Complutense University of Madrid

The Complutense University of Madrid (Spanish: Universidad Complutense de Madrid, UCM, Latin: Universitas Complutensis) is a university in Madrid, and one of the oldest universities in the world. It is located on a sprawling campus that occupies the entirety of the Ciudad Universitaria district of Madrid, with annexes in the district of Somosaguas in the neighboring city of Pozuelo de Alarcón. According to the annual university rankings conducted by El Mundo, the Complutense University ranks as the topmost university in Spain, with its Schools of Philosophy, Spanish Literature, History, Pharmacy, Optometry, Journalism, Psychology, and Sociology holding the top national rankings. The University is also an affiliate of the Spanish Royal Societies of Physics and Mathematics.

The Complutense University of Madrid is a member of the Europaeum. Due to its long history in the capital, the Complutense University enjoys great support from Madrid-based institutions, at a local, national and international level. The School of Medicine operates the Hospital Clínico Universitario de San Carlos, as well as a number of other specialized clinics located on-campus, some of which are operated jointly with the Ministry of Health or perform specific research for the Ministry. The School of Medicine is not the only one with government involvement; indeed, despite past conflicts, the Complutense University shares a close bond with the Spanish government, as made evident by the fact that the presidential residence of La Moncloa and the Spanish Constitutional Court are both located directly on-campus (with the political center of the city at walking distance).

The School of Communications, meanwhile, enjoys equally good relations with the press (large part of its professors being former reporters, editors, or directors of major Spanish and international newspapers). Moreover, the School is known particularly for its role as one of the main pre-screening locales for the nation; indeed, all major Spanish film productions are screened first before an audience of Complutense students, with the main actors or production figures of the films attending a post-screening press conference. Most recently, Blanca Portillo, Carmen Maura, Lola Dueñas and Yohana Cobo pre-screened Pedro Almodóvar's Volver; past pre-screening visitors have included director Santiago Segura, actor Alejo Sauras, and writer E. Annie Proulx. Each year, the Madrid Círculo de Bellas Artes extends special invitations to the Complutense students during its series of annual conferences featuring prominent philosophers, sociologists, and psychologists. Likewise, all of the faculties have been able to benefit greatly by lectures given by some of the most illustrious figures in recent history, of all fields, from singer-songwriter / Catalan activist Joan Manuel Serrat to historian Ernst Gombrich, from writer Umberto Eco to communist politician Santiago Carrillo. Alejandro Amenábar wrote his first film, Tesis, while still attending the Complutense University. All the on-campus scenes in the film were shot in the School of Communications, which Amenábar himself had attended, and the building itself serves as major device in the plot. Amenábar dropped out of the Complutense in part due to his antagonistic relationship with one of his professors, who kept failing him; as revenge, Amenábar named one of the main villains in Tesis, Professor Castro, after his teacher. Castro still teaches at the University. (wikipedia)