Universidad Nacional, Costa Rica

In 1973, the Universidad Nacional, UNA, emerged as a public institution of higher education with campuses in the province of Heredia, as well as in Liberia and Pérez Zeledón, formerly Normal Schools of Costa Rica.

This institution was founded in response to the need for a robust public higher education system, focused on strengthening humanistic vision, artistic creation, technology generation, applied knowledge, and human capital under the concept of “UNA: the Necessary University.”

It opened its doors on March 14, 1973, with nearly 2,500 students enrolled and 200 teachers.

The Universidad Nacional builds knowledge and prepares creative, critical humanist professionals by integrating the substantive actions in the national and international spheres with the social, artistic, cultural, and productive sectors, contributing to eco-social sustainability, peaceful coexistence, democratic transformation, and development of communities and society, with emphasis on the least favored sectors or those at risk of exclusion.