Pontificial Catholic University of Valparaiso

Overview

Pontifical Catholic University of Valparaiso

Pontifical Catholic University of Valparaiso (PUCV or UCV) is a private university located in Valparaíso, Chile. Established in 1928, it is one of the few catholic universities in Chile. In 2003, it was conferred its Pontifical status from Pope John Paul. The university is known for its course offerings such as law and legal studies, education and training, and agriculture and forestry.

Pontifical Catholic University of Valparaiso Key Statistics

The university has nine faculties and 37 schools. Some of these academic units include the Faculty of Philosophy and Education, the Faculty of Architecture and Urbanism, and the Faculty of Agriculture.

It offers 63 undergraduate programs including design, industrial engineering, and accounting and finance. Additionally, it also offers 35 master’s programs and 15 doctorate programs.

Pontifical Catholic University of Valparaiso has more than 17,000 students (4% postgraduate and 96% undergraduate). It also has around 120 international students. Moreover, it employs more than 800 faculty staff comprising around 1,300 academic staff.

The other Pontifical Catholic University of Valparaiso key statistics include its two campuses, one in downtown Valparaiso called Casa Central (Central House) and another in Quillota. It also has around 14 libraries spread around its two campuses, the first TV station in Chile that started operating in 1957, a radio station, a publishing house, and editorial offices of several scholarly journals.

Pontifical Catholic University of Valparaiso Research

The university is a recognized traditional institution. Though private, it also receives support from the state. It was awarded a total of 17 research projects to be funded by the National Fund for Scientific and Technological Development.

Its top fields of research are physics, chemistry, and biology. Consequently, Pontifical Catholic University of Valparaiso research outputs have been published in prestigious journals like Physical Review D, arXiv: Cosmology and Nongalactic Astrophysics, and Journal of High Energy Physics.

Its researchers are regular participants in major scholarly conferences such as CSOC: Computer Science On-line Conference, ICCSA: International Conference on Computational Science and Its Applications, INTERACT: International Conference on Human-Computer Interaction, and CISTI: Iberian Conference on Information Systems and Technologies.

The most cited Pontifical Catholic University of Valparaiso research publication is Edgar et al.’s (2014) “Global conservation outcomes depend on marine protected areas with key features,” which was published in Nature and has been cited 1,293 times.

The university’s second most cited research work is Ranilla et al.’s (2010) “Phenolic compounds, antioxidant activity and in vitro inhibitory potential against key enzymes relevant for hyperglycemia and hypertension of commonly used medicinal plants, herbs, and spices in Latin America,” published in Bioresource Technology with 597 citations. The university’s third most cited publication is Cisternas et al.’s (2005) “Predecessors of the giant 1960 Chile earthquake,” published in Nature with 582 citations.

The university has several research centers and institutes. These include the Regional Center for Healthy Food Studies, the Management and Strengthening Center for the Clean Development Mechanism, the Center for Advanced Studies and Extension, and the Laboratory for Verification and National Reference and Diagnosis of the ISA Virus in Salmonid Fish.