University of Athens

The idea of establishing a University in Greece emerged alongside the Greek War of Independence, also known as the Greek Revolution. The National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, officially founded on April 14th, 1837, is the first University of Greece and the Balkan peninsula, and the Eastern Mediterranean region.
The National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA), which recently celebrated 180 years since its foundation, is the oldest University in Greece and the first Higher Education Institution in the Balkan and Eastern Mediterranean areas.
NKUA has eight (8) Schools offering a range of study areas defined by great variety and scope. Students can currently choose among 33 bachelor's and 183 master's programs and pursue doctoral studies.
Thirty-nine thousand seven hundred eighty-nine undergraduates, 14,158 postgraduate students (at master level) and 8,753 Ph.D. candidates, as well as 5,727 registered international students, are pursuing their studies at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, supported by 1,643 professors, 402 other teaching and technical staff, as well as by 1.057 (administrative) staff members.
Education and research facilities are located in an area of 700.000 sq.m. We aim at our graduates' personal and professional success. We endeavor to make them highly employable and gain influence and respect in their interactions with academics, researchers, and the community in general.
One of our most important tasks is to train specialists to work in organizations and institutions operating in the economy, business, healthcare, the social sphere, etc. That's why the curriculum of our Departments is updated continuously, and significant educational and applied research activity takes place at the 76 University Clinics and the 210 laboratories distributed in almost all Departments of the University of Athens.
Since NKUA is a research university, all faculty and researchers are engaged in pushing the boundaries of knowledge in their wide-ranging fields of endeavor. We encourage our students to participate and excel in Olympiads and international competitions in scientific fields of their interest. They are also invited to actively participate — in and beyond classrooms, laboratories, libraries, and museums.
We believe that universities are about knowledge, innovation, as well as the pursuit of excellence.
More than 60,000 undergraduate and postgraduate students have selected to study in one of our 33 Departments distributed to eight Schools. 143 Master programs are offered covering a variety of scientific fields and arts. Four of these postgraduate programs are offered in cooperation with major research institutes like the Biomedical Sciences Research Center "Alexander Fleming", the National Center for Scientific Research (NCSR) "Demokritos", the Greek Atomic Energy Commission, etc.
A total number of 210 University Laboratories are distributed in all relevant Schools serving educational and fundamental and applied research purposes. Clinical research and education are also carried out at the 76 clinics of the School of Health Science. They operate in Athens hospitals (Attikon, Evangelismos, Hippokrateion, Laikon, etc.) or at the premises of the related Academic Departments.
The National and Kapodistrian University of Athens is the largest state institution of higher learning in Greece and among Europe's largest universities. Like all other Greek universities, it is a self-governed legal entity of public law, and all major policy issues are determined by the Ministry of National Education and Religion. Retaining its academic autonomy, it fully respects the constitutionally secured right to everyone for free education. This is possible because the state funds it. Moreover, It is progressively succeeding to benefit from its property and legacies and the funding of research projects with national and international partners. All funds are invested in the management and operation of educational, research, and cultural programs, student and staff services, and grants.
With a student body of about 125000 undergraduate and postgraduate students, over 2000 academic staff members, and approximately 1300 administrative and secretarial staff and specialized personnel, the University of Athens aims at excellence in both teaching and research in a significantly varied range of disciplines.
The Faculties and their respective Departments, functioning within the eight larger academic units entitled Schools, as well as several independent Faculties, offer a wide range of undergraduate courses, leading to a Diploma equivalent to a Bachelor of Arts or Sciences degree (Ptychio in Greek), after a minimum of four years of studies. Moreover, intra- and inter-Departmental programs offer an expanding range of taught and research-based postgraduate degrees.
Facilities for academic work and research are growing fast. However, because of the low ratio between academic staff and students in many Departments, presently, the possibilities for individualized attention to students and project work are limited, particularly in the humanities and social sciences. The Ministry of Education determines the number of Greek and international students admitted as full-time students each year. However, Faculties and their academic staff decide on the number of European students on mobility programs each semester.
International students are welcome at the University of Athens and, in recent years, the number of non-Greek nationals studying in the various Faculties has increased. Some of them are enrolled as full-time students in undergraduate or postgraduate programs. In contrast, others are exchange students, studying at the University of Athens for one or two semesters and participating more or less actively in its academic life and the rich cultural life inside and outside the University. Indeed, many foreign and Greek students feel it is a privilege for them to live in the historic and cosmopolitan city of Athens and be studying in a university that has maintained its tradition and prestige for 180 years.