On 11 and 13 September, Universidade Portucalense welcomed the new students with a programme that included presentations from the Departments, a ‘peddy-paper’ that took the first-year students to discover the campus, and an Institutional Welcome Session for the new students and their families.
On the stage of Aula Magna, Armando Jorge de Carvalho, Chairman of the Board of Directors, addressed the audience, alluding to the start of a university journey representing an “important and demanding stage that requires a lot of dedication, work, discipline, and, essentially, attitude so that you can build a solid and prosperous future.”
He announced that Universidade Portucalense had once again seen an increase in the number of students enrolled – 20 per cent more than in the previous academic year – with seven degrees having filled all the open places in the first round of applications. In his opinion, this reflects the quality of the University’s teaching.
“In fact, this shows the market’s recognition of the work conducted at this University by a whole team made up of its leaders and employees, both teachers and staff, who accompany you on this journey, and who have contributed to strengthening the prestige capital acquired by the institution. The milestones we have reached are important steps in our journey for continuous improvement. We must not and cannot stop. This growth also increases the responsibility of the entire UPT community,” he said.
He added that Universidade Portucalense will continue to invest in the constant improvement of teaching and services, in research, and in internationalisation, backed by a quality policy and supported by the recognition of external certification bodies, such as the Higher Education Assessment and Accreditation Agency (A3ES) and the Portuguese Certification Association (APCER), which have certified the Internal Quality Assurance System (SIGQ).
In this Welcome Session, Rector Fernando Ramos said it is a “great privilege to actively contribute to the education of students, not only academically, but also as responsible, upright, tolerant, and socially committed human beings,” and he continued: “I urge you to take on these challenges as unique opportunities for enrichment, both intellectually and in terms of developing scientific and technical skills, but also behavioural skills, which will be decisive in your future professional life.”
He stressed the university’s efforts to “promote interdisciplinary dialogue between different areas of knowledge,” with the aim of “equipping students with the skills needed to see the world in its various complex aspects, rejecting simplifications that hinder a full understanding of problems and prevent finding well-founded and effective solutions.”
He highlighted the importance of scientific research as a guarantee of the “permanent updating and scientific development of teaching staff,” praising the university’s “relevant position” in the SCOPUS/Scimago international research ranking, based on the quality of scientific publications by professors and researchers from higher education institutions around the world.
In conclusion, the Rector emphasised that the recently created Portucalense Business School is Universidade Portucalense’s bet to create value in the training of executives and other professionals.
