The University of Malaga (UMA) is one of the main institutions of higher education in Spain: it is the first of the Spanish universities involved with the SDGs and the number 40 in the world, according to the Impact ranking of Times Higher Education. Since its founding in 1972, UMA has expanded its prestige and international presence and today has more than 35,000 students, 58 Bachelor's degrees, 53 Master's degrees and 22 doctoral programs, as well as more than 200 degrees of its own. Its activity is carried out in 2 campuses with almost 2 million m2, in which they teach and research more than 2500 teachers in 23 faculties and schools and in 278 research groups. As a result, more than 200 doctoral theses/year are made, there are 262 active patents (2019), 250 active research projects and more than 1,800 contacts with companies.
The UMA has signed bilateral agreements with more than 1000 higher education institutions around the world that support mobility to more than 1500 incoming and 1100 outgoing students each year, as well as 200 exchanges of incoming and outgoing researchers per year.
The UMA is committed to research and educational innovation by boosting the quality of its teachers and research groups through its participation in international research projects with the support and sponsorship of local Technology Park (PTA) companies. The University has a professional guidance center dedicated to promoting the employability of students and young researchers offering a wide portfolio of academic and professional advisory services, internships in companies, scholarships, etc. UMA is also part of the campus of excellence "Andalucía Tech".
The UMA has been a pioneer in Spain in promoting tourism studies and has the oldest faculty of Tourism in Andalusia and one of the first in Spain, with long experience in research and teaching in this field. Since 2019, this faculty offers the University Degree in Gastronomic Sciences and Hotel Management, complemented by the space of innovation, transfer and training for the promotion of gastronomic, food and tourism called Gastrocampus.
