Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador

Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador (PUCE) is a private Pontifical Catholic university in Quito, Ecuador, founded on 4 November 1946 as the country's first private university.厄瓜多尔天主教大学（Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador，简称PUCE）是厄瓜多尔基多的一所私立宗座天主教大学，于1946年11月4日创立，是该国第一所私立大学。

It was founded on the initiative of the Jesuit Aurelio Espinosa Pólit, who became its first rector, with the support of Carlos María de la Torre, archbishop of Quito.该校由耶稣会士奥雷利奥·埃斯皮诺萨·波利特倡议创办，他出任首任校长，并得到基多总主教卡洛斯·马里亚·德拉托雷的支持。

With seven seats and about 30,000 students, it was placed in the 1001-1200 band of the 2027 QS World University Rankings and ranked first in Ecuador for graduate employability.该校设有七个校区、学生约三万人，在2027年QS世界大学排名中位列第1001-1200位区间，并在毕业生就业力方面位居厄瓜多尔第一。

History

• The university opened in the autumn of 1946, in a small and modest house on Calle Bolívar in the historic centre of Quito, making it the first private university in Ecuador.该校于1946年秋在基多老城玻利瓦尔街一栋小而简朴的房舍中开办，成为厄瓜多尔第一所私立大学。
• The opening was officiated by Carlos María de la Torre, archbishop of Quito, and the first rector was Aurelio Espinosa Pólit of the Society of Jesus.开学典礼由基多总主教卡洛斯·马里亚·德拉托雷主持，首任校长为耶稣会的奥雷利奥·埃斯皮诺萨·波利特。
• The Jesuit Julio Tobar Donoso was a co-founder of the institution, and the university's project combined Catholic mission with the training of a professional elite for the republic.耶稣会士胡利奥·托瓦尔·多诺索是该校的共同创办人，学校的办学构想把天主教使命与为共和国培养专业精英结合起来。
• In its first term the university had only 54 students, and jurisprudence, or law, was its single faculty.建校首个学期，该校仅有54名学生，司法学即法律是其唯一的学院。
• From this small beginning the university grew over the following decades into a national institution with faculties across the sciences, the humanities, health and engineering.自此起步，该校在随后数十年间成长为全国性学府，其学院涵盖自然科学、人文学科、健康与工程等领域。
• A regional campus was established at Ibarra in 1976, extending the university's presence into the northern highlands of Ecuador.1976年，该校在伊瓦拉设立地区校区，把办学触角延伸至厄瓜多尔北部高地。
• Sedes followed at Esmeraldas on the Pacific coast in 1981 and at Ambato in the central Andes in 1982.沿海的埃斯梅拉达斯校区于1981年设立，位于中部安第斯山区的安巴托校区则于1982年设立。
• A regional campus in the province of Manabí was created in 1993, and a sede at Santo Domingo de los Colorados followed in 1996.马纳比省的地区校区于1993年创设，圣多明各－德洛斯克拉罗斯校区随后于1996年设立。
• The campus at Cuenca later became the independent Universidad del Azuay, separating from the PUCE national system.位于昆卡的校区其后成为独立的阿苏艾大学，从该大学的全国体系分离出来。
• All of the university's branches follow the National System of PUCE, which coordinates academic standards across the country.该校的各分支机构均遵循该大学的全国体系，由这一体系统一协调全国范围内的学术标准。
• In 2005 a bust was unveiled at Ambato in honour of Zonia Palán Tamayo, who had taught economics at the university and championed women's and trade-union rights.2005年，安巴托校区为索尼亚·帕兰·塔马约立起半身像，以纪念这位曾在该校教授经济学并倡导妇女与工会权利的学者。
• In 2010 Ecuador's higher-education law introduced compulsory state evaluation and accreditation for universities, prompting PUCE to strengthen its quality-assurance systems and document its academic standards for the national regulator.2010年，厄瓜多尔的《高等教育法》对大学引入强制性的国家评估与认证，促使该校强化质量保障体系，并按要求向国家监管机构提供其学术标准材料。
• The university adopted a strategic development plan for 2016 to 2020, setting out institutional goals in teaching, research and community engagement for its national network of seats and campuses.该校通过2016至2020年发展战略规划，为其全国校区与校园网络在教学、研究与社区服务方面设定机构目标。
• Pope Francis visited the Quito campus on 7 July 2015 during his tour of South America, addressing the university community on that afternoon.2015年7月7日，教宗方济各在访问南美期间到访基多校区，并于当天下午向大学社群发表讲话。
• Fernando Ponce León of the Society of Jesus was appointed rector on 6 October 2015, beginning a decade of institutional reform.耶稣会的费尔南多·庞塞·莱昂于2015年10月6日获任命为校长，由此开启十年的机构改革。
• Under that reform the university reworked its curriculum around a flexible, student-centred educational model with interdisciplinary programmes and micro-credentials.在这一改革下，该校围绕以学生为中心的灵活教育模式重塑课程，引入跨学科项目与微型证书。
• The number of programmes offered by the university rose from 109 to 261, including 132 undergraduate degrees, 85 postgraduate programmes and 44 technical and technological programmes.该校开设的项目由109个增至261个，其中包括132个本科专业、85个研究生项目以及44个技术类项目。
• By 2024 the university had 30,325 students, 3,187 teaching staff and 1,960 administrative staff, an increase in student intake of 63 per cent compared with 2015.至2024年，该校共有学生30,325人、教师3,187人与行政职员1,960人，招生规模较2015年增长63%。
• The university counts more than 80,000 graduates across its seven seats and fourteen campuses nationwide.该校在其全国七个校区与十四个校园中已培养逾八万名毕业生。
• In 2026 the university marks its eightieth anniversary, presenting itself as an institution in which the future carries its history forward.2026年，该校迎来建校八十周年，并以「未来承载历史」自许。
• Tracing its origins to the single law faculty of 1946, the university today offers degrees in medicine, engineering, business, the natural sciences and the humanities.该校以1946年单一的法学院为起点，如今已开设医学、工程、商学、自然科学与人文学科等多类学位。

