The National University of Loja is the oldest public university in southern Ecuador. It can trace its roots back to 1859, when it offered law, theology and medicine. It adopted its current title in 1943 and has expanded provision across a wider range of disciplines during the remainder of the twentieth century.
Students can study across fields of agriculture and renewable natural resources, education arts and construction, energy, industry and non-renewable resources, languages, health, law, social sciences and administration, and the distance and online education unit.
A rich biological environment is reflected in the 50,000 species collected by the Reinaldo Espinosa Herbarium and three experimental units – a semi-arid unit at El Chilio, evergreen forest at El Padmi, and dry forest at Zapotepamba.
In 2024 more than 2,000 students took part in 23 social programmes reckoned to have a total of nearly 100,000 beneficiaries.
