Run by the Ministry of Health until 1960, the Training Center joined Haile Selassie I University – now known as Addis Ababa University, in 1961 by the act of internal decree known as “Charter of Haile Selassie I University”. In 1978, by bilateral agreement between Karl Marx University in Germany and Addis Ababa University, a medical faculty was established within the Training Center – a major milestone in the establishment of medical education in our country.

During the following years, we have evolved according to the changing needs of our society and endeavored to tailor our institution to address the urgent needs of our country. In 1980/81 the Training Center was renamed Gondar College of Medical Sciences (GCMS). Medical training was provided at the College by German medical experts, creating opportunities for the subsequent training of Ethiopian staff in Germany. GCMS gained autonomy from Addis Ababa University in 1992. In 2001 the first new Faculty, the Faculty of Management Sciences and Economics, was created. The spring of 2003 saw the next phase of development, changing the name from GCMS to Gondar University College and creating three new faculties. In 2004 the institution was converted into the University of Gondar and through subsequent years the University opened 4 more academic units.

Through its many incarnations, the University of Gondar maintained a steady commitment to quality education, focused research, and relevant community services. Currently, the University is made up of the College of Medicine and Health Sciences, the Faculties of Agriculture; Veterinary Medicine, Business and Economics Social Sciences and Humanities and Natural and Computational Sciences, and the Schools of Law, Technology and Education. We offer 56 undergraduate and 64 postgraduate programs in our regular, extension, distance, and summer programs (including a Public Health Ph.D. program which is handled in collaboration with Addis Continental Institute of Public Health).