Address: Campus de Cantoblanco, 28049 Madrid, Spain
Philosophy and Liberal Arts, Law, Economics and Business, Sciences, Medicine, Psychology, Engineering, Teacher Training and Education
The Autonomous University of Madrid, in Spanish Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, was founded in 1968 by royal decree 5/1968 of 6 June. The name first appeared in a ministerial order published on 13 August 1968. The Cantoblanco campus lies about 15 kilometres north of Madrid, near Alcobendas, San Sebastián de los Reyes and Tres Cantos. It covers about 260 hectares, and the extension of the campus exceeds 2,200,000 square metres.
The university is organised in eight faculties and schools: Philosophy and Liberal Arts, Law, Economic Science and Business Management, Sciences, Medicine, Psychology, the Engineering School, and Teacher Training and Education. The offer includes 94 doctoral programmes. The public record gives conflicting counts for the master programmes, 72 in one place and 88 in another, so check the current number on the official pages.
The figures for the academic year 2015 to 2016 show the size of the institution. It had 21,203 undergraduates, 6,701 postgraduate students and 3,818 doctoral students, for a total of 31,722. The academic staff numbered 2,505 and the administrative staff 1,036. These are the latest consolidated figures in the source used here, and the university may now report different numbers.
The list of alumni is prominent. Severo Ochoa, who received the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, is counted among them. So are Felipe VI, King of Spain, who studied law, and Queen Sofía, who studied humanities. Javier Solana, the former High Representative of the European Union for Foreign and Security Policy, and the molecular biologist Margarita Salas also belong to the list. Francisco Tomás y Valiente, former president of the Constitutional Court, was murdered by ETA.
The campus is the centre of student life, with libraries, sports facilities and green areas, and a train line connects it to the capital. Teaching is mainly in Spanish, and some master programmes use English. Check each programme before applying. Public tuition fees in Spain are set by each region. Check the current tariff.
Domains taught:
Chemistry, Data Analytics, Engineering, Finance, Life Sciences, Mathematics, Physics
Diplomas*:
Bachelor, Doctor, Master
Status:
Public
Partnerships:
Eight faculties and schools on the Cantoblanco campus, about 15 km north of Madrid, and a medical school with teaching hospitals.
Research:
Sciences, medicine, humanities, law, economics, psychology and engineering.
Famous Alumnis:
Felipe VI, Queen Sofía, Javier Solana, Margarita Salas, Severo Ochoa, Francisco Tomás y Valiente
International recognition**:
Number of staff***:
3541
Current students***:
31722
Foreign students***:
N/A%
Cumulative former students***:
N/A
Pros
Large green campus, eight faculties, 94 doctoral programmes, a Nobel laureate in medicine among its alumni.
Cons
Campus is about 15 km from central Madrid, high demand for some degrees, large student numbers.
Best For
Students seeking a research-active Spanish public university with a large campus close to Madrid.
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Most Similar Schools Locally
For students who like the finance, chemistry and physics focus of this university but want another option nearby, Complutense University of Madrid fits well: it covers microbiology and genetics as well, and is larger, enrolling about 86,159 students against roughly 31,722 here.
University of Valencia overlaps with this institution on finance, chemistry and physics, so the two are easy to compare, and it is also a public institution, and teaches at the same levels, namely bachelor's, master's and doctoral.
University of Barcelona overlaps with this institution on finance, chemistry and physics, so the two are easy to compare, and it is larger, enrolling about 62,995 students against roughly 31,722 here, and is also a public institution.
Among national alternatives, University of Granada stands out for its focus on chemistry, physics and mathematics, and it covers astroscience and software engineering as well, and is larger, enrolling about 60,000 students against roughly 31,722 here.
University of the Basque Country takes a similar route through chemistry, physics and mathematics, and it is slightly larger, at about 44,921 students against roughly 31,722 here, and is also a public institution.
Most Similar Schools Abroad
For finance, chemistry and physics outside the home country, University of Vienna in Austria is a natural reference; it runs the same bachelor's, master's and doctoral programmes, and covers microbiology and genetics and statistics as well.
Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf (Germany) works on the same fields as this university, chiefly finance, chemistry and physics; it is also a public institution, and runs the same bachelor's, master's and doctoral programmes.
Looking internationally, Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz in Germany is where chemistry, physics and mathematics get a comparable treatment; it is also a public institution, and teaches at the same levels, namely bachelor's, master's and doctoral.
For finance, chemistry and physics outside the home country, University of Porto in Portugal is a natural reference; it also offers mba programmes and covers food science and civil engineering as well.
National Taiwan University, in Taiwan, takes a similar route through finance, chemistry and physics; it covers agriculture and electrical and electronics as well, and has almost the same size, at about 34,483 students.
*our own picks (our criteria: a mix between domains, diploma delivered, reputation and size), but obviously too many criteria for an apple-to-apple ranking.
FAQ
Where is the Autonomous University of Madrid?
On the Cantoblanco campus, about 15 km north of Madrid.
When was it founded?
In 1968, by royal decree of 6 June.
How large is the campus?
About 260 hectares.
How many faculties and schools are there?
Eight.
How many doctoral programmes does it offer?
94.
How many students did it have in 2015 to 2016?
31,722, including 21,203 undergraduates.
How many academic staff did it have?
2,505 in 2015 to 2016.
Which Nobel laureate is among its alumni?
Severo Ochoa, Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.
Which royals studied there?
Felipe VI studied law and Queen Sofía studied humanities.
What does it cost?
Public tuition fees in Spain are set by each region. Check the current tariff.
Biology, Chemistry, Innovation, Physics, Research and Development
*: without any judgment of the quality, readers are strongly encouraged to check the official status of the exact diploma envisioned as many universities have a mix of recognized diplomas, not recognized, “co-delivered,” “equivalent to”, “some pathways” (…), can change over time, and can be named differently from one country to another.
**: international reputation: is based on some criteria that do not mean much in some domains or specialties (number of researchers, of scientific publications, on budget ….). Our approximate 1-4 scale:
known locally
known locally and internationally
is listed in some of the world university’s classifications
is listed among the 20 firsts in some of world university’s classifications
***: estimated numbers, based on online sources and/or feedbacks. The numbers can vary greatly depending on school organisation (ex.: school is part of a group, it employs internal staff or external consultants or has public staff without employing them …). Refer to all the links provided to have accurate and updated numbers.
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