Academics

• The university is organised into faculties that include Law and Society, Learning, Languages and Communication, and Economics and Business Management.该校的学院包括法学与社会学院、教学语言与传播学院，以及经济与工商管理学院。
• Its other faculties are Exact, Natural and Environmental Sciences, Health and Wellbeing, Engineering, and the Ecclesiastical Faculty of Philosophical-Theological Sciences.该校其他学院为精确自然科学与环境学院、健康与福祉学院、工程学院，以及教会哲学－神学学院。
• PUCE TEC provides technical and technological education, complementing the university's undergraduate and postgraduate provision.大学技术学院提供技术与工艺类教育，与该校的本科与研究生教育相辅相成。
• PUCE is distinct from the Central University of Ecuador, the country's oldest public university, and from the Salesian Polytechnic University, which also has one of its main campuses in the capital.该校与厄瓜多尔历史最悠久的公立大学中央大学不同，也与同样在首都设有主校区的萨雷西亚理工科大学不同。
• The university's Law School, its Medical School and its Business School are among its largest academic units, and together with the Faculty of Engineering they anchor its professional education.该校的法学院、医学院与商学院是其规模最大的教学单位之一，并连同工程学院共同构成其专业教育的支柱。
• Its programmes in economics, engineering, environmental science, psychology and health reflect the university's response to Ecuador's development needs and to the demands of its students and employers.其经济学、工程、环境科学、心理学与健康等专业，体现了该校回应厄瓜多尔发展需求以及学生与用人单位期待的取向。
• In total the university offers 261 programmes, comprising 132 undergraduate degrees, 85 postgraduate programmes and 44 technical and technological programmes.该校总计开设261个项目，包括132个本科专业、85个研究生项目与44个技术类项目。
• The Faculty of Health and Wellbeing trains physicians, nurses, nutritionists and other health professionals through schools of medicine, nursing and related fields.健康与福祉学院通过医学院、护理学院及相关院系培养医师、护士、营养师与其他卫生专业人员。
• The law school, descended from the university's founding faculty of jurisprudence, remains one of Ecuador's principal centres of legal education.法学院源自该校建校时的司法学院，至今仍是厄瓜多尔主要的法学教育中心之一。
• The Espinosa Pólit Award for Literature is presented once a year by a panel of the university and is one of the most prestigious literary prizes in Ecuador.埃斯皮诺萨·波利特文学奖由该校的评审委员会每年颁发一次，是厄瓜多尔最负盛名的文学奖项之一。
• The award is named after Aurelio Espinosa Pólit, the university's co-founder, who was a writer, poet and literary critic and founded the museum and library bearing his name.该奖以其共同创办人奥雷利奥·埃斯皮诺萨·波利特命名，他本人是作家、诗人与文学评论家，并创办了以他名字命名的博物馆与图书馆。
• In 2024 the university employed 3,187 teaching staff and enrolled 30,325 students, with more than 31,000 students across the national system.2024年，该校聘有教师3,187人，在校学生30,325人，全国体系内的学生则超过三万一千人。
• Research at the university covers the natural sciences, health, engineering and the social sciences, and is supported by its institutes and laboratories.该校的研究涵盖自然科学、健康、工程与社会科学，并由其各研究所与实验室支撑。
• According to the OpenAlex scholarly database, PUCE is credited with about 11,567 research works and some 187,297 citations.据学术数据库OpenAlex统计，该校约有11,567项研究成果与约187,297次被引用。
• The university's Cultural Centre, on the Quito campus, holds exhibitions throughout the year with artists from Ecuador and abroad.该校设在基多校区的文化中心全年举办展览，展出厄瓜多尔与国外艺术家的作品。
• The Faculty of Communication, Linguistics and Literature covers communication, literature, linguistics and applied languages, and runs a language centre open to the community.传播、语言学与文学学院涵盖传播、文学、语言学与应用语言，并设有向社区开放的语言中心。
• Postgraduate study at PUCE includes master's and doctoral programmes in theology, bioethics, economics, health and engineering disciplines.该校的研究生教育包括神学、生命伦理、经济学、健康与工程学科领域的硕士与博士项目。
• The university maintains academic links with Jesuit and Catholic universities in Latin America and Europe, supporting exchange and joint research.该校与拉丁美洲与欧洲的耶稣会及天主教大学保持学术联系，支持人员交流与联合研究。
• Through its seven seats the university brings higher education to the coast, the highlands and the Amazon region of Ecuador.该校通过其七个校区，将高等教育带至厄瓜多尔的沿海、高地与亚马孙地区。

