Institute The Adolphe Merkle Institute (AMI) is a research center in Fribourg, Switzerland focused on nanoscience. The institute is named after the Swiss entrepreneur Adolphe Merkle who created the foundation that partially funded the institute. History D ...

(AMI) is an interdisciplinary research institute of the Faculty of Sciences devoted to fundamental and application-oriented research and teaching in the domain of soft nanomaterials.

Traditions

*Dies Academicus - On this day in November every year, no lectures are held. Festivities begin with Mass in the Chapel of the Collège St. Michel. The members of the university then proceed to the Aula Magna (Great Hall) in solemn procession. After an address by the rector and a prominent guest speaker, honorary degrees are awarded. The student guilds attend in ceremonial dress including swords. *

Corporations A corporation is an organization—usually a group of people or a company—authorized by the state to act as a single entity (a legal entity recognized by private and public law "born out of statute"; a legal person in legal context) and r ...

- These are similar to the Studentenverbindungen in Germany and Austria, but there is no de facto constraint to participate as it is in the

student nations Student nations or simply nations ( la, natio meaning "being born") are regional corporations of students at a university. Once widespread across Europe in medieval university, medieval times, they are now largely restricted to the oldest universit ...

at the universities of

Uppsala Uppsala (, or all ending in , ; archaically spelled ''Upsala'') is the county seat of Uppsala County and the List of urban areas in Sweden by population, fourth-largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm, Gothenburg, and Malmö. It had 177,074 inha ...

Lund Lund (, , ) is a city in the southern Swedish provinces of Sweden, province of Scania, across the Øresund, Öresund strait from Copenhagen. The town had 91,940 inhabitants out of a municipal total of 121,510 . It is the seat of Lund Municipali ...

and

Helsinki Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the Capital city, capital, primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Finland, most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of U ...

. They maintain Central European student traditions and meet at least once a week around a ''Stammtisch'' ("regulars’ table") in order to socialise, drink and sing together. They tend to be organised on linguistic lines. One of them is still engaged in dueling, while the other corporations in Fribourg already rejected this tradition at the time they were founded, amongst others for religious reasons. Membership has often been considered advantageous for those wishing to pursue a career in business, politics or law. Most of Fribourg's student corporations belong to the formerly Catholic '' Schweizerischer Studentenverein''. An example is

AV Fryburgia AV (Akademische Verbindung; ''academic society'') Fryburgia is a fraternity or Studentenverbindung at the University of Fribourg in Switzerland. Male students of all faculties are eligible to become members. The fraternity is a section of the Sch ...

. *The Day of Welcomes (''Jour D’Accueil'') - Similar to Freshers’ Week in anglophone universities. New students are invited to the Aula Magna, where they are welcomed to Fribourg by the Rector and the Syndic (Mayor of the City of Fribourg). This is followed by a meal in the university mensa provided by the city, where new students are expected to dine with the rest of the faculty to which they have been admitted. *Every year, the Catholic Church holds collections during masses throughout Switzerland. Known as Fribourg Sunday, the funds raised are mainly used to award scholarships to foreign priests by the Faculty of Theology.

Branding

The university seal depicts a cross and bishop's ring representing the university's Catholic ethos on a shield of black and white, representing the canton of Fribourg. The logo of the university is a blue stylized "F" (with triangles echoing the facade structure of the Miséricorde Building and symbolizing the Alps) and the name of the university in Latin.

Notable alumni and faculty

Writers and academics

Patrick Aebischer Patrick Aebischer (born 22 November 1954 in Fribourg, Switzerland) has been the president of the École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) from 17 March 2000 to 31 December 2016. He is also a professor in neuroscience and head of the Ne ...

, former president of the

École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne École may refer to: * an elementary school in the French educational stages normally followed by secondary education establishments (collège and lycée) * École (river), a tributary of the Seine flowing in région Île-de-France * École, Savoi ...

