The Simón Bolívar University or USB, is a public institution divided in two branches, one in Miranda state and one in Vargas state, with scientific and technological orientation. The Simón Bolívar University is arguably the most prestigious science and technology university in Venezuela and one of the most important ones in South America. It is the most selective higher education school in the country admitting only the 95th percentile of its standardized admission test.

Rafael Antonio Caldera Rodríguez, twice elected the president of Venezuela, served for two five-year terms, becoming the longest serving democratically elected leader to govern the country in the twentieth century. His first term marked the first peaceful transfer of power to the opposition in Venezuela's history.