| University of Amsterdam | |
|---|---|
| Universiteit van Amsterdam | |
 | |
| Latin: Athenaeum Illustre | |
| Established | 1632/1877 |
| Type | Public |
| President | Prof.dr Karel van der Toorn |
| Rector Magnificus | Prof. Dymph van den Boom |
| Faculty | 2,336 (2008)[1] |
| Staff | 3,996 (2008)[2] |
| Students | 28,331 (2008)[3] |
| Location | Amsterdam, Netherlands |
| Website | www.uva.nl |
The University of Amsterdam (Dutch: Universiteit van Amsterdam) is a comprehensive research university located in the heart of the city of Amsterdam, Netherlands. With a budget of €487 million[4], over 28,000 students and around 5,000 staff, the UvA is one of the major universities in Europe. There are seven faculties: Humanities, Social and Behavioral sciences, Economy, Law, Science, Medicine and Dentistry. It has a strong internationalization programme and offers over 85 English Master programmes taught in English, as well as a number of Dutch and English language courses. The University of Amsterdam (UvA) should not be confused with Amsterdam's other university, the VU University. In 2006, the UvA joined the League of European Research Universities (LERU). The universities work together to invest in European 'centres of excellence', with the aim of maintaining Europe's strong position in the global knowledge economy.
History
Athenaeum
The commonly-held predecessor of the University of Amsterdam, the Athenaeum Illustre (Latin - the illustrious Athenaeum) was founded in the 14th-century Agnietenkapel in Amsterdam in 1632, to educate students in History and Philosophy. Professors lectured publicly and tutored privately. In January 1632 two internationally acclaimed scholars, Caspar Barlaeus and Gerardus Vossius, held their inaugural speeches here. In the course of the seventeenth century, Law, Medicine and Theology were introduced in the curriculum. Alumni (whilst it was still the Athenaeum) include Cornelis Petrus Tiele.
Municipal university
The Athenaeum remained a small institution until the nineteenth century, with no more than 250 students and eight teachers. This situation changed only slowly. In 1815 the Athenaeum Illustre was officially recognised as an institute of higher education. In 1877, Athenuem Illustre is reorganised to become the university of the municipality of Amsterdam. It became the Gemeentelijke Universiteit van Amsterdam (GU or 'Municipal University') and it received the right to confer doctoral degrees. The professors were appointed by the city council and the mayor presided over the university administration. Because the Amsterdam city council was noted for its progressive politics this scheme guaranteed a large degree of intellectual freedom for the university.
Universiteit van Amsterdam
Very little then changed until 1961, when the national government took control of financial responsibility. The university ceased to be the Gemeentelijke Universiteit and finally became the Universiteit van Amsterdam.
In 1969 the university became nationwide news when the university's administrative center at the Maagdenhuis was occupied by students who wanted more democratic influence. During the seventies and eighties the university was often the target of nationwide student actions.
Faculties
The UvA has seven faculties. Each faculty is headed by a dean. Teaching and research are carried out in various departments and institutes within the individual faculties.
Faculty of Dentistry
The Academic Centre for Dentistry in Amsterdam (Dutch: Faculteit der Tandheelkunde) (ACTA) was founded in 1984 through a merger of the two dentistry faculties of the Universiteit of Amsterdam and the Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam. ACTA conducts scientific research, teaches and provides patient care in the field of dentistry. ACTA is one of the largest dentistry education and training programmes in the world, with 540 staff members, an annual new-student enrolment of 128 and a total student body of 859.
Faculty of Economics and Business
The Faculty of Economics and Business (Dutch: Faculteit Economie en Bedrijfskunde) (FEB) was established in 1922. The FEB, which includes the Amsterdam School of Economics (ASE) and the Amsterdam Business School (ABS), currently has around 4,000 students and nearly 600 staff.
Faculty of Humanities
The Faculty of Humanities (Dutch: Faculteit der Geesteswetenschappen) (FGw) is divided into six departments:
- Dutch studies
- History, Archaeology and Area studies
- Language and Literature
- Media studies
- Philosophy
- Art, Religion and Cultural studies.
Around 6500 students follow the courses on offer, and there are 800 staff members.
Faculty of Law
The Faculty of Law (Dutch: Faculteit der Rechtsgeleerdheid) (FdR) is housed in the Oudemanhuispoort, a historic building dating from 1602 situated in the centre of Amsterdam. With 4000 students and 350 staff members, the Faculty of Law at the Universiteit van Amsterdam is one of the largest faculties in the Netherlands. The Faculty offers eight LLM programmes, of which two are taught in English. In addition the Faculty offers three advanced LLM programmes, which are all taught in English. Research at the Faculty is undertaken by five research institutes which specialise in the following areas: International law, Private law, Environmental law, Labour law and Information law.