* Pietro Balestra, Swiss economist specialized in econometrics * Hans Wolfgang Brachinger, German mathematician and econometrician *

Mary Daly Mary Daly (October 16, 1928–January 3, 2010) was an American radical feminist philosopher and theologian. Daly, who described herself as a "radical lesbian feminist", taught at the Jesuit-run Boston College for 33 years. Once a practicing Rom ...

, feminist theologian and advocate of parthenogenesis *

Reiner Eichenberger Reiner may refer to: *Reiner (crater), a crater on the Moon, named after Vincentio Reiner *Reiner Braun, a fictional character in the anime/manga series ''Attack on Titan'' People with the given name Reiner *Reiner Knizia, a board game designer *Re ...

, Chair of the Center for Public Finance at the University of Fribourg * Lionel Groulx (1878–1967), Québécois priest and historian *

Vincas Mykolaitis Vincas Mykolaitis, known by his pen name Putinas (literally ''Viburnum'') (6 January 1893 in Pilotiškės, Suwałki Governorate – 7 June 1967 in Kačerginė), was a Lithuanian poet and writer. He was also a priest, but renounced his priestho ...

, Lithuanian poet and writer * Jerome Murphy-O'Connor, Professor of

New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Christ ...

at the Ecole Biblique in

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

Hugo Obermaier Hugo Obermaier (29 January 1877, in Regensburg – 12 November 1946, in Fribourg) was a distinguished Spanish-German prehistorian and anthropologist who taught at various European centres of learning. Although he was born in Germany, he was later n ...

, prehistorian and anthropologist *

Michel Plancherel Michel Plancherel (16 January 1885, Bussy, Fribourg4 March 1967, Zurich) was a Swiss mathematician. He was born in Bussy (Fribourg, Switzerland) and obtained his Diplom in mathematics from the University of Fribourg and then his doctoral degree ...

, mathematician *

Eleanor Purdie Eleanor Purdie (10 January 1872 - 5 May 1929) was an English philologist and the first woman to obtain a doctorate from the University of Fribourg. Biography Eleanor Purdie was born in Dalston in 1872 to Elizabeth White Blight and Walter Charle ...

(1872–1929), philologist; first woman to obtain a doctorate from the University of Fribourg *

Gonzague de Reynold Gonzague de Reynold (15 June 1880 – 9 April 1970) was a Swiss writer, historian, and right-wing political activist. Over the course of his six-decade career, he wrote more than thirty books outlining his traditionalist Catholic and Swiss natio ...

, writer and academic, author of ''Cités et pays suisse'' *

Léon Savary Léon Savary (Fleurier, 1895 - Boudry, 1968) was a Swiss French-speaking writer and journalist from Payerne, Vaud. Biography Savary was the son of a German russified aristocratic mother from the Baltic region (Von Paucker) and a father who was Pr ...

, writer and journalist * Csaba Szabo, pharmacologist * Wilhelm Schmidt, Austrian linguist, anthropologist, and ethnologist *

Winfried Sebald Winfried Georg Sebald (18 May 1944 – 14 December 2001), known as W. G. Sebald or (as he preferred) Max Sebald, was a German writer and academic. At the time of his death at the age of 57, he was being cited by literary critics as one of the g ...

, German writer *

Peter Thullen Peter Thullen (24 August 1907 in Trier – 24 June 1996 in Lonay) was a German/Ecuadorian mathematician. Academic career He studied under Heinrich Behnke at the University of Münster and received his doctoral degree in 1931 at the age of 23 ...

, mathematician *

Peter Trudgill Peter Trudgill, FBA (; born 7 November 1943) is an English sociolinguist, academic and author. Trudgill was born in Norwich, England and grew up in the area of Thorpe St Andrew. He attended the City of Norwich School from 1955. Trudgill studie ...

