| Motto: | Latin Veritas liberabit vos |
| Catholic University of Uruguay | |
| Native Name: | Universidad Católica del Uruguay |
| Other Names: | UCU |
| Established: | 1876; reopened 1985 |
| Enrollment: | Over 10,000 |
| Religious Affiliation: | Society of Jesus (Roman Catholic) |
| Address: | 8 de Octubre Avenue 2738 |
| Colors: | Blue and White |
Catholic University of Uruguay (Spanish; Castilian: Universidad Católica del Uruguay) (UCU) is a private university in Uruguay. Established in 1985 as the successor to several Catholic educational institutes dating back to the 1870s, it was the only private university in the country until 1996. It is affiliated with the Society of Jesus and belongs to the world network of Jesuit universities.[1]
Its main campus is spread out in six locations in the capital city Montevideo and there are two other campuses, in Punta del Este and Salto.[2]
The university was founded by the Archbishop of Montevideo, Monseigneur Mariano Soler, in 1882. In 1985, it was reopened and entrusted to the Society of Jesus. The university seeks to promote a combination of academic excellence, ideological pluralism, ecumenism, and inter-religious dialogue.
From its beginning, the Catholic University of Uruguay gave itself the challenge of being a different option in university teaching. It took to working in areas that had been neglected, and to playing a role as an innovator in the development of new educational methods and evangelization of culture. It is now one of the most prestigious centers of university learning in Uruguay.
The UCU campus in Montevideo is made up of several buildings located in the residential neighborhood of La Blanqueada.[3] The Sacré Cœur Building, located on 8 de Octubre Avenue, houses the university's headquarters. Built in 1920 to the design of architect Elzeario Boix, it is neoclassical in style and housed the Sacré Cœur Jesuit School for girls until the early 1980s.[4]
The University also has two other campuses, one in the city of Punta del Este, located on Roosevelt Avenue and Florencia, inaugurated in 1998, and another in the city of Salto, located on Artigas Street and inaugurated in 2003, which houses the University's Economic Observatory.
The School of Business Sciences and the UCU Business School (UCUBS) have been accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) since October 2021, making the University the only one in Uruguay with this certification. Since September 2023, the UCU Business School (UCUBS) has also been accredited by the International Accreditation Advisory Board of the Association of MBAs (AMBA) and the Business Graduates Association (BGA).
As a fundamental objective of the University, it seeks that its students live beyond the classroom, incorporating extracurricular activities such as sports, with the Universidad Católica Club; artistic experiences such as the UCU Choir and the Espacio Crear; in addition to its traditional Pastoral.
The University has an extensive academic exchange network. It has links with more than 300 universities in countries of the five continents. It receives about 200 foreign students annually.
In 2015 the university partnered with Orkestra-Basque Institute of Competitiveness to address the issue of competition between companies.[5] Also, in conjunction with a professor at Pennsylvania State University, researchers at UCU study the effects of iron deficiency and lead toxicity on behavioral and cognitive development in children.[6] In 2016 the university signed an agreement of cooperation with the newly founded University of Tifariti.
Sponsored sports activities include futsal (male and female), volleyball, basketball, women's handball, swimming, football, and hockey.[7] The university offers students workshops to develop their artistic abilities in chorus, theater, and visual arts.[8]
Service projects are carried on for credit as integral or supplemental to classwork, as well as through voluntary projects without academic credit. In 2015 Extension Services at UCU counted 141 projects with 191 teachers and 1,700 students involved.[9] A major vacation-time project is building homes for the poor,[10]
There are student-organized events and tournaments throughout the year,[11] and a series of workshops voted for by the students to foster their special interests.[12] There is also a club which raises environmental awareness by collecting all plastic bottles on campus.[13]
The university is divided into five faculties, and two schools: UCU Business School and the School of Postgraduate Courses.[14]