The University of Antioquia ( es, Universidad de Antioquia), also called UdeA, 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 ''Öffentlichk ...

departmental ''Departmental'' is a 1980 Australian TV movie based on a play by Mervyn Rutherford. It was part of the ABC's Australian Theatre Festival.Ed. Scott Murray, ''Australia on the Small Screen 1970-1995'', Oxford Uni Press, 1996 p43 Reviews were poor ...

, coeducational,

research Research is " creative and systematic work undertaken to increase the stock of knowledge". It involves the collection, organization and analysis of evidence to increase understanding of a topic, characterized by a particular attentiveness ...

university located primarily in the city of Medellín, Antioquia, Colombia, with regional campuses in

Amalfi Amalfi (, , ) is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Salerno, in the region of Campania, Italy, on the Gulf of Salerno. It lies at the mouth of a deep ravine, at the foot of Monte Cerreto (1,315 metres, 4,314 feet), surrounded by dramati ...

Andes The Andes, Andes Mountains or Andean Mountains (; ) are the longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range is long, wide (widest between 18°S – 20°S ...

, Caucasia, Carmen de Viboral, Envigado, Puerto Berrío, Santa Fe de Antioquia,

Segovia Segovia ( , , ) is a city in the autonomous community of Castile and León, Spain. It is the capital and most populated municipality of the Province of Segovia. Segovia is in the Inner Plateau ('' Meseta central''), near the northern slopes of t ...

, Sonsón, Turbo and Yarumal. It is the oldest departmental university in Colombia, founded in 1803 by a Royal Decree issued by King Charles IV of Spain under the name Franciscan College ( es, Colegio de Franciscanos). It is considered one of Colombia's best universities, receiving a high quality accreditation from the

Ministry of Education An education ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for education. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of Education, Department of Education, and Ministry of Pub ...

for 9 years. Along with the University of the Andes, the two universities hold the second longest term, behind the National University of Colombia. UdeA and the Tecnológico de Antioquia have the largest number of seats in the department of Antioquia. It is also renowned for its prestigious Faculty of Medicine, which is acknowledged as one of the best medical schools in Colombia. The university is a member of the

Association of Colombian Universities The Association of Colombian Universities ( es, Asociación Colombiana de Universidades), also known as ASCUN, is a non-profit, non-governmental organization, that congregates the public and private Colombian universities. Its primary objectives ...

(ASCUN), the Iberoamerican Association of Postgraduate Universities (AUIP), and the network Universia.

History

Founding

Real Cedula del 9 de febrero de 1801-UdeA

The University of Antioquia was preceded by the Franciscan College ( es, Colegio de Franciscanos), which was founded in 1803 after King Charles IV of Spain issued the Royal Decree of February 9, 1801, allowing the establishment of a college-convent in Villa de la Candelaria, present day Medellín. The first classes were held in March 1803, in

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

and philosophy. On June 20, 1803, the council of Medellín bought land for the main building and construction started in August. The structure is known as the San Ignacio building ( es, Edificio San Ignacio) In 1822, once independence from Spain was consolidated, the Vice President of the Republic of Colombia Francisco de Paula Santander promoted the establishment of a new educational plan for the institution and, five years later, president Simón Bolívar allowed instruction in law. During a great part of the 19th century, the country faced political and armed struggles and the university was closed and occupied by belligerents impeding the institution's development.

20th century

Once the

Thousand Days' War The Thousand Days' War ( es, Guerra de los Mil Días) was a civil war fought in Colombia from 17 October 1899 to 21 November 1902, at first between the Liberal Party and the government led by the National Party, and later – after the Conser ...

was over, the country experienced stability and the university grew. In the first thirty years the university reorganized its curriculum, redesigned some of the buildings, acquired bibliographic material and employed renowned professors. University City ( es, Ciudad Universitaria) was built in the 1960s with debt and international aid. This allowed the increase in the numbers of both students and professors and the creation of new faculties and academic programs.

Today

UdeA started in the mid-1990s a regionalization program to offer higher education in other municipalities within the department of Antioquia, reaching 11 regional campuses outside of Medellín. In 2004 the university established the University Research Headquarters ( es, Sede de Investigación Universitaria (SIU)) an advanced project to promote a qualitative and quantitative transformation of its research system. Through the SIU, the university plans to contribute to society by using research, innovation and technological development for the construction of a fairer and more competitive Colombia.

Campus

The university spreads across Medellín, while University City is the main campus. The other Medellín campuses are the Citadel Robledo and the Health Area. The San Ignacio Building is located in the downtown area. Eleven regional campuses are located outside the city.

