About UPM

The history of Mackenzie Presbyterian University (MPU) dates from the 19th century, when Presbyterian missionaries founded, in Sao Paulo, the “American School”. The foundation of the new school represented a turning point in Brazil. The school introduced a series of pioneering and innovative pedagogical and social practices. Among them, the end of racial discrimination in admissions (legally authorized by the government until then), the creation of mixed gender classes and the abolition of physical punishments.

In 1896, the School of Engineering was established by the inauguration of the “Mackenzie Building n°1”. By this time, the first seeds of the University were sown. The new building gave birth to Mackenzie College that soon started to offer several courses.  In 1952, after six decades of tradition in offering solid scientific formation, the Brazilian government granted the institution the condition of University. The contributions of the Institution to the socioeconomic and technological needs of country were recognized. In the following decades, MPU became one of the biggest and most reputable universities in South America.

Nowadays Mackenzie is also the oldest private, communitarian and confessional university in Brazil. The main campus is located in downtown São Paulo, a metropolis with over 12 million inhabitants. The city generates more than US$ 220 billion a year. In this dynamic and full of opportunities environment, the university seeks to encourage innovation and entrepreneurship. It guarantees institutional policies that aim at developing its undergraduate and graduate courses as well as applied research.

To know more about São Paulo CLICK HERE.

In face of all the transformations that happened in Brazil in the last two decades, the university became a fundamental part for the development of the country. The future of any university depends on the production and transmission of new knowledge to society by means of research. Conscious that scientific knowledge will never happen without a distinguished graduate program, Mackenzie Presbyterian University has made investments in its eleven graduate programs. Eight of them can offer doctoral degrees and all of them are able to offer master’s degrees (two of them are Professional Master’s Degree). The remarkable qualifications of the faculty, the quality of the infrastructure and the library standards have granted excellent evaluations from governmental organs, such as CAPES*.

Researchers formation funding

MPU understands that it is necessary to create objective conditions to the development of its researchers. For this reason, it has started to offer their PhD students full scholarships. In addition, the PhD student can also count on sandwich scholarships funded by different institutions such as CAPES, Santander Universities (the Academic division of the Santander Bank) and funding program of Mackenzie called Mack-Pesquisa (Mack-Research) that is also available for its professors.

International Events

Great emphasis has been given to hold scientific events well-regarded internationally. And to receive national and international High-profile, visiting scholars. That includes names such as Orhan Pamuk, Nobel Prize in Literature, Robert Shapiro, politics expert and Sir André Geim, Nobel Prize in Physics.

* CAPES: Coordination for the Improvement of higher education personnel

Please, find bellow the graduate courses offered by MPU:

• Business Administration
• Managing Business Development
• Architecture and Urbanism
• Corporate Controllership
• Religious Studies
• Geospace Sciences and Applications
• Economic and Political Law
• Development Disorders
• Economics and Markets
• Education, Art and History of Culture
• Materials Engineering and Nanotechnology
• Eletrical Engineering and Computing
• Linguistics and Literature

The extension activities developed at Mackenzie Presbyterian University (MPU) reinforce its communitarian and philanthropic reputation, showing its social commitment. Following The National Extension Plan (2000), which defines that “academic extension is the educational, cultural and scientific process that joins teaching and research, in an inseparable way, and enables a transforming relation between university and society”, Mackenzie has continually tried to involve its professors and students in actions beyond the university walls.

Cultural Preservation

Cultural practices, when guided by a broader policy, can allow the involvement of a great number of people in the preservation and deep understanding of representative cultural values in society. That is how events and exhibitions are held at Mackenzie Historical and Cultural Center, encouraging the debate of cultural Brazilian aspects. Music and theater, promoted by our art groups like choirs, instrumental music and theater groups, are a pleasant way of ‘culture making’.

A University for all ages

Formal education needs to fit several legal aspects that end, in spite of all regulation benefits, in certain restrictions to access what is produced inside the university. The Open University - OU, with its variety of extension courses, has an important role in opening the university doors and the academic world to all citizens.

• Walking Together – Project developed to meet social demands, based on knowledge produced at the University. It aims at attending the specific needs of Basic Education, considering both Mackenzie Presbyterian Schools and partnerships with public schools (state and local).
• Socio-environmental Responsibility – Viewing sustainability and the conscious socio-environmental management, the project searches for partnerships and integration with other institutions, from the public and/or private sector and/or the so-called third sector, without losing sight of the approach and integration with the community.
• Communication for Citizenship – it aims at the supervision and integration of all the extensions communication actions, both the ones related to the internal public as well as the external ones, in all possible media. It works in partnership with several institutions (ONGs, educative TVs, publishing houses), viewing the dissemination and the exchange of products, services and expertise in community acting.
• MackLife – Considering students’ formation as a whole, it promotes prevention actions to the usage of tobacco, drugs and alcohol, in a perspective of life consciousness and value, attending the internal and external MPU communities.