, British sociolinguist and dialectologist *

Werner Ulrich Werner Ulrich (born 1948, Berne, Switzerland) is a Swiss social scientist and practical philosopher, and a former professor of the theory and practice of social planning at the University of Fribourg. He is known as one of the originators of cr ...

, Swiss social scientist and practical philosopher, one of the originators of "

critical systems thinking Critical systems thinking (CST) is a systems approach designed to aid decision-makers, and other stakeholders, improve complex problem situations that cross departmental and, often, organizational boundaries. CST sees systems thinking as essential ...

" (CST) *

Eliseo Verón Eliseo Verón (June 12, 1935 – April 15, 2014) was an Argentine sociologist, anthropologist and semiotician, and professor of communication sciences at Universidad de San Andrés. His work is known mainly in Spanish and French-speaking countries ...

, sociologist * Luc E. Weber, Rector Emeritus of the

University of Geneva The University of Geneva (French: ''Université de Genève'') is a public research university located in Geneva, Switzerland. It was founded in 1559 by John Calvin as a theological seminary. It remained focused on theology until the 17th centu ...

Jean Zermatten Jean Zermatten (born 2 March 1948 in Sion, Valais) is a specialist of children's rights. He is the son of the Swiss writer Maurice Zermatten. He is Chairman of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child and is the first Swiss member of this Committ ...

, academic and Chair of U.N. Commission on the Rights of the Child *

Maurice Zermatten Maurice Zermatten (22 October 1910, in Saint-Martin, Valais – 11 February 2001, in Sion) was a French-speaking Swiss writer. He was born in Saint-Martin, Valais, a small village situated in the Val d'Hérens, in the canton of Valais. He was fir ...

, writer, winner of the Schiller International Prize

Clergy

Gilberto Agustoni Gilberto Agustoni (26 July 1922 – 13 January 2017) was a Swiss prelate of the Catholic Church. He worked in the Roman Curia from 1950 to 1998, ending his career as head of the Apostolic Signatura from 1992 to 1998. He became a Cardinal in 199 ...

, Prefect Emeritus of the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signature * Michael Browne O.P., Master General of the

Order of Preachers The Order of Preachers ( la, Ordo Praedicatorum) abbreviated OP, also known as the Dominicans, is a Catholic mendicant order of Pontifical Right for men founded in Toulouse, France, by the Spanish priest, saint and mystic Dominic of Cal ...

* Georges Cottier, official theologian to the Papal Household (under John Paul II), Secretary of the International Theological Commission *

Clemens August Graf von Galen Clemens Augustinus Emmanuel Joseph Pius Anthonius Hubertus Marie Graf von Galen (16 March 1878 – 22 March 1946), better known as ''Clemens August Graf von Galen'', was a German count, Bishop of Münster, and cardinal of the Catholic Churc ...

Bernard Genoud Bernard Genoud (22 February 1942 – 21 September 2010) was the bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Lausanne, Geneva and Fribourg from his appointment on 18 March 1999, until his death on 21 September 2010. He was consecrated bishop on 24 May 19 ...

, Bishop of Geneva, Lausanne and Fribourg *

Basil Hume George Basil Hume OSB OM (2 March 1923 – 17 June 1999) was an English Catholic bishop. He was a monk and priest of the English Benedictine monastery of Ampleforth Abbey and its abbot for 13 years until his appointment as Archbishop of Wes ...

, former

archbishop of Westminster The Archbishop of Westminster heads the Roman Catholic Diocese of Westminster, in England. The incumbent is the metropolitan of the Province of Westminster, chief metropolitan of England and Wales and, as a matter of custom, is elected presid ...

* Franciszek Macharski, former archbishop of Cracow * Rupert Mayer Blessed, Jesuit critic of the Nationalist Socialist Regime * Peter Hildebrand Meienberg, East African missionary. *

Gaspard Mermillod Gaspard Mermillod (22 September 1824 – 23 February 1892) was a Swiss Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. Despite a lengthy investiture conflict with the Calvinist Canton of Geneva, he served as Bishop of Lausanne and Geneva from 1883 ...

