The University of Urbino "Carlo Bo" is an Italian university located in Urbino, a walled hill-town in the region of Marche, located in the north-eastern part of central Italy. The university was founded as an academic institution in 1506, although it was not fully recognised as a university until 1671. In the 1920s it gained recognition as an "Independent University", with a charter that made state aid possible although not mandatory. Once fully recognized as an Independent University, student numbers gradually increased as more facilities were opened. During the 1960s/70s, the University succeeded in buying up numerous derelict buildings in the old town centre, which have since been restored and used as faculty and department buildings. While the student body and faculties gradually increased and developed over time, it was under the long-lasting rectorship of Senator for LifeCarlo Bo that the University enjoyed unprecedented growth in size and prestige, prompting the former president of the European Community Commission, Roy Jenkins, to state that "the University of Urbino is an incisive presence in contemporary thought, contributing in original ways to the cultural and intellectual life of Europe". This was also the period in which architect Giancarlo De Carlo designed and built the University Halls of Residence, which can accommodate 1500 students, and redesigned and modernised several of the university's other buildings. Since 2012 the University of Urbino has been a state-run University. It currently has six departments and two institutes, about 14,000 students, many of whom are from overseas, about 800 teachers and 400 administrative staff members. The university has no central campus as such, and instead occupies numerous buildings throughout the town and in the surrounding countryside. The main accommodation blocks are situated a short distance from the town. Traditionally a centre of studies in law since its foundation in 1506, nowadays the University of Urbino is renowned mostly for teaching and research in humanities, in particular literature and language studies, and sociology, and for the good reputation of its Italian language courses.
Organization
Departments
Until 2013 the university was divided into 11 faculties:
Following the approval of the so-called Gelmini reform in 2009, and starting from the 2013/2014 academic year, the faculty-based organisation was replaced by a department-based structure. It is currently composed of the following departments and institutes:
The University offers to students and staff a number of libraries making up the University Library System, along with the Foundation 'Carlo and Marise Bo' for Modern and Contemporary European Literature library.
Colleges
The University does not have its own residence halls. However, a number of colleges and dormitories for University of Urbino students are owned and managed by the regional office for the right to academic education. They include four colleges and one female dormitory in Urbino, one college located in the scientific campus between Urbino and Fermignano, and a number of rented private accommodation blocks in Pesaro and Fano, paid for by the regional government.
