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Universidad Nacional de Loja

Universidad Nacional de Loja

Datos rápidos

Ciudad
Loja
País
Ecuador
Tipo
Pública
Fundada en
1859
Estudiantes
17.672
Estudiantes internacionales
0,4 %
Ranking nacional
#12
Matrícula (estudiantes locales)
0 US$
Matrícula (internacionales)
0 US$
Nota media de la guía
6,8/10

Web oficial: www.unl.edu.ec

Resumen

The Universidad Nacional de Loja (UNL) traces its origin to 31 December 1859, when a law course was created in Loja, making it one of Ecuador's oldest universities. At the end of 2025 it had 17,672 students (16,477 undergraduate, 1,195 postgraduate), 789 teachers and 49 undergraduate degrees plus 57 masters. It is CACES-accredited (157-SE-33-CACES-2020, extended by 216-SO-29-CACES-2025). In Webometrics July 2026 it is 12th in Ecuador and 3,359th worldwide; its own 2025 report also cites THE Latin America 2025 position 111 (9th in Ecuador) and a UI GreenMetric world rank of 704.

Most teaching happens at the Ciudad Universitaria Guillermo Falconí in La Argelia, on the south side of Loja; almost half of the campus is natural forest. Loja is a mid-sized, orderly southern Andean city at about 2,060 m with a mild climate (spring-like days, frequent drizzle). It is known as Ecuador's music capital, is relatively safe compared with the coast, and is the jumping-off point for Vilcabamba and Podocarpus National Park.

Oferta académica

Five faculties plus a distance/online unit:

Competition varies: on the current admissions page the minimum application score was 833/1,000 for Medicine and 731 for Law, against under 600 for Forestry.

Vida en el campus

La Argelia is a large leafy campus with experimental stations, a botanical garden and sports areas; city buses L2 and L10 link it with the centre. The Instituto de Idiomas taught 5,560 students in 2025 (English, French and Korean with KOICA). Loja's student life is lively for its size — live-music bars around the historic centre and Puerta de la Ciudad, cheap almuerzos and a strong cultural calendar.

Intercambios

UNL is one of the most internationally active regional universities in Ecuador. In 2025 it hosted 72 foreign students on campus (about 0.4% of enrolment), counted 357 mobility participants, offered 156 virtual courses through e-MOVIES, took part in Erasmus+ KA171 and capacity-building projects, and signed 8 new international agreements, including with the Universidad de Córdoba and Universidad de Santiago de Compostela (Spain).

Admisión

After the national Registro Nacional, UNL runs its own exam and allocation. For the second 2026 period, registration ran 30 June-5 July, the exam 13-29 July and ordinary enrolment 1-17 September. In 2025 UNL offered 5,735 places with 98.7% take-up. Undergraduate study is free under gratuidad.

Foreign applicants need regular migration status (normally the visa de residencia temporal de estudiante: USD 50 + USD 80, apostilled criminal record, proof of means, admission letter) and a MINEDEC-homologated school diploma. Postgraduate applicants register foreign degrees with SENESCYT (SIAU online, apostilled title and transcript).

Alojamiento

No residences. Loja is affordable: student mini-suites with utilities are advertised from about USD 100/month (≈€85), for example in Punzara near La Argelia; furnished flats typically cost more.

Empleabilidad

UNL runs an Alumni portal (54 job offers and 904 applications in 2025) and reports employability of 66.4% for undergraduates and 86.1% for postgraduates. It awarded 3,521 degrees in 2025.

Oferta académica

Plazos de solicitud

Intercambio

Inbound and outbound mobility (72 foreign students on campus in 2025, Erasmus+ KA171 partner) run by the UNL international relations office. Listed in the Parlamento Andino / Uniwords network. Teaching in Spanish.

Siguientes pasos

Fuentes