Extremadura approves the new Statutes of the University of Extremadura

The Governing Council of the Junta de Extremadura approved, in its session on September 9, 2026, Decree 163/2026, which approves the new Statutes of the University of Extremadura (UEx). The regulation is published in the Official Gazette of Extremadura number 176, dated September 11, 2026, in section I of General Provisions, with the official reference 2026040207.

The new regulation, promoted by the Regional Ministry of Education and Vocational Training, supersedes the Statutes approved by Decree 65/2003, of May 8, and its subsequent modification by Decree 190/2010, of October 1. The text enters into force the day following its publication in the official gazette.

Adaptation to the LOSU

The change is a response to the entry into force of Organic Law 2/2023, of March 22, on the University System (LOSU), which replaces Organic Law 6/2001, on Universities. The first transitional provision of the LOSU requires public universities to approve new Statutes within a maximum period of three years from its entry into force.

The Statutes were drafted by the university itself and approved by the plenary of the University Cloister, after undergoing the public information process. In accordance with Article 38 of the LOSU, the Autonomous Community has carried out the mandatory legality check prior to its final approval.

Structure and Governance

The articulated text, incorporated as an annex to the decree, reorganizes university life around the community, activities, and the governing and representative bodies:

• Preliminary Title: nature, autonomy, goals, and principles of the UEx.
• Title I: university community, with chapters dedicated to students, technical and administrative and services staff, and teaching and research staff.
• Title II: university activities, including teaching, research, knowledge transfer, and international relations.
• Title III: structure, including faculties, schools, departments, research institutes, and affiliated centers.
• Title IV: governing and representative bodies, from the cloister and the governing council to the rectorate.
• Title VI: procedure for the reform of the Statutes.

The regulation incorporates the gender equality perspective as a transversal principle, in accordance with Organic Law 3/2007 and the Law 8/2011 on equality of Extremadura, and provides for the creation of an equality and diversity unit and a university ombudsman.

Transitional Regime

The transitional provisions regulate the adaptation of the implementing regulations within a maximum period of one year and the constitution of the new collegiate bodies. They also provide for the integration of teaching bodies being phased out, such as university school professors, and the electoral regime for the sectors of the university community.

The decree, signed by the Minister of Education and Vocational Training, Sandra Victoria Valencia Ramos, and the President of the Junta de Extremadura, María Guardiola Martín, in Mérida on September 9, 2026, expressly repeals the previous statutory regulations.

The approval of the new Statutes represents a milestone for the Extremaduran university community, which introduces a governance framework adapted to current state legislation. The renewal of the representative bodies and the reorganization of the academic structure will affect students, faculty, and administrative and service staff of the region’s only public university.

Source: Official Gazette of Extremadura, no. 176, September 11, 2026, section I (General Provisions) (official reference: 2026040207).