The Federal University of Rio de Janeiro3 (Portuguese: Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, UFRJ) is the largest federal university of Brazil, where state-owned universities are the best and most qualified institutions4. It is seated in the city of Rio de Janeiro, with three campuses (Cidade Universitária, Praia Vermelha and the humanities core at IFCS downtown) and two more independent buildings in downtown Rio. It was founded on September 7, 1920, by President Epitácio Pessoa1, upon gathering a number of previously independent public institutions of higher education in the city. By then, Rio was the Brazilian capital and the federal government sought to stimulate scientific production in the nation's booming economy. Some of the colleges and schools which form UFRJ date back to the United Kingdom of Portugal and Brazil and to the Brazilian Empire, such as the Politécnica (Polytechnical School - founded in 1792), Faculdade Nacional de Direito (National Law School - founded in 1882 and restablished in 1891), Escola Nacional de Belas Artes (National School of Fine Arts) and the Faculdade de Medicina (Medicine School). Initially the University was named Universidade do Rio de Janeiro. It was later renamed as Universidade do Brasil, on July 5, 1937. On December 17, 1945, the University achieved the status of full autonomy under the Brazilian Ministry of Education. In 1965 it was renamed as Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, according to the federal university system devised by the military government of Humberto de Alencar Castelo Branco. In 2000, the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro requested to retain its former title of Universidade do Brasil, on the grounds of the imposition of the current name by the military dictatorship during the 1960s. The request was granted and today the University may be called either name. On the occasion of its foundation in 1920, the University was formed by joining three independent higher learning schools: Faculdade de Medicina (Faculty of Medicine, the former Academia de Medicina e Cirurgia, which was created in 1808 by a decree of King D. João VI) Escola Politécnica (Polytechnic School) * Faculdade Nacional de Direito (National Faculty of Law) To these, other units were gradually created an incorporated, such as the Escola Nacional de Belas Artes (National School of Fine Arts) and the Faculdade Nacional de Filosofia (National Faculty of Philosophy). A beautiful set of buildings of neoclassical design - originally constructed to be a sanatorium - was then set to lodge the new University, located at Avenida Pasteur, in the Urca district of the city, near the Praia Vermelha.