Opened on 3 May 1837, the University of Athens was the first university established in the newly independent Greek state and the first modern university in the Balkans and the Eastern Mediterranean. Originally known as the University of Otto, after King Otto, Greece’s first monarch, it opened with four faculties and an initial enrolment of 52 students. In 1932, it adopted the name National and Kapodistrian University of Athens in honour of Ioannis Kapodistrias, the first Governor of Greece following independence. Today it is the country’s largest university, with world-class teaching and research supported by modern facilities, cutting-edge laboratories and advanced digital infrastructure.
The University of Athens at a Glance
University of Athens – Cyprus Branch Established in 2025
THE UNIVERSITY’S FIRST GRADUATE
Anastasios Goudas (1816-1882) was a physician and writer from Ioannina. He became the University’s first graduate and, in 1843, the first recipient of a doctoral degree awarded by the Faculty of Medicine.
NOTABLE UNIVERSITY OF ATHENS ALUMNI
Since its foundation, the University of Athens has played a defining role in Greece’s political, scientific and social development. Especially in its early decades, the University educated many of the public figures who helped shape modern Greece.
Its alumni include presidents of the Hellenic Republic, prime ministers, government ministers, and internationally distinguished figures in science, literature, culture and the Church.
Άγιος Νεκτάριος
Απόφοιτος Θεολογικής Σχολής 1885
Ελευθέριος Βενιζέλος
Απόφοιτος Νομικής Σχολής 1886
Ιωάννης Γρυπάρης
Απόφοιτος Φιλοσοφικής Σχολής 1897
Γεώργιος Παπανικολάου
Απόφοιτος Ιατρικής Σχολής 1904
Νικόλαος Καζαντζάκης
Απόφοιτος Νομικής Σχολής 1906
Γεώργιος Παπανδρέου
Απόφοιτος Νομικής Σχολής 1909
Κώστας Καρυωτάκης
Απόφοιτος Νομικής Σχολής 1917
Κωνσταντίνος Τσάτσος
Απόφοιτος Νομικής Σχολής 1918
Κωνσταντίνος Γ. Καραμανλής,
Απόφοιτος Νομικής Σχολής 1929
Αμαλία Φλέμινγκ
Απόφοιτος Ιατρικής Σχολής, δεκαετία 1930
Κωνσταντίνος Μητσοτάκης
Απόφοιτος Νομικής Σχολής 1940
Αρχιεπίσκοπος Κύπρου Μακάριος Γ΄
Απόφοιτος Θεολογικής Σχολής 1944
