The University of Amsterdam (UvA) dates back to 1632, when its predecessor, the Athenaeum Illustre, was founded to educate the citizens of Amsterdam. It describes itself as a public university and has four campuses in the city. A three-member Executive Board manages the university and is accountable to a Supervisory Board; Vinod Subramaniam is President of the Executive Board and Anniek de Ruijter is Rector Magnificus.
The UvA has seven faculties: Humanities; Science; Social and Behavioural Sciences; Economics and Business; Law (Amsterdam Law School); Dentistry (ACTA); and Medicine (Amsterdam UMC). Its 2025 annual report records 43,242 enrolled students, down from 44,015 in 2024, and 6,265 staff in full-time equivalents in December 2025. It conferred 676 doctorates in 2025.