, attended the Jesuit Seminary that was the forerunner of the university; Cardinal Beer takes its name from him * Aloisius Joseph Muench, Bishop of Fargo, North Dakota * Christoph Schönborn, Archbishop of

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

* Henri Schwery, Bishop of

Sion Sion may refer to * an alternative transliteration of Zion People * Sion (name) or Siôn, a Welsh and other given name and surname, including a list of people and fictional characters with the name * Shion or Sion, a Japanese given name Plac ...

* Angelo Scola, Patriarch of Venice *Prince Max von Sachsen, Bishop, Prince of

Saxony Saxony (german: Sachsen ; Upper Saxon: ''Saggsn''; hsb, Sakska), officially the Free State of Saxony (german: Freistaat Sachsen, links=no ; Upper Saxon: ''Freischdaad Saggsn''; hsb, Swobodny stat Sakska, links=no), is a landlocked state of ...

and son of King George of Saxony and Donna Maria Anna, the Infanta of Portugal *Dom Henry Wansbrough OSB

Politics

* Elijah Malok Aleng, former Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Sudan and President of the Bank of Southern Sudan (2005–2011) *

Gerard Batliner Gerard Batliner (9 December 1928 – 25 June 2008) was a political figure from Liechtenstein. He was born in Eschen, Liechtenstein. He studied law at the University of Fribourg and was an attorney-at-law. Prime Minister of Liechtenstein Bat ...

, former Head of Government (Regierungschef) of Liechtenstein (1962–1970) *

Joseph Bech Joseph Bech (17 February 1887 – 8 March 1975)Thewes, Guy"Les gouvernements du Grand-Duché depuis 1848." Service information et presse. Luxembourg: Imprimerie Centrale, 2011. was a Luxembourgish politician and lawyer. He was the 15th Prime Mi ...

, Luxembourgian politician and 15th Prime Minister of

Luxembourg Luxembourg ( ; lb, Lëtzebuerg ; french: link=no, Luxembourg; german: link=no, Luxemburg), officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, ; french: link=no, Grand-Duché de Luxembourg ; german: link=no, Großherzogtum Luxemburg is a small lan ...

Juan Carlos I Juan Carlos I (;, * ca, Joan Carles I, * gl, Xoán Carlos I, Juan Carlos Alfonso Víctor María de Borbón y Borbón-Dos Sicilias, born 5 January 1938) is a member of the Spanish royal family who reigned as King of Spain from 22 Novem ...

King of Spain , coatofarms = File:Coat_of_Arms_of_Spanish_Monarch.svg , coatofarms_article = Coat of arms of the King of Spain , image = Felipe_VI_in_2020_(cropped).jpg , incumbent = Felipe VI , incumbentsince = 19 Ju ...

Corina Casanova Corina Casanova (born 4 January 1956) is a Swiss politician who was the Federal Chancellor of Switzerland between 2008 and 2015. Born in Ilanz, Graubünden, Casanova worked as a lawyer in the practice of the former President of the Swiss Federa ...

, Federal Chancellor of Switzerland 2008–2015 *

Enrico Celio Enrico Celio (19 June 1889 – 23 February 1980) was a Swiss lawyer, politician and journalist, a member of the Conservative Party, State Councilor and Federal Councilor. He was elected to the Federal Council of Switzerland on 22 February 1940 ...

President of the Swiss Confederation The president of the Swiss Confederation, also known as the president of the Confederation or colloquially as the president of Switzerland, is the head of Switzerland's seven-member Federal Council (Switzerland), Federal Council, the country's ...

1943, 1948 * Flavio Cotti,

1991, 1998 *

Joseph Deiss Joseph Deiss (born 18 January 1946) is a Swiss economist and politician who served as a Member of the Swiss Federal Council from 1999 to 2006. A member of the Christian Democratic People's Party (CVP/PDC), he first headed the Federal Departmen ...

