University overcrowding and student population. The UBA student body in two decades of democracy (1983-2004)

Abstract

This article analyzes the sociodemographic characteristics of the student body at the University of Buenos Aires (UBA), Argentina, and its transformations during the first two decades of the current democracy in Argentina, when the institution tripled its enrollment and became one of the two universities with the most students in Latin America. Based on the analysis of university censuses and other documents, the text inquires to what extent university overcrowding meant a process of democratization of access to higher education and how the student population of the UBA changed during this period, which was characterized by a profound heterogeneity.