University established or approved by the Roman Catholic Church
A pontifical university or athenaeum is a highly distinguished and authoritative ecclesiastical university of the highest standing, established or approved directly by the Holy See. It is traditionally composed of three principal ecclesiastical faculties (Theology, Philosophy and Canon Law) and one other faculty. According to the apostolic constitution Veritatis gaudium, an institution with four ecclesiastical faculties is canonically erected as an Pontifical University, while one with three ecclesiastical faculties is erected as an Pontifical Athenaeum. These academic institutes deal specifically with Christian philosophy and related disciplines, and the Church's mission of spreading the Gospel, as proclaimed in the apostolic constitutionSapientiachristiana. As of 2018, they are governed by the apostolic constitution Veritatis gaudium issued by Pope Francis on 8 December 2017.
In 2003, the Holy See took part in the Bologna Process, a series of meetings and agreements between European states designed to foster comparable quality standards in higher education, and in the "Bologna Follow-up Group". Pope Benedict XVI established the Holy See's Agency for the Evaluation and Promotion of Quality in Ecclesiastical Universities and Faculties (Agenzia della Santa Sede per la Valutazione e la Promozione della Qualità delle Università e Facoltà Ecclesiastiche, AVEPRO), an attempt to promote and develop a culture of quality within the ecclesiastical institutions and enable them to aim in developing internationally valid quality criteria.
Pontifical universities are usually composed of three principal ecclesiastical faculties, theology, philosophy, and canon law, and at least one other faculty. A pontifical university specifically addresses Christian revelation and disciplines correlative to the evangelical mission of the Church as set out in the apostolic constitutionSapientia christiana.
List of pontifical universities
Pontifical Institutes and Faculties are listed in the Ecclesiastical Universities article, while here are the Pontifical Universities and Atheneum.
since 1992. An institution of higher education in Kyiv (Ukraine), conducted by the Dominican Friars of the Vicariate General of Ukraine and affiliated to the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas (Angelicum).
until the closure of the college in 2018, when the Pontifical faculty was transferred to St Mary's University, Twickenham, becoming Mater Ecclesiae College
A number of national Roman Colleges designated as Pontifical Colleges serve primarily as residence halls for seminarians sent by the bishops of a particular country to study there, such as the Belgian Pontifical College. They may also provide housing for priests pursuing advanced degrees. Students may take classes at the Gregorian, the Angelicum or other universities in Rome. In addition, other members of the clergy may reside there when in Rome.[citation needed]
12Agenzia della Santa Sede per la Valutazione e la Promozione della Qualità delle Università e Facoltà Ecclesiastiche (AVEPRO), http://www.avepro.va/Archived 8 October 2012 at the Wayback Machine Accessed 1 November. 2012
↑Offers the S.T.B., according to "Gradi accademici" (in Italian). Lugano, Switzerland: Faculty of Theology. Archived from the original on 16 August 2016. Retrieved 4 July 2016.