, Federal Chancellor 1999–2006,

2004,

President of the United Nations General Assembly The president of the United Nations General Assembly is a position voted by representatives in the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) on a yearly basis. The president is the chair and presiding officer of the General Assembly. Election ...

2010–11 *

Kurt Furgler Kurt Furgler (24 June 1924 – 23 July 2008) was a Swiss politician and member of the Swiss Federal Council (1972–1986). He was elected to the Federal Council of Switzerland on 8 December 1971 and handed over office on 31 December 1986. He wa ...

1977, 1981 and 1985 * Martine Brunschwig Graf, Swiss politician, member of the Swiss National Council * Otmar Hasler, Prime Minister of Liechtenstein 2001–09 *

Hans Hürlimann Hans Hürlimann (6 April 1918 – 22 February 1994) was a Swiss politician and member of the Swiss Federal Council (1974–1982). He was elected to the Federal Council of Switzerland on 5 December 1973 and handed over office on 31 December 1982. ...

1979 *

Arnold Koller Arnold Koller (born 29 August 1933) is a Swiss politician and member of the Swiss Federal Council (1986–1999). He was elected to the Federal Council of Switzerland on 10 December 1986 as a member of the Christian Democratic People's Party of ...

1990, 1997 * Giuseppe Lepori, Federal Chancellor and Consigliere del popolo (M.P.) for

Ticino Ticino (), sometimes Tessin (), officially the Republic and Canton of Ticino or less formally the Canton of Ticino,, informally ''Canton Ticino'' ; lmo, Canton Tesin ; german: Kanton Tessin ; french: Canton du Tessin ; rm, Chantun dal Tessin . ...

Richard Thomas McCormack Richard T. McCormack is an American government official and diplomat. He has served nearly five decades advising policymakers on foreign affairs and global economic developments. He is currently a senior advisor for CSIS (Center for Strategic a ...

, US Ambassador to the Organization of American States 1985–1989, US Under Secretary of State for Economic and Agricultural Affairs 1989–1991 *

Ruth Metzler Ruth Metzler (born Arnold, 23 May 1964) is a Swiss politician who served as a Member of the Swiss Federal Council from 1999 to 2003. A member of the Christian Democratic People's Party (CVP/PDC), she headed the Federal Department of Justice and P ...

, Federal Chancellor, Member of the Swiss Federal Council 1999–2003, Vice President of the Swiss Confederation 2003 *

Stanisław Mieroszewski Count Stanisław Mieroszewski (Mieroszowski) (1827–1900) was a Polish-born politician, writer, historian and member of the Imperial Council of Austria. Life Mieroszewski was born on in Kraków. He was the son of a landowner. From 1843 to 18 ...

, member of the Imperial Council of Austria * Juli Minoves, Andorran ambassador, plenipotentiary, and political scientist *

Ignacy Mościcki Ignacy Mościcki (; 1 December 18672 October 1946) was a Polish chemist and politician who was the country's president from 1926 to 1939. He was the longest serving president in Polish history. Mościcki was the President of Poland when Germany ...

, President of Poland 1926–1939 *

Giuseppe Motta Giuseppe Motta (29 December 1871 – 23 January 1940) was a Swiss politician. He was a member of the Swiss Federal Council (1911–1940) and President of the League of Nations (1924–1925). He was a Catholic-conservative foreign minister and a s ...

, Federal Chancellor (Swiss Cabinet member) 1911–40 (

1915, '20, '27, '32, '37), President of the

League of Nations The League of Nations (french: link=no, Société des Nations ) was the first worldwide intergovernmental organisation whose principal mission was to maintain world peace. It was founded on 10 January 1920 by the Paris Peace Conference that ...

