The University of Panama (Spanish: Universidad de Panamá) is a public university in Panama City, Panama. It was founded on October 7, 1935. Initially, it had 175 students learning education, commerce, natural sciences, pharmacy, pre-engineering or law. As of 2008, it had 74,059 students distributed in 228 buildings across the country.
The University of Panama was founded by Octavio Méndez Pereira, who also served as the university's first president.
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History
The University of Panama was created by presidential decree on May 29, 1935, during the administration of President Harmodio Arias Madrid. The university began operations on October 7 of the same year in one of the wings of the Instituto Nacional (National Institute). Later on, under the administration of Enrique A. Jiménez, the government purchased around 60 hectares of land in the neighborhood of El Cangrejo, which would eventually become the university's main campus.
Construction began in January 1948 under the supervision of Alberto De Saint Malo, who was the Dean of the Engineering and Architecture Faculty at the time. The first four buildings to be constructed were home to the Humanities, Engineering and Architecture faculties and Science laboratories, and the Administration and Library. Classes in the new buildings began on May 29, 1950. The campus was officially inaugurated on November 1, 1953. In the 1950s, construction continued and 11 additional buildings were built, which would hold the Biochemistry Center, and the Faculties of Pharmacy, and Public Administration and Commerce. In the following decade, 15 more buildings were constructed, among of which house the Odontology and Law Faculties, and the Experimental Center for Agricultural Research in Tocumen.