The University of Ottawa is a unique educational institution with a distinct identity, rooted in an outstanding ecosystem. Founded in 1848, our campus is located on the traditional unceded territory of the Anishinaabe Algonquin Nation.
It is the largest French-English bilingual university in the world and an institution open to the languages and knowledge of Indigenous peoples and the entire world. Among the top five universities in Canada for research intensity, the University of Ottawa is a key centre of power, leadership and change in the heart of a G7 capital, and in a bilingual city, at the intersection of scholarship, business and policy. It is just steps away from Canada’s most important democratic institutions. It benefits from a worldwide network of ambassadors, internationally-renowned hospitals and national research agencies, a major arts sector and a flourishing business community. It has a presence in Kanata North, the country’s largest tech park, where its campus continues to grow.
This crossroads of scholarship, business and politics is the motor that drives its 50,000 students and over 6,000 professors and administrative staff to constantly aim higher, to spur innovation and transform society. In total, professors and researchers attract over $500 million in research funding annually.
- Members
Marie-Eve Sylvestre President and Vice-Chancellor
Dr. Marie-Eve Sylvestre has been president and vice-chancellor of the University of Ottawa since July 1, 2025. Prior to assuming this role, she was dean of the Civil Law Section of the Faculty of Law and co-chair of the Senate Committee on Academic Freedom. A distinguished interdisciplinary scholar, Dr. Sylvestre’s research focuses on criminal law and practices that have a discriminatory impact on marginalized populations. Dr. Sylvestre is a member of the College of New Scholars, Artists and Scientists of the Royal Society of Canada and a board member of the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. She was awarded the distinction of Advocatus Emeritus by the Quebec Bar in 2022. She holds an LLB from the Université de Montréal, as well as an LLM and an SJD from Harvard Law School, where she was a Frank Knox Memorial Foundation fellow.
