The Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile (PUC) was founded on June 21st, 1888, by an Archbishopric of Santiago’s decree. It first provost was Monsignor Joaquín Larraín Gandarillas. At first, the Universidad Católica had only with two schools: Laws and Mathematics. But, as time passed, the students began to fill the classrooms and the faculties started to be multiplied.

In the early 20’s, the Monsignor and provost of this time, Carlos Casanueva Opazo, decided to offer accounting courses motivated by the idea of answering the question: Why are the most important Chilean companies run by foreigners?

The initiative was developed further and as a result, the Commerce School was created in 1924, known today as the Faculty of Economics and Management Sciences. The creation of this new faculty caused that our country began to have professionals of solid academic formation, constituting itself as a true contribution for the economy.

In the 50’s there were two important events. First, the provost Mosignor Alfredo Silva Santiago and the faculty’s dean, Julio Chaná Cariola signed up an agreement with the University of Chicago (one of the most important economics department among USA Universities), with the following purposes: to improve PUC’s academic programs, to do research on these issues and to instruct Chilean professionals for them to influence development and economic policies.

In the same decade the Economic and Social Research Institute was founded under the umbrella of the Economics and Business Sciences School. Its first director was Mr. Ramón Venegas.

In 1972, the Economics Institute was created when the country was under radical political transformations. That’s why, in the beginning, the Institute’s composition changed very often.

The same year, the Institute created its Master in Economics program, sponsored by the Ford Foundation. Its intent is to grant a solid formation in economic theory and problem’s analysis, applied with special emphasis in the developing economies.

Years later, in 2002, the Ph.D. in Economics program was created, with the objective to provide an excellent background in economic sciences and to form high level professionals, able to evolve in teaching and research activities, as much in universities as in research centers.

Both Programs are accredited by the CONAP – Education Ministry (National Comission for Accrediting Postgraduate Programs) and both have national and international recognition.

Currently, and since 2009, the Institute’s chairman is José Miguel Sánchez.