University of Buenos Aires
On the 12th of August 1821, Governor Martín Rodríguez signed a decree establishing the University of Buenos Aires. Antonio Sáenz became the first rector during the inaugural act that same day. The new institution absorbed existing schools to ensure immediate professionalism in teaching. Courses on mathematics and natural history moved from the Consulate of Buenos Aires into the university structure. Law professors joined from the Academia de Jurisprudencia to launch medical and legal degrees immediately. Francisco Javier Muñiz began pioneering work in paleontology while serving as dean of the Faculty of Medicine. Budget cuts under Juan Manuel de Rosas nearly closed the Department of Exact Sciences. Students decreased considerably when free access was suspended during his rule. The situation normalized after the Battle of Caseros in 1852 ended Rosas's power.
The Night of the Long Batons occurred on the 29th of July 1966 when state authorities violently removed students and faculty. Over 400 people were detained following student-led occupations of five faculties. Laboratories and libraries were destroyed by government forces during this crackdown. Hundreds of professors were fired or forced into exile within months afterward. An estimated 301 professors left Argentina including 215 researchers who fled persecution. Isabel Perón appointed fascist Alberto Ottalagano as interventor in 1974 despite autonomy laws. Up to 4000 professors were fired during Ottalagano's administration alone. Four students disappeared under state terror between 1974 and 1976. The dictatorship burned up to 90,000 books published by Eudeba university press. State security forces placed all buildings under surveillance throughout the military regime.
Decree 29.337 made public universities completely free of cost starting in November 1949. Enrollment grew from 12,000 students in 1935 to 71,823 by 1955. Tuition fees from postgraduate programs fund the social mission for undergraduate education. All undergraduates receive free tuition regardless of nationality since 1949. The Ciclo Básico Com Common Basic Cycle replaced entrance exams in 1985 to level the playing field. UBA XXII allows prisoners enrolled at federal prisons to study graduate courses while deprived of freedom. The Faculty of Economic Sciences maintains a 30 percent rate of international postgraduate students. Just over 4 percent of current undergraduates are foreigners seeking degrees abroad. Postgraduate enrollment reaches 15 percent foreign student participation across all faculties.
Ricardo Gelpi has served as rector since 2022 following democratic elections every four years. The Consejo Superior includes twenty-nine members representing professors students and graduates. Each faculty elects its own dean through similar democratic processes with eight professor representatives. Four student representatives and four graduate representatives sit on directive councils within each faculty. Thirteen autonomous faculties operate independently throughout Buenos Aires without a single unified campus. Ciudad Universitaria complex houses exact sciences architecture design and urbanism departments along banks of Río de la Plata. The Faculty of Economic Sciences enrolls over 36,000 students making it the largest constituent college. Faculty of Medicine attracted 17,004 new enrollees in 2018 compared to 7,584 from economic sciences that same year. Student unions called Centro de Estudiantes organize into Federación Universitaria de Buenos Aires for collective representation.
Bernardo Houssay won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1947 while working at UBA-affiliated institutes. César Milstein received his degree from Exact and Natural Sciences before winning another Nobel in 1984. Luis Federico Leloir earned his medicine degree in 1932 then discovered metabolic pathways in lactose. Cecilia Berdichevsky created Clementina as a pioneering computer scientist graduating from FCEN UBA. Juan Martín Maldacena became a physicist known globally for theoretical work after earning degrees here. Graciela Boente researched robust statistics while Alberto Calderón co-created Chicago School hard analysis. Patricia Ortúzar serves as vice chair of Antarctic Committee for Environmental Protection with her geography background. Tristan Bekinschtein holds Turing Fellow status and lectures at Cambridge University after graduating from FCEN. Marta Graciela Rovira leads Argentina's National Atomic Energy Commission as first female president.
Seventeen Argentine presidents attended the University of Buenos Aires including Carlos Pellegrini and Raúl Alfonsín. Marcelo T. de Alvear graduated alongside Leopoldo Melo from the Faculty of Law class of 1891. Alberto Fernández taught criminal law courses at graduate level before becoming president himself. José Pedro Montero served as twenty-seventh president of Paraguay after studying at UBA. Ernesto Che Guevara enrolled at Faculty of Medicine in 1948 before his revolutionary career. Luis Moreno Ocampo earned his law degree in 1978 to become Chief Prosecutor International Criminal Court. Enrique S. Petracchi and Carlos Fayt both served on Supreme Court of Argentina as alumni. María Fernanda Ceriani worked as molecular biologist while studying at university. Alicia Jurado wrote biographies of William Henry Hudson and Jorge Luis Borges after natural sciences graduation.
The Centro Cultural Ricardo Rojas hosts exhibitions and performances managed by the university directly. Radio Universidad broadcasts academic content on FM 87.9 MHz frequency since the 20th of December 2005. Julio Cortázar began philosophy studies aged eighteen though financial woes prevented completion. Samanta Schweblin studied film design at UBA before publishing acclaimed novels internationally. Clorindo Testa designed brutalist structures earning architecture degrees in 1948 from FADU faculty. Rafael Viñoly created Cero+infinito building completed within Ciudad Universitaria complex in 2022. The University Symphony Orchestra performs regularly under university administration oversight. Eudeba operates as Argentina's largest university press distributing thousands of titles annually. Sixteen museums fall under direct management of the institution across Buenos Aires city limits. Cosmos Cinema screens independent films alongside traditional programming for student audiences.
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Common questions
When was the University of Buenos Aires established and who signed the decree?
The University of Buenos Aires was established on the 12th of August 1821 when Governor Martín Rodríguez signed a decree. Antonio Sáenz became the first rector during the inaugural act that same day.
What happened to students and faculty during the Night of the Long Batons in 1966?
State authorities violently removed students and faculty on the 29th of July 1966 during the Night of the Long Batons. Over 400 people were detained following student-led occupations of five faculties while laboratories and libraries were destroyed by government forces.
How many autonomous faculties operate independently throughout Buenos Aires at the University of Buenos Aires?
Thirteen autonomous faculties operate independently throughout Buenos Aires without a single unified campus. Ciudad Universitaria complex houses exact sciences architecture design and urbanism departments along banks of Río de la Plata.
Which Nobel Prize winners worked or studied at the University of Buenos Aires?
Bernardo Houssay won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1947 while working at UBA-affiliated institutes. César Milstein received his degree from Exact and Natural Sciences before winning another Nobel in 1984.
Who are notable alumni who served as presidents or held high office after attending the University of Buenos Aires?
Seventeen Argentine presidents attended the University of Buenos Aires including Carlos Pellegrini and Raúl Alfonsín. José Pedro Montero served as twenty-seventh president of Paraguay after studying at UBA.