1924–25 *

Jean-Marie Musy Jean-Marie Musy (10 April 1876 – 19 April 1952) was a Swiss politician. Affiliated with the Christian Democratic People's Party of Switzerland, he was elected to the Federal Council of Switzerland on 11 December 1919 served until 30 April 193 ...

, Federal Chancellor, Member of the Swiss Federal Council * Albert Pintat, head of the government of

Andorra , image_flag = Flag of Andorra.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Andorra.svg , symbol_type = Coat of arms , national_motto = la, Virtus Unita Fortior, label=none (Latin)"United virtue is stro ...

Bill Press William H. Press (born April 8, 1940) is an American talk radio host, podcaster, liberal pundit and author. He was chairman of the California Democratic Party from 1993 to 1996, and is a senior political contributor on CNN. He hosts ''The Bill ...

, U.S. political commentator and former Chairman of the Democratic Party of

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

Simonetta Sommaruga Simonetta Myriam Sommaruga (born 14 May 1960) is a Swiss politician who has served as a Member of the Swiss Federal Council since 2010. A member of the Social Democratic Party (SP/PS), she was President of the Swiss Confederation in 2015 and 202 ...

, Member of the Swiss Federal Council 2010–present,

2015 *

Ludwig von Moos Ludwig von Moos (31 January 1910, in Sachseln – 26 November 1990, in Bern) was a Swiss politician and member of the Swiss Federal Council (1959–1971). Von Moos was a member of the cantonal government of Obwalden from 1946 to 1959. He was ele ...

1964, 1969 *

Chaim Weizmann Chaim Azriel Weizmann ( he, חיים עזריאל ויצמן ', russian: Хаим Евзорович Вейцман, ''Khaim Evzorovich Veytsman''; 27 November 1874 – 9 November 1952) was a Russian-born biochemist, Zionist leader and Israel ...

, first

President of Israel The president of the State of Israel ( he, נְשִׂיא מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, Nesi Medinat Yisra'el, or he, נְשִׂיא הַמְדִינָה, Nesi HaMedina, President of the State) is the head of state of Israel. The posi ...

* Sérgio Vieira de Mello, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights 2002-2003 and UN Special Representative for Iraq 2003

Business and economics

* Jean-Marie Ayer co-founder of Dartfish, chairman and CEO 1999–2003 *Albert M. Baehny, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Geberit Group since January 1, 2005 *Heinrich Burk, former CEO of

ACNielsen The Nielsen Corporation, self-referentially known as The Nielsen Company, and formerly known as ACNielsen or AC Nielsen, is a global marketing research firm, with worldwide headquarters in New York City, United States. Regional headquarters for ...

* Urs Felber, Swiss industrialist, philanthropist and design pioneer *

Stephan Klapproth Stephan Klapproth (born 1958) is a Swiss journalist, television presenter and professor, who was from 1993 to 2015 the popular anchorman of the Swiss national evening news shows ''10vor10''. He also teaches journalism at the Universities of Fribo ...

, Swiss journalist and television presenter *Adolphe Merkle,Adolphe Merkle
/ref> founder of Vibro-Meter International AG, Adolphe Merkle Foundation * Marc Moret, former Chairman of Sandoz, uncle of

Daniel Vasella Daniel Lucius Vasella (born 15 August 1953) is a Swiss medical doctor, author, and executive who served as CEO and chairman of the Swiss pharmaceutical company Novartis AG, the world's fifth largest drug company. During his tenure Novartis shares f ...

's wife * Klaus Martin Schwab, German economist, the founder and executive chairman of the

World Economic Forum The World Economic Forum (WEF) is an international non-governmental and lobbying organisation based in Cologny, canton of Geneva, Switzerland. It was founded on 24 January 1971 by German engineer and economist Klaus Schwab. The foundation, ...

Arthur Dunkel Arthur Dunkel (26 August 1932 – 8 June 2005) was a Swiss (Portuguese-born) administrator. He served as director-general of General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade between 1980 and 1993. Dunkel was educated at the Graduate Institute of Interna ...