Medellín

University City

Built in the 1960s with an area of , University City is the main campus of the university. The campus contains eight faculties, three schools, three institutes and the Administrative Building ( es, Edificio Administrativo). It hosts the University Museum ( es, Museo Universitario), the University Theater( es, Teatro Universitario), the Central Library ( es, Biblioteca Central) and the Sport Unit ( es, Unidad Deportiva). UdeA-CorredorBloque44

Citadel Robledo

With an area of , Citadel Robledo hosts the Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, the School of Nutrition, Veterinary Clinic and the Institute of Physical Education. The campus library is widely known for its collections in veterinary medicine and zootechnics. It also contains a sport unit with two football pitches, a pool, two basketball/futsal courts and a handball court. UdeA-FacultadMedicinaFachada

Health area

This area hosts the nursing, dentistry, medicine and public health faculties, near the

St Vincent de Paul Vincent de Paul, CM (24 April 1581 – 27 September 1660), commonly known as Saint Vincent de Paul, was a Occitan French Catholic priest who dedicated himself to serving the poor. In 1622 Vincent was appointed a chaplain to the galleys. After ...

University Hospital ( es, Hospital Universitario San Vicente de Paúl).

San Ignacio Building

The historical campus of the university was declared a national monument in 1982. It hosts seven exhibition halls, ten lecture rooms, one movie theater, two computer labs, one restaurant, one multipurpose room and one auditorium.

Regional campuses

In the 1990s the university started a regionalization plan to increase access to higher education across the department. The university opened campuses in

, Caucasia, Carmen de Viboral, Envigado, Puerto Berrío, Santa Fe de Antioquia,

, Sonsón, Turbo and Yarumal, covering all of the subregions of Antioquia. In 2011, the Ministry of Education gave UdeA the award for the best regionalization experience in higher education.

Governance

The Superior University Council ( es, Consejo Superior Universitario) is the university's governing body. It is formed by the

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

of Antioquia who is the president of the SUC, the Minister of Education or his delegate, a representative of the President of Colombia, a dean elected as the representative of the Academic Council, a representative of the professors, a representative of the students, an alumnus, a representative of the industry, an ex-rector of the university and the rector (non-voting). The Academic Council ( es, Consejo Académico) is the highest academic body of the university. It is formed by the rector, who is the president of the AC; vice-rectors of Investigation, Teaching, Extension and Administration; deans of each faculty; a representative of the professors and a student representative. The rector is the legal representative and top executive of the university. He is responsible for academic and administrative management. He is not permitted to take another job in the private or public sector. He takes office before the President of the Superior University Council.

Academics

The university has 25 academic divisions at its flagship campus: UdeA-Bloque 19

The university offers 87 undergraduate degrees, 48 specializations, 41 medical specializations, 53 master's degrees and 22 doctoral degrees in Medellín. In the regional campuses, they offer 126 undergraduate degrees and two master's degrees. The UdeA has also a number of international partnerships, offering student exchange programs and some double degrees with foreign institutions, among them:

Politecnico di Torino The Polytechnic University of Turin ( it, Politecnico di Torino) is the oldest Italian public technical university. The university offers several courses in the fields of Engineering, Architecture, Urban Planning and Industrial Design, and is co ...

, Universidade de São Paulo, and

Politecnico di Milano The Polytechnic University of Milan () is the largest technical university in Italy, with about 42,000 students. The university offers undergraduate, graduate and higher education courses in engineering, architecture and design. Founded in 18 ...

Admission

Undergraduate education

The undergraduate admission is done through a knowledge test, which is conducted twice a year. The entrance examination is an instrument that measured some basic skills and knowledge that have been obtained is in high school. It is a general aptitude test and as such does not evaluate the applicant regarding the career you want to enter. The exam consists of two components, Reading Proficiency Test (Spanish) and Logical Reasoning Test (Mathematical Logic) and is equal to the candidates of all programs except for the Faculty of Arts. To be eligible you must pass a minimum cutoff score and also be within the number of seats available for each academic program. For each semester, the test is often extremely competitive, meaning that the selectivity in admission to each of the academic programs is very high, in some cases presenting the proportion of applicants admitted less than 10%.

Postgraduate education

In graduate school admission is as complex as in the undergraduate. For general graduate requirements differ depending on the title to obtain and the academic unit in which you want to be done. In general at all levels requires the mastery of a foreign language and there are different requirements such as exams, interviews, proposed work and / or research, undergraduate grades, publications, awards, honors, work experience, research experience, participation in events, presentations, and more.

Research

The university has 228 research groups in the categories established by

Colciencias The Administrative Department of Science, Technology and Innovation ( es, Departamento Administrativo de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación), also known as Colciencias, is a Colombian government agency that supports fundamental and applied researc ...