Campus

• The principal campus of the university is in Quito, at Avenida 12 de Octubre 1076 y Vicente Ramón Roca, in the north of the city.该校主校区位于基多，地处城区北部十月十二日大道1076号与比森特·拉蒙·罗卡街交界处。
• The university operates seven seats and fourteen campuses across Ecuador, in Quito, Ibarra, Esmeraldas, Ambato, Manabí, Santo Domingo and the Amazon region.该校在厄瓜多尔全国经营七个校区与十四个校园，分布於基多、伊瓦拉、埃斯梅拉达斯、安巴托、马纳比、圣多明各与亚马孙地区。
• The Quito campus holds the central administration, the Cultural Centre and the university's principal libraries and laboratories.基多校区设有中央行政机构、文化中心以及该校的主要图书馆与实验室。
• The library named after the founder, Espinosa Pólit, holds the writer's own collection and supports research in the humanities and social sciences.以创办人埃斯皮诺萨·波利特命名的图书馆藏有这位作家本人的藏书，并为人文与社会科学研究提供支撑。
• Quito's historic centre, where the university began in a house on Calle Bolívar in 1946, lies a short distance from the modern campus.该校1946年在玻利瓦尔街一栋房舍中起步的基多老城，距其现代校区不远。
• The campus at Cuenca, which became the Universidad del Azuay, illustrates how PUCE campuses have seeded independent universities.曾演变为阿苏艾大学的昆卡校园，说明该校的校区如何孵化出独立大学。
• Ecuador's geography, from the Pacific coast to the Andean highlands, is reflected in the spread of the university's seats across the country.厄瓜多尔从太平洋沿岸到安第斯高地的地理形态，体现于该校各校区在全国的分布之中。
• The university's sites range from the dense urban setting of Quito to smaller regional campuses serving provincial cities.该校的各场址既有基多稠密的城市环境，也有服务省级城市的较小地区校区。
• In Quito the university shares the city with the San Francisco de Quito University and with several other higher-education institutions, many of them private, giving the capital a dense student population.在基多，该校与基多圣弗朗西斯科大学以及若干其他高等教育机构同处一城，其中许多为私立院校，使首都拥有密集的学生人口。
• The university's Amazon seat serves students in Ecuador's eastern rainforest region, where access to higher education has historically been more limited than in Quito or on the coast.该校的亚马孙校区为厄瓜多尔东部雨林地区的学生服务，当地获取高等教育的机会历来比基多或沿海地区更为有限。
• The sprawling Ecuadorian campus network relies on road links that run from Quito across the Andes to the Pacific coast, connecting the seats with the capital and with one another.该校遍布全国的校区网络依靠从基多穿越安第斯山脉通往太平洋沿岸的公路联系，把各校区与首都以及彼此连接起来。
• The university is not far from Quito's international airport and from the city's main transport arteries, which link the seats to the rest of the country.该校距基多国际机场与城市主要交通干线不远，这些干线把各校区与全国其余地区连接起来。

