text: The three universities, along with other institutions, participated in the reconstruction of the University of Toulouse – a joint structure of 107,000 students including 4,500 doctoral students, 17,000 staffs and 145 research laboratories. The mission was entrusted to Patrick Lévy,  former president of the Grenoble Alpes University, accompanied by Philippe Raimbault, president of the Federal University of Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées. This development, strongly desired by the elected officials of the Occitania region and Toulouse Métropole, aims to give greater visibility to Toulouse higher education in international rankings.
  History
  The formation of the University of Toulouse was imposed on Count Raymond VII as a part of the Treaty of Paris in 1229 ending the crusade against the Albigensians. As he was suspected of sympathizing with the heretics, Raymond VII had to finance the teaching of theology. Bishop Foulques de Toulouse was among the founders of the university. Among its first lecturers were Jean de Garlande and Roland of Cremona. Other faculties (law, medicine) were added later. Initially, the university was located in the center of the city, together with the ancestors of student residences, the colleges.
  In 1969, the University of Toulouse split into three separate universities and numerous specialised institutions of higher education. The three universities are: Toulouse 1 Capitole University, University of Toulouse-Jean Jaurès and Toulouse III - Paul Sabatier University.
  The university system was founded on 27 March 2007. It no longer represented a single university, it was the collective entity (PRES) which federated the universities and institutions of higher education in Toulouse region. With more than 100,000 students, Midi-Pyrénées is the fifth-largest university area in France.