The beginnings of the University of Barcelona's Faculty of Physics go back to the year 1900 when the Section of Physics was founded in what was then the Faculty of Sciences. It was not until 1954, however, that Spanish state legislation allowed the University to award its first doctoral degrees in Physical Sciences, thus ending a period of history in which this had been the privilege of Madrid.

The Board for the Section of Physics first convened in 1967, and the Section's first classes were taught on their premises in Diagonal, in 1969. In 1974, the UB's Faculty of Sciences was finally divided and the University founded its present Faculty of Physics. In 1992, the Faculty started to offer old plan second cycle studies in electronic engineering, and the recent building work completed on the Physics and Chemistry Building, which was inaugurated at the beginning of 2006, has finally provided the Faculty with the space and installations to fully cater to its needs.

Today, the degree most commonly studied in our faculty is physics, a fundamental science, a cornerstone in modern scientific and technological progress and, in a certain sense and as described in the words that celebrated the World Year of Physics 2005, “the base of all things ”.

Looking beyond the Faculty as such, recent research into the professional integration of physics graduates has reflected the ease with which our graduate students find work in the labour market and the breadth of their professional profiles, reflecting the great demand for physicists not only in education and research but also in technology, computer science and industry, amongst many other fields.

After physics, the Faculty of Physics also prepares a significant number of graduates for the field of electronic engineering, ensuring electronic engineering students the opportunity to incorporate technological training into their degree studies.

As for the Faculty's incoming students, these might commonly be described as individuals with a strong vocational calling to the discipline of physics and a good track record from secondary education. Many of those who graduate with a Bachelor's degree go on to complete Master's degree studies and doctoral programs in order to pursue professional careers in the world of research.

And with regard to the above, it must also be said that the teaching staff at our faculty dedicate an important part of their time to questions of basic and applied research, taking part in national and international projects and hereby maintaining the faculty's substantial contribution to quality research in what, at a national level, are generally agreed to be difficult times for such activity.

In conclusion, although the Faculty of Physics is a relatively small centre, its importance withing our university community is an acknowledged fact: its productive contribution in terms of articles and patents as well as the grants and projects it secures in its research commitments continue to make it an important part of the University of Barcelona as a whole.




Joan Ângel Padró Cárdenas
Dean of Faculty