62
week and a substantial amount of practical work. The course was radically
different from the usual fare at the time and was a success. Many of today’s
most distinguished Spanish researchers and lecturers began their professional
career in that school.
We had previously begun gradually to introduce astrophysics at the university. In 1970 and 1971, I gave two doctoral courses, ‘Physics of the interplanetary medium’ and ‘Solar System physics’, at the University of La Laguna. In
1971, I also lectured on the ‘Physics of the interplanetary medium’ at the
Complutense University of Madrid. Our strategy was always to couple astrophysics and physics, in contradistinction to mathematical astronomy (Chap. 7).
The creation of the University Institute of Astrophysics at the University of
La Laguna in 1973 was a major advance. The Teide Observatory was eventually to become part of the new Institute, thus uniting all astrophysically related
matters to the University. In 1976 for strategic purposes I accepted the title of
Vice-chancellor of Research at the University of La Laguna, and the following
year the Ministry was persuaded to authorize the bachelor’s degree in physics
at the University. The corresponding ministerial order was published on 10
March 1978, and on 13 March the programme of studies for astrophysics, as
part of the second (master’s level) cycle of physics, was approved. All this is
easy to summarize in words, but an immense amount of work and effort was
involved in bringing it all to fruition. These achievements were important
milestones in the introduction of this discipline into the Spanish university
system and established important precedents.
A fever to create new universities broke out all over Spain in that epoch,
and almost anybody would be hired to supplement the teaching staff. How
poorly the first generation of graduates turned out became all too clear. In La
Laguna we opted for a top–down approach in creating the Physics Faculty. It
meant that we had to fight the prevailing academic prejudice against new
ideas, but we finally succeeded. We began to produce PhDs in astrophysics
and used these to build up the teaching staff. We then set to work on the second cycle and began to turn out physics graduates specializing in astrophysics.
With all this experience behind us we began the first (bachelor level) cycle of
physics. The Faculty, thanks to astrophysics, is one of the best in Spain today.
Official mentions and certifications abound of the excellence of the bachelor’s,
master’s, and doctoral degrees.
These successes were hard won indeed and required humility in accepting
existing reality and the need to seek help. In designing the first programme of
studies in astrophysics I wrote to a select group of renowned authorities in
astrophysics from all over the world. I sent them a questionnaire including the
following questions:
F. Sánchez
week and a substantial amount of practical work. The course was radically
different from the usual fare at the time and was a success. Many of today’s
most distinguished Spanish researchers and lecturers began their professional
career in that school.
We had previously begun gradually to introduce astrophysics at the university. In 1970 and 1971, I gave two doctoral courses, ‘Physics of the interplanetary medium’ and ‘Solar System physics’, at the University of La Laguna. In
1971, I also lectured on the ‘Physics of the interplanetary medium’ at the
Complutense University of Madrid. Our strategy was always to couple astrophysics and physics, in contradistinction to mathematical astronomy (Chap. 7).
The creation of the University Institute of Astrophysics at the University of
La Laguna in 1973 was a major advance. The Teide Observatory was eventually to become part of the new Institute, thus uniting all astrophysically related
matters to the University. In 1976 for strategic purposes I accepted the title of
Vice-chancellor of Research at the University of La Laguna, and the following
year the Ministry was persuaded to authorize the bachelor’s degree in physics
at the University. The corresponding ministerial order was published on 10
March 1978, and on 13 March the programme of studies for astrophysics, as
part of the second (master’s level) cycle of physics, was approved. All this is
easy to summarize in words, but an immense amount of work and effort was
involved in bringing it all to fruition. These achievements were important
milestones in the introduction of this discipline into the Spanish university
system and established important precedents.
A fever to create new universities broke out all over Spain in that epoch,
and almost anybody would be hired to supplement the teaching staff. How
poorly the first generation of graduates turned out became all too clear. In La
Laguna we opted for a top–down approach in creating the Physics Faculty. It
meant that we had to fight the prevailing academic prejudice against new
ideas, but we finally succeeded. We began to produce PhDs in astrophysics
and used these to build up the teaching staff. We then set to work on the second cycle and began to turn out physics graduates specializing in astrophysics.
With all this experience behind us we began the first (bachelor level) cycle of
physics. The Faculty, thanks to astrophysics, is one of the best in Spain today.
Official mentions and certifications abound of the excellence of the bachelor’s,
master’s, and doctoral degrees.
These successes were hard won indeed and required humility in accepting
existing reality and the need to seek help. In designing the first programme of
studies in astrophysics I wrote to a select group of renowned authorities in
astrophysics from all over the world. I sent them a questionnaire including the
following questions:
F. Sánchez