Reputation

• In the 2027 QS World University Rankings, Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador is placed in the 1001-1200 band, a shared range rather than a single position.在2027年QS世界大学排名中，厄瓜多尔天主教大学位列第1001-1200位区间，属并列区间而非单一席位。
• The university was not included in the 2027 Times Higher Education World University Rankings.该校未进入2027年泰晤士高等教育世界大学排名。
• It was not included in the main table of the 2026-2027 U.S. News Best Global Universities ranking.该校未进入2026-2027年度US News全球最佳大学排名主榜。
• The university was not included in the main table of the 2026 Academic Ranking of World Universities published by ShanghaiRanking.该校未进入软科发布的2026年世界大学学术排名主榜。
• According to the QS World University Rankings 2027, PUCE is the leading university in Ecuador for employability outcomes, a position it has held for five consecutive years.据2027年QS世界大学排名，该校在就业结果方面是厄瓜多尔排名第一的大学，并已连续五年保持这一位置。
• The same QS edition places the university first in Ecuador in the indicator of International Research Network, reflecting its foreign research partnerships.同一版QS排名中，该校在国际研究网络指标上位居厄瓜多尔第一，反映其海外研究合作关系。
• The university's QS standing has fluctuated over recent editions, ranging from the 801-1000 band in 2023 to the 1001-1200 band in 2027.该校在QS各版排名中的位次有所波动，从2023年的第801-1000位区间到2027年的第1001-1200位区间。
• OpenAlex attributes about 11,567 research works and some 187,297 citations to the university, the largest output among Ecuador's private universities.OpenAlex收录该校约11,567项研究成果与约187,297次被引用，为厄瓜多尔私立大学中产出规模最大者。
• Founded in 1946, the university is the oldest private university in Ecuador and the principal Catholic institution of higher education in the country.该校创办于1946年，是厄瓜多尔历史最悠久的私立大学，也是该国最主要的天主教高等教育机构。
• Its medical, nursing and law faculties in particular are long established and are widely recognised within Ecuador, while its engineering and business programmes have grown quickly since 2015.其医学院、护理学院与法学院尤其历史悠久，在厄瓜多尔国内获得广泛认可；其工程与商学项目则自2015年以来迅速扩张。
• Through its National System, PUCE coordinates academic quality across its seats, supporting its standing as a leading private institution in Ecuador.该校通过其全国体系协调各校区的学术质量，支撑其作为厄瓜多尔领先私立机构的地位。

