Youthful and international, each year UNIV Forum draws thousands of university students from the five continents to Rome. They come to expand their horizons, exchange ideas and constructively reflect on the most important issues for today's youth and society. The UNIV Forum began in 1968 with this objective: to annually offer a profound experience to roughly 1000 young people, where their ideas can come to life and grow, all in the context of Rome's cultural, spiritual and artistic heritage. Year after year, our students have met and listened to the protagonists of diverse areas of culture as well as those who can testify to and explain the challenges facing our society.

Study, reflection, dialogue, inquiry and debate: all these activities are at the heart of university life. One of the challenges for any university – in addition to providing adequate technical formation in the various disciplines – is to help students develop solid habits of intellectual rigor, rendering them capable of facing the great questions of life, of scientific and cultural progress, religion, economy and many other areas. Univ Forum places itself at the service of the university, which occupies an irreplaceable role in the progress of society. As a meeting point for university communication and debate, Univ Forum fosters dialogue on the principle questions affecting the person and culture of our time. Not limiting itself to theoretical reflection, Univ Forum promotes new projects that have a real impact on society. By various kinds of work session - seminars, case competitions, social projects, film contests, etc. - Univ Forum constitutes a flexible platform for fostering the creativity and initiative of professors and students coming from cultures rich in diversity.

Stepping into the workforce on the right foot requires a lot more than technical preparation. Today's world needs competent professionals who are also humanly well rounded. A formation of this kind ought to mature over the years, like a good wine. It consists in dispositions that cannot be improvised: a spirit of initiative, humility, order, empathy and many others. From the beginning, Univ Forum has placed work at the center of its interests. We emphasize that work is an occasion for growth and personal realization and, above all, that it is an instrument to serve others and society by making one's irreplaceable contribution. For this reason, some of our initiatives are dedicated to dealing with business cases and questions of professional ethics from diverse areas. In a collaborative and interdisciplinary way, students become attentive to the evolution and challenges of the business world and the workplace.

Starting in 1968, the Univ gatherings arose as initiatives encouraged by St. Josemária, the founder of Opus Dei. Since then the tens of thousands of students and university professors who have participated in this international meeting have been exposed to the lives and ideas of the great men and women who have lived in Rome, past and present. Univ is an chance for them to expand their horizons, to be close to the heart of the Church, and to listen to and grow in affection for the Holy Father.