Established in 1969 following a merger of five Montreal educational institutions, the Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM) is today the largest institute in the Université du Québec university system.
It is a French-language public university and offers a combined total of more than 300 bachelor’s and master’s degree courses.
There are six faculties: the Faculty of Arts; the Faculty of Communication; the Faculty of Political Science and Law; the Faculty of Sciences; the Faculty of Educational Science; and the Faculty of Social Sciences. There is also a School of Management Studies.
The main UQAM campus is located in downtown Montreal and in 2005 it was expanded to include a new biology building and new halls of residence, alongside the existing laboratories, workshops and athletic facilities.
UQAM also has four regional centres in Lanaudiere, Laval, Monteregie and Ouest-de-l’ile, all of which offer programs. There are also a number of schools and institutes associated with UQAM and the university offers distance learning courses through a program known as Télé-université.
The university has developed a large number of international agreements and partnerships with institutions in about 70 countries across the world. These agreements are an important factor in developing student exchange programs, and in 2015 around 600 UQAM students opted to study abroad, while each year more than 2,000 foreign students study at UQAM.
Among its famous former students are Bernard Landry, the 28th Premier of Quebec, as well as economist Pierre-Etienne Fortin and director of the Montreal Police Department Marc Parent.
Until 2017 Université du Québec à Montréal was ranked by THE in the World University Rankings. Since the 2018 World University Rankings, Université du Québec à Montréal has been ranked as part of Université du Québec.
