Univerzita Komenského v Bratislave | |
 Comenius University building in centralBratislava | |
| Latin:Universitas Comeniana Bratislavensis[1] | |
Former names |
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|---|---|
| Type | Public |
| Established | 1919 |
Academic affiliations | Erasmus,Utrecht Network |
| Budget | € 185 million (2020)[2] |
| Rector | Marek Števček |
Academic staff | 2,152 (2020–2021)[3] |
| Students | 22,817 (2020–2021)[3] |
| Undergraduates | 10,198 (2020–2021)[3] |
| 1,884 (2020–2021)[3] | |
| Location | , Slovakia 48°8′28.4″N17°6′57.4″E / 48.141222°N 17.115944°E /48.141222; 17.115944 |
| Website | www |
  Location in Slovakia | |
| University rankings | |
|---|---|
| Global – Overall | |
| ARWU World[4] | 901–1000 (2023) |
| QS World[5] | 771–780 (2024) |
| THE World[6] | 1001–1200 (2024) |
| USNWR Global[7] | =639 (2023) |
| Regional – Overall | |
| QS Emerging Europe and Central Asia[8] | 58 (2022) |
Comenius University Bratislava (Slovak:Univerzita Komenského v Bratislave) is the largestuniversity inSlovakia, with most of its faculties located inBratislava. It was founded in 1919, shortly after the creation ofCzechoslovakia. It is named afterJan Amos Comenius, a 17th-centuryCzech teacher andphilosopher.
In 2020, Comenius University had more about 23,000 students and 2,500 faculty members.[3] As are most universities in Slovakia, it is funded mostly by the government.
The Comenius University was established in 1919 with assistance from the more establishedUniversity of Prague. It was meant to replace the formerElisabeth University [sk ], which had been located in Bratislava since 1912, as the latter had been forcefully disbanded in 1919 bySamuel Zoch, plenipotentiaryžupan of Slovakia, after Hungarian professors refused to take an oath of allegiance[9] at that time in theFirst Czechoslovak Republic.[10] This had caused the majority of the university's professors (and some of the students) to take refuge inBudapest, where the Elisabeth University was re-established. It was later moved toPécs and renamed toUniversity of Pécs. This persecution of former (predominantly Hungarian) pillars of education in Bratislava necessitated the recruitment ofCzech academicians. Therefore, manyprofessors of the newly established university, including its first rector, Prof. MUDr.Kristian Hynek, were Czechs, since Slovakia at that time did not have enough educatedSlovak speakers who could serve as faculty members. In spite of personnel, financial, and space difficulties, the university developed research and teaching programs. The Faculty of Medicine opened in 1919, and was quickly followed by the Faculties of Law and Philosophy in 1921. The Faculty of Philosophy, besides offering programs in thehumanities andsocial sciences, also educated much-needed teachers for Slovakia'shigh schools.
In 1937, a new university building for the Faculties of Law and Philosophy was opened in the centre of Bratislava. The building includes the Aula (hall), used for graduation ceremonies and other formal functions.
DuringWorld War II, Slovakia became nominally arepublic but was actually under the sway ofNazi Germany. The government reducedacademic freedoms at the university, and the Czech professors were forced out. The university was renamedSlovak University in 1939, though the original name was reinstated in 1954. The Faculty of Science opened in 1940 and the Roman Catholic Faculty of Theology was established in 1941. Academic freedom returned after the end of the war in 1945 but was again cancelled in 1948 as thecommunists took power inCzechoslovakia, enforcing the ideology ofMarxism-Leninism at Czechoslovak universities. The Roman Catholic Faculty of Theology was taken under direct control of the Ministry of Education.
However, the university continued to grow, and new faculties were established (mostly by splitting the existing faculties):
After theVelvet Revolution in 1989, the university created ademocratic self-government, and mandatory courses onMarxist ideology were abolished. The Roman Catholic Faculty of Theology and the Evangelical Theological Faculty joined the university.
The transformation of Slovakia into a market economy created a need for professionals in management and financial sciences. As a result, the university established the Faculty of Management (1991) and the Faculty of Social and Economic Sciences (2002). In 2000, theEuropean credit transfer system was implemented to improve student mobility and facilitate more ties with other European universities.
This is a list of faculties of Comenius University in Bratislava with their official English names.[11]
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Geographic | |
| Academics | |
| Other | |
