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The University of Florence (Università degli Studi di Firenze, UNIFI) is one of the largest and oldest universities in Italy. It consists of 12 faculties and has currently about 60,000 students enrolled.

The University of Florence evolved from the Studium Generale, which was established by the Florentine Republic in 1321. The Studium was recognized by Pope Clement VI in 1349, and authorised to grant regular degrees. The Pope also established that the first Italian faculty of Theology would be in Florence. The Studium became an imperial university in 1364, but was moved to Pisa in 1473 when Lorenzo the Magnificent gained control of Florence. Charles VIII moved it back from 1497-1515, but it was moved to Pisa again when the Medici family returned to power.

In 1859 it became the Istituto di Studi Pratici e di Perfezionamento, a year later it was recognized as a full fledged university by the government of the unified Italy. In 1923 the Istituto was officially denominated a University by the Italian Parliament.

These are the 12 faculties in which the university is divided:

• Faculty of Arts
• Faculty of Agriculture
• Faculty of Architecture
• Faculty of Economics
• Faculty of Education
• Faculty of Engineering
• Faculty of Law
• Faculty of Mathematics, Physics and Natural Sciences
• Faculty of Medicine and Surgery
• Faculty of Pharmacology
• Faculty of Political Science
• Faculty of Psychology

Faculties are located in strategic areas, according to their subjects: the Faculty of Economics, Faculty of Law and the Faculty of Political Sciences are in the Polo delle Scienze Sociali (campus of social sciences), in the Novoli district. The Faculty of Medicine and Surgery, the Faculty of Pharmacology, and certain scientific and engineering departments are in the Careggi district. The Faculty of Engineering is located at the S.Marta Institute, while the Faculty of Agriculture is in front of the Parco delle Cascine. The Faculty of Mathematical, Physical and Natural Sciences is located in the Sesto Fiorentino district. The Faculty of Architecture is in the Accademia di Belle Arti, where the David by Michelangelo is as well. The Faculties of Psychology, Literature and Philosophy, and Pedagogy are in the centre of Florence, but the first two will be moved in the near future to the Polo delle Scienze Sociali[1] in the Novoli district.

• Giovanni Sartori, political scientist, professor of "Political Science", born in 1920 in Florence.
• Giovanni Spadolini, historian and important Italian politician, professor of "Contemporary History", born in 1925 in Florence.
• Sandro Pertini, politician, seventh President of the Italian Republic, received his Political Science degree from the University of Florence.
• Mario Luzi, poet, professor of "French language and Literature".
• Piero Calamandrei, jurist, professor in the faculty of Law, born in 1889.
• Luigi Biggeri, president of ISTAT. Graduated in 1963.
• Mario Draghi, Governor of the Banca d'Italia, has been a professor of Monetary Economics in the faculty of Political Science from 1981 to 1991.
• Giovanni Andrea Cornia, UNICEF Senior Economist from 1981 to 1989, currently director of the IRPET and professor in the faculty of Economics.

Gabriele Burgio, CEO Nh Hotels

Francesco Bandini, graduate from university of Florence in 2005, notable researcher currently employed at UC Berkeley, California where he is developing alternatives to conventional power generation technologies. Bandini is currently in charge for the development of a biomethane upgrading plant in Northern California.

• Institute and Museum of the History of Science
• Museo di Storia Naturale di Firenze
• Orto Botanico di Firenze

• Florence
• List of Italian universities
• Medieval university

• (Italian) University of Florence Website
• (Italian) (English) University of Florence - Students' Website and Forum