A short history of the UvA
The predecessor of the University of Amsterdam, the Athenaeum Illustre, was founded in Amsterdam in 1632 to educate students in Trade and Philosophy. Lessons were generally given at the professors' homes, as the establishment was not yet a proper university.
The Athenaeum remained a small institution until the nineteenth century, with no more than 250 students and eight teachers. The situation changed in 1877 when the Athenaeum Illustre became the University of Amsterdam (UvA) and was permitted to confer the highest educational degrees.
Years of rapid growth lay ahead. There were 900 students at the University of Amsterdam by 1900. This figure had risen to 2,500 by 1935, and to 7,500 by 1960. More fields of study and research were introduced and new university departments established.
Currently, there are more than 30,000 students at the University of Amsterdam and 5,000 staff. The University has seven faculties spanning the humanities, the social and behavioural sciences, economics and business, law, the natural sciences, medicine and dentistry.
Identity
The University of Amsterdam (UvA) has a rich history dating back to 1632, when its forerunner, the Golden Age school Athenaeum Illustre, was established.
Today, with some 30,000 students, 5,000 staff, more than 100 nationalities and a budget of more than 600 million euros, it is one of the largest comprehensive universities in Europe.
Teaching and research
Teaching and research at the UvA are conducted at seven faculties: Humanities, Social and Behavioural Sciences, Economics and Business, Law, Science, Medicine and Dentistry. Housed on four city campuses in or near the heart of Amsterdam, where disciplines come together and interact, the faculties have close links with thousands of researchers and hundreds of institutions at home and abroad.
Some 10,000 academic publications by UvA staff are published every year. In many fields, the UvA’s fundamental research is ranked among the world’s best. Its diverse application-oriented research programmes are often multidisciplinary and focused on societal issues.
The UvA community consists of independent thinkers who dare to question dogmas and openly challenge each other’s opinions.
Mission
The UvA is a broad, research-intensive institution rooted in the history of Amsterdam, an internationally oriented academic community that can compete with leading universities in the Netherlands and around the world. The UvA provides academic training in all areas of science and scholarship, and welcomes students and staff – from all backgrounds, cultures and faiths – who wish to devote their talents to the development and transfer of academic knowledge as a rich cultural resource and foundation for sustainable progress.
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