Universitat de les Illes Balears

Forty years of the University of the Balearic Islands

The renaissance of the university fully met expectations and the new institution gained immediate support, albeit alongside certain misgivings. Today, the University of the Balearic Islands is, however, a shining robust reality that challenges all naysayers and continues on with the necessary strength and courage to expand and keep moving forward.

The university was created by Act 18/1978 on founding a university headquartered in Palma de Mallorca, published in official state journal no. 66 on 18^th March, and initially comprised the "Faculties of Science, Law, and Philosophy and Arts, as well as the university colleges of Business Studies and Teacher Training for General Basic Education already in Palma de Mallorca and affiliated with universities in Barcelona".

After this first stage, new programmes were successively added, such as diplomas and licentiate degrees, with the opening of the School of Computer Science (1985), the School of Tourism (1985), the Faculty of Business (1987), the Faculty of Computer Science (1988), the School of Technical Telecommunications Engineering (1989), the School of Nursing (1990), the Polytechnic School (1992), the Faculty of Education (1992), the Faculty of Psychology (1999), etc.

The University Statutes were approved in 1985 and the institution became known as the University of the Balearic Islands (UIB). These statutes were revised in 1989, 1999, 2003 and 2010, with the current text dating from 2010.

In 1983, construction of the campus began on Carretera de Valldemossa road, kilometre marker 7.5, with all services and studies finally transferring to the site in 1992. Only the Faculty of Science was located at the site before with all other programmes spread across different buildings in Palma (the Faculty of Philosophy and Arts in Son Malferit; the faculties of Law and Economics and the Office of the Vice Chancellor in Sa Riera; and the Teacher Training School in what is nowadays the IES Josep Maria Llompart secondary school).

Sa Riera building in Palma remained as the headquarters for the Institute of Education Sciences and, since 1999, has housed the Office of the Pro-Vice Chancellor for Cultural Promotion, Open University and University Headquarters.

Two further university headquarters have been in operation since 1996: one in Minorca offering degrees in Business Administration, Law, Early Childhood and Primary Education, Nursing and Tourism; and one for Ibiza-Formentera, on the island of Ibiza, which also offers the degree in Tourism through an affiliate centre. They also teach different Master's programmes, UIB-specific titles and the Open University for Seniors.

Today, the university through ancient wisdom combined with its modern status is fully committed to its historical, cultural and linguistic reality, and continually strives to be an institution dedicated to the generation and distribution of knowledge, research and culture - activities that seek to attain the highest quality and academic rigour in the service of the nation. The university also aspires to imbibe the spirit of universalism and be open to an ever-more interconnected world, whilst fostering a climate of tolerance that enables the defence and promotion of our cultural and linguistic values, solidarity, respect for diversity and environmental protection.