The University of Guadalajara (Spanish: Universidad de Guadalajara, UdeG) is a public research university located in Guadalajara, Jalisco. It was originally established in 1586 and officially founded on 12 February 1791 as the Royal and Pontifical University of Guadalajara. Over the centuries, it has evolved into one of Mexico's leading educational institutions.
The university operates multiple high schools, as well as undergraduate and graduate campuses, which are distributed throughout the state of Jalisco. It is widely regarded as the most significant university in the region. Based on its foundation date, it is the second-oldest university in Mexico, the seventeenth-oldest in North America, and the fourteenth-oldest in Latin America.
Since 1994, the University of Guadalajara has operated under a network model to organize its academic activities. This university network comprises 15 university centers, the Virtual University System, the High School Education System, and the university's general administrative body. During the 2014–2015 academic year, the university had a total enrollment of 255,944 students, including 116,424 undergraduate and graduate students and 139,520 high school students.
History
The Royal University of Guadalajara (1791–1821)
At the time of its foundation in 1586, the college began offering higher education in Guadalajara, making it the first institution in the region to grant academic degrees. The first recorded request to establish a university in Guadalajara was made in 1696 by Friar Felipe Galindo y Chávez, who petitioned King Charles II of Spain to expand the recently founded Royal Seminary of San José. This initiated a century-long process that ultimately led to the establishment of the University of Guadalajara. Chronologically, the university is the second-oldest in Mexico, the seventeenth-oldest in North America, and the fourteenth-oldest in Latin America.
The proposal by Friar Felipe Galindo y Chávez was reconsidered by lawyer Matías Ángel de la Mota Padilla, who, in 1750, successfully involved Guadalajara's city hall in the project. However, the need for a university in Nueva Galicia became more pressing after the expulsion of the Jesuit Order from all Spanish territories in 1767. The Jesuits had managed the two most important colleges in the city: Santo Tomás College and San Juan Bautista College, leaving a significant gap in higher education.
On 12 December 1771, Friar Antonio Alcalde y Barriga arrived in Guadalajara as the new Bishop of Nueva Galicia. He became a key supporter of the university's foundation. In 1775, he responded to an inquiry from King Charles III of Spain, who sought advice on the feasibility of establishing a university in Nueva Galicia. The bishop's response was entirely favorable, and on 18 November 1791, King Charles IV of Spain issued a royal decree officially proclaiming the foundation of the Royal University of Guadalajara.
The royal decree arrived in Nueva Galicia on 26 March 1792, prompting local authorities to celebrate and swiftly renovate Santo Tomás College in preparation for the new university. As a result, the University of Guadalajara was officially founded on 3 November 1792. By mutual agreement between Friar Antonio Alcalde and the President of the Royal Audience, Jacobo de Ugarte y Loyola, José María Gómez y Villaseñor was appointed as the university's first Rector. Academically, the university initially consisted of four faculties: Arts, Theology, Law, and Medicine.
The Confrontation between the University of Guadalajara and the Institute of Sciences of the State of Jalisco (1821–1861)
The university aligned itself with Agustín de Iturbide's Plan of Iguala, which led to the conclusion of Mexican War of Independence. As a result, it retained its royal status. However, with the proclamation of the First Mexican Empire under Emperor Agustín I, its designation changed to imperial. When the Mexican Republic was later established, the university became a national institution.
On 16 January 1826, during the administration of José Cesáreo de la Rosa as Rector, the Jalisco State Congress issued its first formal decree concerning the University of Guadalajara. Subsequently, the Governor of Jalisco, Prisciliano Sánchez Padilla, reestablished the Institute of Sciences.
However, on 1 September 1834, Governor José Antonio Romero ordered the first reopening of the university and the closure of the Institute of Sciences. Despite this, thirteen years later, in 1847, the State Congress introduced the Public Teaching Program, which called for the closure of both the University of Guadalajara and San Juan Bautista College. The program also proposed the reestablishment of the Institute of Sciences and the founding of two high schools: the Boys' Lyceum and the Ladies' Lyceum.
Nevertheless, the program was never implemented, as Mariano Hurtado persuaded Governor Joaquín Angulo to abandon it. As a result, later that year, a decree was issued allowing the Institute of Sciences and the University of Guadalajara to coexist—though the university lost its funding and headquarters. In 1853, Governor José María Yáñez Carrillo decreed the assimilation of the Institute of Sciences into the University of Guadalajara, restoring the university's traditional assets and status.
Around 1855, following the triumph of the Plan of Ayutla, Governor José Santos Degollado issued the second formal closure of the University of Guadalajara and reestablished the Institute of Sciences. However, during the Reform War, on 2 February 1859, Governor and Commander of Jalisco, Leonardo Márquez, reinstated the University of Guadalajara.
Despite this, following the military success of the liberal faction in 1860, Governor Pedro Ogazón issued the third formal closure of the University of Guadalajara. This decree also reestablished the Institute of Sciences, the Boys' Lyceum, and the Ladies' Lyceum.
