The Faculty of Philosophy, Languages and Literature, and Human Sciences (FFLCH) of the University of São Paulo, founded in 1934, is recognized nationally and internationally as one of the main centres of excellence in Latin America in the Humanities. The diversity, depth, and seriousness of its five undergraduate courses: Philosophy, History, Geography, Languages and Literature, and Social Sciences, together with its postgraduate programmes, give students a solid training in specific areas, with possible interdisciplinary openings. The Faculty is the largest unit in the University of São Paulo: ten thousand students are enrolled in its five undergraduate courses, there are 25 postgraduate (MA and PhD) programmes, with 2600 students, in addition to 7800 students taking other extension courses. The Faculty has eleven departments: Philosophy (with a course by the same name); and Anthropology, Political Science and Sociology, which make up the Social Sciences course. These two courses are located in the so-called "middle building". The departments of History and Geography and their courses are located in a modern building protected by heritage laws. And the departments of Linguistics, Classical and Vernacular Languages and Literatures, Modern Languages and Literatures, Oriental Languages and Literatures, Literary Theory and Comparative Literature, all which teach the “Letras”, the Language and Literature, Course, are housed in the “Letras” building. All departments teach, carry out research and offer extension courses to the general public. There are a total of 18 different degrees, which include 540 specific courses with 1600 class groups. There are 11 departmental and interdepartmental research centres, 12 laboratories, and the faculty library, which contains more than 500 thousand volumes. Both Brazilian and students from abroad may take courses in different departments to diversify their training. Research in the FFLCH is recognized nationally and internationally. It is mainly carried out through its 25 postgraduate programmes, where there are a total of 550 M.A. dissertation and Ph. D. thesis supervisors, each of whom may supervise a maximum of ten students. All the postgraduate programmes have a good rating from CAPES, the Brazilian Ministry of Education body responsible for postgraduate courses. Each academic publishes an average of 2.5 papers per year; the faculty press, Humanitas, publishes a large number of academic journals; and the FFLCH hosts a huge number of academic events. Foreign undergraduate and postgraduate students can take courses in the FFLCH provided they are exchange students for a period of one to two semesters (which may be extended with the consent of the foreign institution), obtaining credits or doing research connected to their universities of origin.