Student life

• The university expresses its identity through its Catholic mission rather than a formal Latin motto, emphasising the formation of people committed to the common good.该校以天主教使命而非正式的拉丁文校训表达自身身份，强调培养致力于公共福祉的人。
• Students are supported by welfare and scholarship programmes, academic tutoring and student services across the seven seats.该校通过福利与奖学金项目、学业辅导与学生服务，为七个校区的学生提供支持。
• Pope Francis's visit to the Quito campus on 7 July 2015 remains one of the most memorable events in the university's recent history.2015年7月7日教宗方济各到访基多校区，至今仍是该校近期历史上最令人难忘的事件之一。
• The Cultural Centre hosts year-round art exhibitions, and the university's pastoral and chaplaincy services run retreats and community programmes.文化中心全年举办艺术展览，该校的牧灵与校牧服务则开展避静与社区项目。
• The university's campus ministry and social outreach projects engage students in work with communities in Quito and in the provinces, in keeping with the Jesuit tradition of service.该校的校牧服务与社会外展项目让学生参与基多及各省的社区服务工作，与耶稣会服务他人的传统相契合。
• The Espinosa Pólit Award for Literature, presented annually, gives the university a prominent place in Ecuador's literary culture.每年颁发的埃斯皮诺萨·波利特文学奖，使该校在厄瓜多尔的文学文化中占有醒目位置。
• Student organisations, sports teams and cultural groups operate across the campuses, and the university holds its annual employability fair for students and alumni.各校区均设有学生组织、运动队伍与文化团体，该校并为学生与校友举办年度就业博览会。
• Quito's museums, historic centre and Andean setting provide students with a rich environment for study and recreation.基多的博物馆、历史城区与安第斯山环境，为学生的求学与休闲提供了丰富的氛围。
• Alumni of the university occupy leading positions in Ecuadorian politics, business, science and the arts, giving students a broad professional network.该校校友在厄瓜多尔政界、商界、科学与艺术领域担任要职，为学生提供了广阔的职业网络。

Notable people

• Aurelio Espinosa Pólit, the Jesuit writer and critic who co-founded the university and served as its first rector, also founded the museum and library that bear his name.共同创办该校并出任首任校长的耶稣会作家与评论家奥雷利奥·埃斯皮诺萨·波利特，还创办了以他名字命名的博物馆与图书馆。
• Oswaldo Hurtado Larrea, who served as President of Ecuador from 1981 to 1984, took his degree in political and social sciences at the Catholic University of Ecuador.1981年至1984年出任厄瓜多尔总统的奥斯瓦尔多·乌尔塔多·拉雷亚，在该校取得政治与社会科学学位。
• Jamil Mahuad, President of Ecuador from 1998 to 2000, took his doctorate in jurisprudence at PUCE in 1979 and later served as mayor of Quito.1998年至2000年出任厄瓜多尔总统的哈米尔·马瓦德，于1979年在该校取得法学博士学位，其后出任基多市长。
• Fabian Alarcon Rivera, who served as President of Ecuador from 1997 to 1998, studied jurisprudence at PUCE and took his doctorate at the age of twenty-six.1997年至1998年出任厄瓜多尔总统的法维安·阿拉尔孔·里韦拉，在该校攻读司法学，并于二十六岁取得博士学位。
• Mauricio Rodas, the youngest person elected mayor of Quito and in office from 2014 to 2019, is a lawyer and alumnus of the university.2014年至2019年在任、迄今最年轻的基多当选市长毛里西奥·罗达斯，是该校的法学毕业生。
• Enrique Ayala Mora, a historian and politician, and Ivan Carvajal, a poet who won the Juan Montalvo Prize for Freedoms in 2013, are among its alumni.历史学家兼政治家恩里克·阿亚拉·莫拉，以及2013年获得胡安·蒙塔尔沃自由奖的诗人伊万·卡瓦哈尔，均为该校校友。
• Eugenia del Pino, a biologist known for her work on developmental biology, is counted among the university's distinguished graduates.以发育生物学研究著称的生物学家欧亨尼娅·德尔·皮诺，被列为该校的杰出毕业生之一。
• Hernan Rodriguez Castelo, a prolific Ecuadorian writer and literary critic, and Jorge Salvador Lara, a historian and diplomat, were also educated at the university.多产的厄瓜多尔作家兼文学评论家埃尔南·罗德里格斯·卡斯特洛，以及历史学家兼外交家豪尔赫·萨尔瓦多·拉拉，亦曾在该校求学。
• Fernando Ponce León, a Jesuit who has served as rector since October 2015, led the reform that expanded the university's programmes and enrolment.自2015年10月起担任校长的耶稣会士费尔南多·庞塞·莱昂，主导了扩展该校项目与招生规模的改革。
• Carlos María de la Torre, archbishop of Quito, officiated at the university's opening in 1946 and supported its establishment as Ecuador's first private university.基多总主教卡洛斯·马里亚·德拉托雷主持了该校1946年的开学典礼，并支持其成为厄瓜多尔第一所私立大学。