There has been an educational establishment in Cork for over 1,200 years. A recognized Medical School was established in Cork in the 18th century, variously dated between 1722 and 1775.
The first recorded lessons in subjects like Anatomy, Physiology and Surgery date back to 1828, when a Medical School was founded by Henry Augustus Caesar. The school would become officially recognized as Queen’s College Cork in 1849.Medicine was one of the three founding faculties along with Arts and Law.
In 2004, the Faculty of Health Sciences launched a 120 million euro expansion with the development of new state-of-the-art facilities, including the Brookfield Health Sciences Complex, a Pharmacy building, and extended academic and research facilities. The University is an award-winning institution with a history of independent thinking stretching back over 170 years. UCC is ranked in the 1.1% of universities in the world. Today, University College Cork is the principal university in the province of Munster and the largest outside Dublin and now has a student population of over 23,000.