The Universidad del Norte is the main academic center for higher education in northern Colombia. It was founded in 1966 by a group of businessmen led by Karl C. Parrish in the city of Barranquilla. It started its academic operation on July 11, 1966, with 58 students and 10 teachers on core courses of business administration and engineering. The university is composed of 8 academic divisions: Engineering, Administrative Sciences, Humanities and Social Sciences, Health Sciences, Legal Sciences and the Basic Sciences division, as well as the Institute of Superior Studies in Education. The university offers careers in industrial, mechanical, computer, civil, electrical and electronic engineering, as well as Medicine, Business Administration, Law, Psychology, International Relations, International Business, Math, Industrial Design, Graphic Design and several other faculties. In total, the university offers 21 undergraduate programs, 51 professional specialization programs, 9 Master's programs, and 4 doctoral programs.