University of Bologna

The University of Bologna, in Italian Alma Mater Studiorum - Universita di Bologna and abbreviated Unibo, is a public research university in Bologna, Italy. It is the oldest university in continuous operation in the world and the first degree-awarding institution of higher learning. Teaching began around 1088, and by the late twelfth century the university was organised as a universitas scholarium, a guild of students. Its emblem carries the motto Alma Mater Studiorum, Latin for nourishing mother of studies, and the date 1088. With over 90,000 students it is one of the largest universities in Europe. It saw the first woman to earn a university degree and teach at a university, Bettisia Gozzadini, and the first woman to earn a doctorate in science and a salaried professorship, Laura Bassi.