Ignacio Sánchez Díaz

President

Governs the University as its President. According to the norms established by the Holy See, he is named to a renewable five-year term by the competent ecclesiastical authority.

Duties

The President governs and represents the University. He holds all the executive and administrative powers necessary to lead the University. He is named to the position by the competent ecclesiastical authority, according to the norms established by the Holy See.
Some of his responsibilities include:

Proposing policies, activity programs, and general work plans for the University to the Leadership Council.
Proposing the approval or modification of statutes and other regulations to the Leadership Council.
Proposing the annual budget to the Leadership Council.
Convening and presiding over Leadership Council meetings.
Periodically rendering an account of his work to the Leadership Council.
Informing the Chancellor of any situation when necessary.
Enacting regulations, decrees, resolutions, and instructions.
Executing the Leadership Council's agreements.
Managing and disposing of the University's assets.
Representing the University before national and foreign officials. Represent it judicially and extrajudicially.
Appointing academic officers and teaching and administrative staff when needed.
Appointing and removing officers who hold a position of trust.
Conferring academic degrees and professional titles.

All the tasks carried out by the President are detailed in the General Statutes of the University (in Spanish).

Career

UC Chile's President Ignacio Sánchez is Associate Professor at the Faculty of Medicine of the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile (UC). He completed his medical studies at UC and then majored in Pediatrics at the same institution. He completed a Pediatric Respiratory Disease Subspecialty Program at the University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Canada.

He has been head of the Department of Pediatrics. In 2004 he became director of the School of Medicine, and in June 2008, he was elected Dean of the School of Medicine.

He was appointed President of the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile in March 2010, succeeding Dr. Pedro Pablo Rosso. In 2015, he was confirmed for a second term, and on March 5, 2020, he assumed his third five-year term as President.

His academic and research work has been focused mainly on the study of cystic fibrosis, asthma, and lung function in children. He has published the book "Clinical Approach to Child Respiratory Diseases" in two editions and several hundred scientific articles in international and national journals. He is also co-editor of the book "Pediatría de Meneghello," the primary publication in the area of Spanish-speaking pediatrics.

He has published a series of books on Higher Education issues and numerous reflection articles on challenges in specialized magazines in Chile and abroad in recent years. He is a permanent guest to speak at the most important forums on Higher Education.

He presides over the Chilean Chapter of Catholic Universities. He is part of the Executive Committee of the Council of Rectors of Chilean Universities-CRUCH-, currently being its alternate vice president.

In the past, he chaired the Network of Non-State Public Universities (G9). At the international level, he is Vice President for the Southern Cone Region of Oducal. He is a member of the Executive Committee at the Universitas 21 network and the International Federation of Catholic Universities (FIUC).

He is married to Salesa Barja, Associate Professor at the UC School of Medicine, a doctor, Master, and specialist in Pediatric Nutrition. He has a family of 7 children and four grandchildren.