(A1, A, B, C and D). In 2006, the university provided an investment of about $145 billion COP for research. The majority of the excellence groups (A1, A and B) are concentrated at University Research Headquarters ( es, Sede de Investigación Universitaria -SIU-) an advanced project created by the university to promote a qualitative and quantitative transformation of its research system.. The SIU supports currently 36 research groups that are classified by Colciencias as categories A and B, working in diverse areas such as biotechnology, chemistry, materials science, genetics, environment, immunology, infectious and tropical diseases. Along with providing facilities for the development of scientific and technological projects, the SIU encourages promotes interdepartmental research and cooperation with the larger research community.

Student life

University athletes compete in the West division of ASCUN-Deportes, along with 24 institutions from Antioquia. The games at the division phase qualify teams for national competition. The university offers training and has varsity teams in

aikido Aikido ( , , , ) is a modern Japanese martial art that is split into many different styles, including Iwama Ryu, Iwama Shin Shin Aiki Shuren Kai, Shodokan Aikido, Yoshinkan, Renshinkai, Aikikai and Ki Aikido. Aikido is now practiced in aroun ...

chess Chess is a board game for two players, called White and Black, each controlling an army of chess pieces in their color, with the objective to checkmate the opponent's king. It is sometimes called international chess or Western chess to dist ...

track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping eve ...

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

cycling Cycling, also, when on a two-wheeled bicycle, called bicycling or biking, is the use of cycles for transport, recreation, exercise or sport. People engaged in cycling are referred to as "cyclists", "bicyclists", or "bikers". Apart from t ...

climbing Climbing is the activity of using one's hands, feet, or any other part of the body to ascend a steep topographical object that can range from the world's tallest mountains (e.g. the eight thousanders), to small boulders. Climbing is done ...

, football,

futsal Futsal is a football-based game played on a hard court smaller than a football pitch, and mainly indoors. It has similarities to five-a-side football and indoor football. Futsal is played between two teams of five players each, one of whom is ...

gymnastics Gymnastics is a type of sport that includes physical exercises requiring balance, strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, dedication and endurance. The movements involved in gymnastics contribute to the development of the arms, legs, s ...

judo is an unarmed modern Japanese martial art, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyclopedia Nipponica, "Judo"). ...

, karate, weightlifting,

swimming Swimming is the self-propulsion of a person through water, or other liquid, usually for recreation, sport, exercise, or survival. Locomotion is achieved through coordinated movement of the limbs and the body to achieve hydrodynamic thrust that r ...

rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In it ...

softball Softball is a game similar to baseball played with a larger ball on a smaller field. Softball is played competitively at club levels, the college level, and the professional level. The game was first created in 1887 in Chicago by George Hanc ...

taekwondo ''Taekwondo'', ''Tae Kwon Do'' or ''Taekwon-Do'' (; ko, 태권도/跆拳道 ) is a Korean martial arts, Korean form of martial arts involving punching and kicking techniques, with emphasis on head-height kicks, spinning jump kicks, and fast k ...

tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...

, table tennis,

triathlon A triathlon is an endurance multisport race consisting of swimming, cycling, and running over various distances. Triathletes compete for fastest overall completion time, racing each segment sequentially with the time transitioning between the ...

, ultimate,

volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Sum ...

, and underwater rugby. The university supports student groups and organizations involved in academic, art, ecological, social and sports activities. Three cultural groups are administered by the university (academic divisions can run their own groups, however). The three are the Folk Dances Group, the Traditional Student Music Group and the Club of Singers.

Alumni

Former students and professors of the university include former presidents Álvaro Uribe Vélez,

Mariano Ospina Pérez Luis Mariano Ospina Pérez (24 November 1891 – 14 April 1976), commonly known as Mariano Ospina Pérez, was a Colombian politician and a member of the Colombian Conservative Party. He served as the 17th President of Colombia between 194 ...

, Carlos E. Restrepo, Liborio Mejía and Mariano Ospina Rodríguez; writers Tomás Carrasquilla,

Fernando González Fernando Francisco González Ciuffardi (; born 29 July 1980) is a Chilean former professional tennis player. During his career he made it to at least the quarterfinals of all four Grand Slam tournaments. He played his only major final at the ...

and

Gonzalo Arango Gonzalo Arango Arias (Andes, Antioquia, 1931 – Gachancipá, Cundinamarca, 1976) was a Colombian writer, poet, and journalist. In 1958 he led a modern literary and cultural movement known as Nadaísmo (Nothing-''ism''), inspired by surr ...

; and politicians Carlos Gaviria Díaz and Fabio Valencia Cossio.