Under the Ministry of Education, the National Commission for Scientific and Technological Research (CONICYT) was born in 1967. Its mission was established in its organic statute of 1971, which states that CONICYT will advise the President of the Republic on the planning of scientific development and Technological, will promote and promote science and technology in Chile, preferentially targeting the economic and social development of the country.

In 1974, the Council of CONICYT was decreed, concentrating on the position of its President the direction of the institution, both at strategic and executive level.

In 2015, the CONICYT Council is reintroduced, putting an end to a recess of almost 42 years. The advisory body is composed of nine members, being headed by its President and made up of eight members, both from the public and scientific fields, within which is the Executive Director of the institution. With the reinstatement of the Council, the functions in CONICYT are separated, leaving the strategic vision and Executive Management, the institutional management.