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National Autonomous University of Mexico

Coordinates: 19°19′44″N 99°11′14″W / 19.32889°N 99.18722°W / 19.32889; -99.18722
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Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México
National Autonomous University of Mexico
Official seal
MottoPor mi raza hablará el espíritu
("The spirit will speak for my people")
TypePublic university
EstablishedSeptember 22, 1910 [1][2][3][4][5]
PresidentJosé Narro Robles
Students286,484[6]
Undergraduates158,824 (2006)[6]
Postgraduates20,747 (2006)[6]
Location
Mexico City
,
 Mexico

19°19′44″N 99°11′14″W / 19.32889°N 99.18722°W / 19.32889; -99.18722
CampusUrban, 7.3 km² (1,803.86 acres), main campus only
ColorsBlue & Gold   
MascotCougar
Websitewww.unam.mx
"UNAM" redirects here. For other uses, see UNAM (disambiguation).

The National Autonomous University of Mexico (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.[citation needed]

Besides being one of the most recognized universities in Latin America, it is one of the largest and the most artistically detailed, being its main campus a World Heritage site. It was designed by some of the best Mexican architects of 20th Century and the murals in the main campus were painted by some of the most recognized artists in Mexican history, such as Diego Rivera and Siqueiros.

History

Justo Sierra, founder.

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 Juárez 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.[citation needed] 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.

Palacio de la Autonomía, located off Moneda Street east of the Zocalo.

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 2 held demonstrations in the Campus, and this issue was part of the spirit of the most recent student strike in 1999.[citation needed]

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

Main article: Ciudad Universitaria
The main campus in Mexico 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, Xochimilco 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

Colegio de Minería (College of Mining) building on Tacuba street in the historic center of Mexico City.

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

The Faculty of Sciences.

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

Main article: National Astronomical Observatory (Mexico)

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

The Rectorate tower.

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)

The Central Library.
Mural by David Alfaro Siqueiros

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

Its San Pedro Mártir Observatory in Baja California.

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), [citation needed] 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.[citation needed]

As for basic sciences, UNAM currently has two Howard Hughes Medical Institute Scholars and endowment from the NIH extramural research program.[citation needed]

Students and faculty

Sports, clubs, and traditions

Professional football team

File:Unam estadio twilight.jpg
A view of UNAM's Olympic Stadium

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 throughout Mexico as very politically aware and sometimes too politically active. While most of its students usually adhere to left-wing political ideologies and movements, the University has also been the alma mater of a number of prominent right-wing and neo-liberal politicians such as Carlos Salinas de Gortari and Manuel Gómez Morín.

Student Associations

The UNAM is made up of several associations of current and ex - alumni that provide extra-curricular activities to the whole community, enriching the University's activities with cultural, social and scientific events.

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:

A bicycle jail at the Faculty of Philosophy and Letters.

Presidents of Mexico and other Nations

Politicians

Diplomats

Artists, writers and humanists

Physicians and surgeons

Scientists

Tycoons

Sports stars

  • 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

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. ^ a b c Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México. "UNAM Through Time". Later, on April 26, [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 22. The universities of Salamanca, Paris and Berkeley were its 'godmothers'. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  2. ^ a b c 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. ^ a b c 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. ^ a b c 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 1865, 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.
  5. ^ 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. ^ a b c DGPL UNAM. (2006). Agenda estadística 2006. Población escolar 2005-2006. [2007]
  7. ^ http://www.deportes.unam.mx/?option=com_content&task=view&id=17&Itemid=38
  8. ^ Preston, Julia (2000-01-20). "University, Mexico's Pride, Is Ravaged by Strike". {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  9. ^ a b 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. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  10. ^ a b 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. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  11. ^ http://info4.juridicas.unam.mx/unijus/cmp/leguniv/198-1.pdf%7CReglamento del escudo y lema de la Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México
  12. ^ UNESCO
  13. ^ Contenidos versión imprimible
  14. ^ "THES - QS World University Rankings 2008 - Top 200 Universities". 2008. Retrieved 2008-10-10. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |autor= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  15. ^ a b Institute of Higher Education (2008-08-15). "Top 500 World Universities (101-200)". Shanghai Jiao Tong University. Retrieved 2008-09-24.
  16. ^ Noticias - En Día de Muertos en la UNAM imponen récord; decenas de calles del DF tienen nombres alusivos a La Catrina
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