(1932–2005), Swiss (Portuguese-born) administrator and a professor at the University of Fribourg; director-general of

General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) is a legal agreement between many countries, whose overall purpose was to promote international trade by reducing or eliminating trade barriers such as tariffs or quotas. According to its pre ...

, 1980–1993

Sports

René Fasel René Fasel (born 6 February 1950) is a Swiss retired ice hockey administrator. He served as president of the International Ice Hockey Federation from 1994 to 2021. He started his ice hockey career as a player for HC Fribourg-Gottéron, in 1960, ...

, president of the

International Ice Hockey Federation The International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF; french: Fédération internationale de hockey sur glace; german: Internationale Eishockey-Föderation) is a worldwide governing body for ice hockey. It is based in Zurich, Switzerland, and has 83 m ...

Gianni Infantino Giovanni Vincenzo Infantino (; born 23 March 1970) is a Swiss football administrator with Italian citizenship and the current president of FIFA. He was elected President of FIFA during the 2016 FIFA Extraordinary Congress in February 2016. He ...

, current

FIFA FIFA (; stands for ''Fédération Internationale de Football Association'' ( French), meaning International Association Football Federation ) is the international governing body of association football, beach football and futsal. It was found ...

president

Architecture

Mario Botta Mario Botta (born 1 April 1943) is a Swiss architect. Career Botta designed his first building, a two-family house at Morbio Superiore in Ticino, at age 16. He graduated from the Università Iuav di Venezia (1969). While the arrangements of spa ...

, founder of the Academy of Architecture at Mendrisio (Honoris Causa)

Judiciary

* Giusep Nay, president of the Federal Supreme Court of Switzerland 2005–2006, 1988–2006 * Alois Pfister, member of the Federal Supreme Court of Switzerland * Antonin Gregory Scalia, U.S. Justice *

Luzius Wildhaber Luzius Wildhaber (18 January 1937, Basel, Switzerland – 22 July 2020) was a Swiss judge. He was the first president of the European Court of Human Rights in its new format after the ratification of Protocol 11, which opened up direct access ...

, Swiss judge; first President of the

European Court of Human Rights The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR or ECtHR), also known as the Strasbourg Court, is an international court of the Council of Europe which interprets the European Convention on Human Rights. The court hears applications alleging that a ...

Media

*Andrea Jansen, journalist, Swiss National Television

Arts

*Three of the members of the medieval ensemble

Freiburger Spielleyt Freiburger Spielleyt is a Swiss medieval music ensemble based in Freiburg, Germany, founded in 1990. "Spielleyt" is an archaic spelling of Spielleute, the German for medieval players. The members of the group were drawn from students at the Univers ...

are graduates of the university's early music program.

Royalty

Karl Friedrich, Prince of Hohenzollern , succession = Prince of Hohenzollern , image = Karl Friedrich von Hohenzollern (2012).jpg , caption = Karl Friedrich in 2012 , reign = 16 September 2010 – present , reign-type = Tenure , predecessor = ...

Image:Aula_Magna_(Great_Hall).jpg, Aula Magna (Great Hall) Image:University of Fribourg CEntral Library, CH.jpg, BCU, University of Fribourg Image:Pavillion_of_Musicology.jpg, Pavilion of Musicology

Notes and references

External links

*
Information's about the University of Fribourg
* Se
Master of Laws in Cross-Cultural Business Practice
the University of Fribourg's new LL.M Programme {{DEFAULTSORT:Fribourg, University Of Educational institutions established in 1889 Public universities Buildings and structures in the canton of Fribourg

University of Fribourg The University of Fribourg (french: Université de Fribourg; german: Universität Freiburg) is a public university located in Fribourg, Switzerland. The roots of the university can be traced back to 1580, when the notable Jesuit Peter Canisius ...

1889 establishments in Switzerland