The University Interregnum (1861–1925)
During this period, both higher education and high school education were fully controlled by the Government of Jalisco, which led to the rise of private schools. Despite this, the Schools of Medicine, Law, and Engineering, along with the Boys' Lyceum and the Ladies' Lyceum, continued to offer higher and high school education due to the governmental support they received. This support, however, was not consistent, as some governors, including Ramón Corona and Manuel Macario Dieguez, opposed it. In 1914, Dieguez closed the Lyceums and founded the Preparatoria Jalisco.
The University of Guadalajara (1925–1989)
In response to concerns expressed by many intellectuals and artists during meetings at the "Centro Bohemio", a conference delivered by Engineer Juan Salvador Agraz Ramírez de Prado on a project to establish the "National University of Guadalajara", and the new directions brought about by the Mexican Revolution of 1910, Governor José Guadalupe Zuno Hernández reopened the University of Guadalajara for the third time in 1925. He appointed Enrique Díaz de León as the university's Rector.
As a result, the study plans for high schools and faculties, as well as the Organic Law, were developed and approved by the State Congress on 7 September 1925. During the university's first meeting of the University Council, the institution's motto was chosen: "Piensa y Trabaja" (Think and Work).
At the First Congress of Universities held in Mexico City, Rector Enrique Díaz de León supported socialist education. However, when he attempted to implement these reforms in Guadalajara, several student protests erupted. In response to the protests, Governor Sebastián Allende decided to close the University of Guadalajara once again.
To prevent the Autonomous University of Guadalajara from adopting the historic name of the University of Guadalajara, the State Congress reopened the university and appointed Constancio Hernández Alvirde as its twenty-ninth Rector.
The Jalisco University Network (1989–present)
During this period, the need to create a modern, efficient, qualified, and eco-friendly university was recognized. However, this required changes in the academic and administrative structure of the institution. These goals were outlined in the Institutional Development Programme: A Future Vision, presented in 1989 by Rector Raúl Padilla López, who is credited with modernizing the university. The document established the aims and programs for the university's teaching, research, and extension areas, which were based on a series of projected indicators through 1995.
On 2 September 1989, the General University Council approved the document "Bases for the Discussion about the Reform of the University of Guadalajara," which provided a current diagnostic of the university and proposed decentralizing the institution's services and functions across its various entities. The document also presented key elements, including the updating and creation of study plans, the expansion of research and graduate studies, the promotion of cultural and sports activities, and the diversification of financial resources.
This reform was implemented when the State Congress approved the new Organic Law of the University of Guadalajara, which recognized the university's autonomy in areas such as academic planning and financial administration. In the same year, the university created its thematic and regional campuses and established the High School Education System.
Additionally, the Labor Union of the Academic Workers of the University of Guadalajara was established, and the Labor Union of University Workers was strengthened. The Union of University Students was also founded. Among other changes resulting from the creation of the University Network, notable developments included the establishment of the Virtual University System and the University System of Radio, Television, and Cinematography.
In 2014, under the leadership of Rector Itzcóatl Tonatiuh Bravo Padilla, the Institutional Development Programme was updated with projections extending to 2030. Additionally, plans were initiated to build a new regional university campus in Zapotlanejo, Jalisco. Currently, the University Network is present in every region of Jalisco, with campuses located in 109 of the 125 municipalities in the state.
University government
General University Council
The General University Council is the highest governing body of the university. It is composed of 186 members, chaired by the General Rector, and includes representatives from students, academics, and department heads. Each year, the student and academic representatives in the General University Council are elected through direct and secret suffrage by their peers.
General Rector
The General Rector is the highest executive authority of the university. The Rector also serves as the university's legal representative and as the president of both the General University Council and the Rectors' Council. The Rector is elected by the members of the General University Council and serves a term of six years, starting on the first day of April.
Rectors' Council
The Rectors' Council is the body responsible for planning and coordinating the entire University Network. It is composed of the General Rector (who presides over the council), the Executive Vice-Rector, the General Secretary, the headmasters of each university campus, the headmaster of the Virtual University System, and the headmaster of the High School Education System.
Campuses of the University of Guadalajara
Currently, the University of Guadalajara has fifteen undergraduate and graduate campuses. Of these, six specialize in different areas of study and are located in the Guadalajara Metropolitan Area, while eight regional campuses are situated in various regions of the State of Jalisco.
- Thematic
- CUAAD – University Center of Art, Architecture and Design
- CUCBA – University Center of Biological and Agricultural Sciences
- CUCEA – University Center of Economic and Managerial Sciences
- CUCEI – University Center of Exact Sciences and Engineering
- CUCS – University Center of Health Sciences
- CUCSH – University Center of Social Sciences and Humanities
Mid-High Education System
Also known as the Baccalaureate Education System (from the Spanish literal translation), this branch of the University Network is responsible for the instruction and dissemination of baccalaureate education since the institutional restructuring in 1994. In the 2015-2016 period, it was composed of 166 schools located in 109 municipalities across Jalisco. These schools include: 24 metropolitan high schools, 36 regional high schools, 4 metropolitan offices, 78 regional offices, and 24 regional extension centers.