National and Kapodistrian University of Athens
The National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, simply referred to as the University of Athens, is a public university in Athens, Greece, with various campuses along the Athens agglomeration.
It has been in continuous operation since its establishment in 1837 and is the oldest higher education institution of the modern Greek state and the first contemporary university in both the Balkan Peninsula and the Eastern Mediterranean. Today it is one of the largest universities by enrollment in Europe, with over 69,000 registered students.
History
Founding and expansion
The University of Athens was founded on 3 May 1837 by King Otto of Greece and was named in his honour Othonian University. It was the first university in the liberated Greek state and in the surrounding area of Southeast Europe as well. It was also the second academic institution after the Ionian Academy. This fledgling university consisted of four faculties; Theology, Law, Medicine, and Arts. During its first year of operation, the institution was staffed by 33 professors, while courses were attended by 52 students and 75 non-matriculated "auditors".It was first housed in the residence of architects Stamatios Kleanthis and Eduard Schaubert, on the north slope of the Acropolis, in Plaka, which now houses the Athens University History Museum. In November 1841, the university relocated to the Main Building of the University of Athens, a building designed by Danish architect Christian Hansen. He followed a neoclassical approach, "combining the monument's magnificence with a human scale simplicity" and gave the building its H-shape. The building was decorated by painter Carl Rahl, forming the famous "architectural trilogy of Athens", together with the building of the National Library of Greece and the building of the Athens Academy. Construction began in 1839 in a location to the north of the Acropolis. Its front wing, also known as the Propylaea, was completed in 1842–1843. The rest of the wings' construction, that was supervised at first by Greek architect Lysandros Kaftanzoglou and later by his colleague Anastasios Theofilas, was completed in 1864. The building is nowadays part of what is called the "Athenian Neoclassical Trilogy".
The Othonian University was renamed to National University in 1862, following events that forced King Otto to leave the country.
A major change in the structure of the university came about in 1904, when the faculty of Arts was divided into two separate faculties: that of Arts and that of Sciences, the latter consisting of the departments of Physics and Mathematics and the School of Pharmacy. In 1919, a department of chemistry was added, and in 1922 the School of Pharmacy was renamed a department. A further change came about when the School of Dentistry was added to the faculty of Medicine.
Between 1895 and 1911, an average of 1,000 new students matriculated each year, a number which increased to 2,000 at the end of World War I. This resulted in the decision to introduce entrance examinations for all the faculties, beginning from the academic year 1927–28. Since 1954 the number of students admitted each year has been fixed by the Ministry of Education and Religious Affairs, by proposal of the faculties.
Modern history
The University Club building was founded in 1930. Today the building houses the Health Services Office, the Meals Department, the University Club reading rooms, and the Students Cultural Association.From 1911 until 1932 the university was separated into the Kapodistrian University and the National University. In 1932, the two separate legal entities were merged into the "National and Kapodistrian University of Athens."
During the 1960s, construction work began on the University Campus in the suburb of Ilissia, which houses the Schools of Philosophy, Theology, and Sciences.
In 2013, the University Senate made the decision to suspend all operations in the wake of the Ministry of Education and Religious Affairs cutting 1,655 administrative jobs from universities around the country. In a statement, the University Senate said that "any educational, research, and administrative operation of the University of Athens is objectively impossible".
Schools and Departments
The University of Athens is divided into Schools and Departments as follows. The naming is nοt consistent in English for historical reasons, but in Greek the largest divisions are generally named "Σχολές" and are divided in "Τμήματα" , furthermore subdivided in "Τομείς" .The University of Athens also offers an English-taught 4-year undergraduate programme in Archaeology, History, and Literature of Ancient Greece.
| Schools | Departments |
| School of Agricultural Development, Nutrition and Sustainability |
|
| School of Education | |
| School of Health Sciences | |
| School of Physical Education and Sport Science | |
| School of Theology | |
| School of Science | |
| School of Law | |
| School of Economics and Political Sciences | |
| School of Philosophy |
Academic evaluation
In 2024, the external evaluation of the institution cited University of Athens with distinction. An external evaluation of all academic departments in Greek universities was conducted by the Hellenic Quality Assurance and Accreditation Agency in 2010–14.Rankings
The University of Athens is considered one of the leading universities of Greece, a leading European regional university and is present in the top universities annual lists.U.S. News & World Report Media Company has recently published the results of its Best Global Universities Rankings for 2025–2026. In this 11th consecutive annual edition of the US News Best Global Universities Rankings, the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens placed 1st among Greek and Cypriot Universities and 216th worldwide. In Europe, the University of Athens secured 78th place, up from 82nd last year. In addition, NKUA achieved significant distinctions in many subject areas in the 2025–2026 rankings, including the following:
1. Cardiac and Cardiovascular Systems,
2. Infectious Diseases,
3. Gastroenterology and Hepatology,
4. Clinical Medicine, and
5. Public, Environmental, and Occupational Health.
Also, Times Higher Education released its prestigious THE University Impact Rankings for 2025. Achieving outstanding results across all Sustainable Development Goals, the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens placed 1st among the 21 Greek and Cypriot Universities included in this ranking and in the 201–300 bracket globally among 2,536 Institutions evaluated.
Times Higher Education University Impact Rankings assess the position of Universities globally, based on their economic and social impact, as measured against the 17 SDGs of the United Nations. This 7th consecutive annual edition of the THE University Impact Rankings is the largest to date in terms of university participation, including more than 2,526 Institutions from 130 countries and regions. It features 17 tables—one for each of the 17 SDGs—as well as an overall ranking.
According to this ranking, the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens scored exceptionally well and achieved notable distinctions across all 8 SDGs, for which it submitted data.
More specifically, our University ranked:
- 1. 53rd globally for SDG 5: Gender Equality,
- 2. 64th globally for SDG 4: Quality Education,
- 3. 65th globally for SDG 10: Reduced Inequalitie,
- 4. in the 101–200 bracket globally for SDG 9: Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure,
- 5. in the 201–300 bracket globally for SDG 16: Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions, and
- 6. in the 301–400 bracket globally for SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being.
Additionally, in the same year, it was awarded a Certificate of Recognition as the ‘Most Improved University in Europe’ by QS Ranking, and thereby expanded its international reach and renown.
Another achievement was the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens global ranking of' 85th among the Top Universities by Top Google Scholar Citations. The National and Kapodistrian University of Athens ranked in the Top 100 of this list, confirming once again its leading position on the global academic stage. This particular result highlights the emphasis our university places on promoting excellence, open access to research, and international collaboration.
A significant, also, success came through the results of the AD Scientific Index World Top Universities Ranking. More precisely, the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens climbed up 30 places from last year's rating to 63rd position internationally, out of 24,317 Universities, Research Institutes, and Organizations included in the ranking. In addition, it ranks 15th among European Universities and 1st among Greek and Cypriot Universities for 2024–2025. It has the most scientists among Greek Universities in this ranking, with 155 of them in the top 3%, 578 in the top 10%, and 1,256 in the top 30% of researchers worldwide. This ranking underscores our University's steadily growing research impact, as reflected in the h-index and i10-index metrics.