During the Expanded Academic Council meeting held on Tuesday, the Industrial University of Santander confirmed a fact that fills the entire community with pride: 7,480 applicants registered to study at the UIS in the 2026-1 period, making it the second highest number of registrations in the institution’s history.
Of these, 1,808 will be chosen to embark on a journey of education that represents effort, talent, and dreams that are beginning to come true.
This announcement is accompanied by key reflections from different members of the academic community, who analyze the reasons behind this growth and the challenges that lie ahead for the university.
“They continue to believe in us as a university”
For Jürg Niederbacher Velásquez, dean of the Faculty of Health, the increase in enrollment is a response to the solid foundation that the UIS has built over the years.
He emphasized that this achievement reflects “the great amount of publicity there has been, the credibility our university has in the region, in the country, and even abroad,” thanks to well-established programs, excellent faculty, and graduates who excel in multiple fields.
He added that this outlook shows that “they continue to believe in us as a university to train our future professional citizens,” and in the case of the Faculty of Health, he noted that they have five robust schools to respond to this growing demand.
Between free tuition, institutional reputation, and the country’s challenges
For Gonzalo Patiño, professor at the School of Economics and director of IPRED UIS, the increase in enrollment can be explained by a combination of factors. First, he highlights the impact of national financing policy: “First, the issue of free tuition, the current government’s free tuition policy, must be recognized as having a very strong influence.”
However, he assured that this phenomenon is also linked to the positioning of the UIS: “The university has undoubtedly been gaining in terms of its image and reputation in recent years, both in Santander and in other parts of Colombia.” Patiño recalled that, despite this achievement, challenges remain for the country, such as low birth rates and the need for student retention: “It is an achievement from every point of view, and it is also an enormous challenge.”
A historic figure driven by quality and adaptation to new audiences
Camilo Eduardo Londoño Sánchez, Director of Admissions and Academic Records, was responsible for presenting the figures to the Academic Council. “This is the second enrollment process with the highest number of applicants in the last 10 years, reaching a total of 7,480 applicants for on-campus undergraduate programs.”
For the director, these results are due to three fundamental pillars, such as the work of the university ecosystem: “Our teachers, our administrators, the entire university community… they make up the name and goodwill of the university.”
Second, the renowned institutional infrastructure: “We are recognized not only locally and nationally, but also internationally for it.” And third, the coordinated effort to adapt communication languages to new generations: “A very strong effort… to be able to configure new languages adapted to our potential applicants, to the increasingly younger boys and girls who communicate in a different way.”
With these historic figures, the UIS confirms that it continues to be a beacon for thousands of young people seeking to transform their lives through knowledge. Each applicant is a story that knocks on our door; each admitted student is a dream that begins to walk our halls. 2026-1 not only sets records: it marks the beginning of a generation that chose to believe in public education, believe in the UIS, and believe in their own future.
