History
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, many scholars from Concepción started to plead for the construction of a university for the south of Chile where it would be possible to study professional degrees outside the capital, Santiago. However, a project of this magnitude required a high level of organization, which as yet did not exist.
Education
- Department of Agronomy.
- Department of Architecture, Urban Planning and Geography.
- Department of Biological Sciences.
- School of Economics and Business Administration.
- Department of Physical Sciences and Mathematics.
- Department of Forestry.
- School of Law and Social Sciences.
- Department of Natural and Oceanographic Sciences.
- Department of Chemical Sciences.
- Department of Nursing.
- Department of Social Sciences.
- School of Veterinary Science.
- School of Education.
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry.
- School of Humanities and Arts.
- Department of Engineering.
- Department of Agricultural Engineering.
- School of Medicine.
- School of Dentistry.
- School of Pharmacy.
- School of Environmental Sciences
Research
As part of its educational line, the University of Concepción devotes a large part of its budget to academic research.
University Ranking
QS World University Rankings by TopUniversities
2025
631 -30
2024
601
2023
601
QS World University Rankings is one of the top international rankings measuring the popularity and performance of universities all over the world. They measure university reputation based on the impressions of higher education experts, companies who hire graduates, and teaching quality. QS also considers the ratio of international teachers and students present at universities, as well as the times research papers were mentioned by researchers. After calculating and comparing these criteria, QS ranks the universities accordingly.
World University Rankings by Times Higher Education
2025
-
2024
1201
2023
1201
World University Rankings is a vital resource that provides the definitive list of the world's best universities. They look at how often they're producing new ideas, what their reputation is around the world, and how much they're contributing to science and academic fields. After calculating and comparing these criteria, THE ranks the universities accordingly.
Academic Ranking of World Universities by Shanghai Jiao Tong University
2024
-
2023
901
2022
901
ARWU World University rankings is the first world university ranking. It ranks the world's top 1000 colleges and universities based on objective indicator. They look at the number of award-winning (Fields Medals and Nobel Prize) scientists who are located there, how much of their research is cited and referenced around the world, and how much they've contributed to different academic fields. After calculating and comparing these criteria, ARWU ranks the universities accordingly.
Best Global Universities Rankings by U.S. News & World Report
2025
-
2024
804 12
2023
816
Best Global Universities Rankings by U.S. News & World Report presents all the top universities from the U.S. and 60 other countries around the world. They measure the rate of students going to their second year of studies, as well as the rate of students who graduate. It also asks university representatives on the performance of universities, and evaluates university resources, teacher salaries, graduation rates, student academic achievements and satisfaction. After calculating and comparing these criteria, U.S. News ranks the top international universities accordingly.
Library services
It has in its facilities the most complete museum of Chilean art in the country, several sports centers and a network of 11 libraries, the main one occupying an area of 10,000 m2 (110,000 sq ft) with a total of 100,000 volumes.
Campus life
Its headquarters are located in the city of Concepción, and also has two other campuses in Chillán and Los Ángeles. In a citizen survey carried out in 2012, it was chosen as the symbol that most identifies Penquists.
The university is located in the University District. The whole campus comprises what is known as the Ciudad Universitaria (University City), which also contains museums, sculptures and parks. Today, the campus has an area of 1,425,000 m2, of which 239,856 are built upon. It is the knowledge, science, culture, technology and research centre of the city of Concepción. The Presencia de América Latina mural by Jorge González Camarena is within the Casa del Arte on the university campus.