Faculty of Medicine
The Faculty of Medicine (Dutch: Faculteit der Geneeskunde) (FdG), each year, approximately 350 first-year students begin their study of medicine at the Academic Medical Center. The first, four-year phase consists mainly of thematic teaching. The second, two-year phase consists of training - 'internships' - in- and outside of the AMC.
Faculty of Science
The Faculty of Science (Dutch: Faculteit der Natuurwetenschappen, Wiskunde en Informatica) (FNWI) is a leading centre of academic research and education. The Faculty of Science consists of four departments with 1200 researchers and lecturers, including 150 full- and part-time professors operating in ten research institutes. The main faculty buildings are located on the Science Park Amsterdam.
Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences
The Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences (Dutch: Faculteit der Maatschappij- en Gedragswetenschappen) (FMG) is the largest educational and research institution in the social and behavioural sciences in the Netherlands. Approximately 1,100 staff members contribute to the research and education programmes.
The Faculty is home to six departments: Political Science, Sociology and Anthropology, Communication Science, Psychology, Social Geography, Planning and International Development Studies, and Educational sciences.
Research institutes
Overview of University of Amsterdam research institutes:
- AMC Research Intitute (Medicine)
- Amsterdam Business School Research Institute
- Amsterdam Center for International Law
- Amsterdam Center for Language and Communication
- Amsterdam Centre for Conflict Studies
- Amsterdam Institute for Metropolitan and International Development Studies
- Amsterdam Institute for Private Law
- Amsterdam School for Cultural Analysis
- Amsterdam School for Social Science Research
- Amsterdam School of Communications Research
- Astronomical Institute Anton Pannekoek
- Centre for Environmental Law
- Hugo Sinzheimer Institute (Labour and Law)
- Informatics Institute
- Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics
- Institute for High Energy Physics
- Institute for Information Law
- Institute for Logic, Language and Computation
- Institute for Migration and Ethnic Studies
- Institute for Theoretical Pysics
- Institute of Culture and History
- Korteweg-De Vries Institute for Mathematics
- Leibniz Center for Law
- Psychology Research Institute
- Research Institute in Economics and Econometrics Amsterdam
- SCO-Kohnstamm Institute (Child rearing, education and child welfare)
- Swammerdam Institute for Life Sciences
- Tinbergen Institute (Economics)
- Van 't Hoff Institute for Molecular Sciences
- Van der Waals-Zeeman Institute (Condensed Matter Physics, Complex Soft Mattter and Quantum Gases-Atom Optics)
Notable professors
- Pieter Zeeman (1868–1943), Nobel Prize for Physics in 1902
- Johannes Diderik van der Waals (1837–1923), Nobel Prize for Physics in 1910
- Jacobus Henricus van 't Hoff (1852–1911), Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1901
Notable alumni
Politics
- Wubbo de Boer, president of OHIM
- Frits Bolkestein, former Minister of Defence and former European Commissioner for Internal Market & Services
- Els Borst, former Minister of Health, Welfare and Sport
- Jet Bussemaker, state secretary of Health, Welfare and Sport
- Jacqueline Cramer, Minister of Ministry of Housing, Spatial Planning and the Environment
- Frank Heemskerk, Minister of Foreign Trade within the Economic Affairs
- Ernst Hirsch Ballin, Minister of Justice
- Guusje ter Horst, Minister of the Interior and Kingdom Relations
- Ad Melkert, former Minister of Social Affairs and Employment and currently deputy director of UNDP
- Ronald Plasterk, Minister of Education, Culture and Science
Science
- Anton Pannekoek, Dutch communist and astrophysicist
- Luitzen Egbertus Jan Brouwer, mathematician
- Frits Zernike, Nobel Prize in Physics 1953
- Christiaan Eijkman, Nobel Prize in Medicine 1929
- M.A. Mendes de Leon, gynaecologist
- Hendrik de Wit, Dutch botanist
- Alec Jeffreys - Inventor of DNA fingerprinting.
Arts
- Menno ter Braak, writer
- Willem Frederik Hermans, writer
- J. Slauerhoff, writer
- Simon Vestdijk, writer
- Boudewijn Sirks, Roman law specialist
- Ien Ang, cultural analyst
Sports
- Max Euwe, World Chess Champion 1935–1937
International acclaim
On the 2009 THE–QS World University Rankings list (known from 2010 onwards as the QS World University Rankings), the University of Amsterdam was ranked inside the top 50 for the second time in six years. An overview:
| Year | Rank (Change) |
|---|---|
| 2004 | 98 |
| 2005 | 58 (▲ 40) |
| 2006 | 69 (▼ 11) |
| 2007 | 48 (▲ 21) |
| 2008 | 53 (▼ 5) |
| 2009 | 49 (▲ 4) |
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