The implementation of democracy in Portugal on April 25th 1974 led to a democratization of higher education and, therefore, the University of Coimbra had necessarly to widen its facilities and to build two more university centres: Pólo II and Pólo III.
The upper town University includes only a part of the current University of Coimbra that occupies several areas of the city with its 8 faculties, dozens of research centres, an Interdisciplinary Research Centre, entrepreneurial centres, a university stadium, a Science Museum, an academic theatre – Teatro Académico Gil Vicente – a Botanical Garden, students’ support structures (guesthouses, university restaurants, bars, study rooms, leisure rooms) and Portugal’s biggest academy.
The third university centre – Pólo III – is known as the Health Sciences Centre. It began to be built in 2001 and it stands out as one of the largest health care areas in Europe, along with the Hospitals of the University of Coimbra, the Portuguese Oncology Institute, the National Institute of Forensic Medicine and the Pediatric Hospital of Coimbra.
Pólo III of the University of Coimbra includes the following buildings:
– Central Unit | Architects: José Moreira Barra and Tiago Barreiros
– Faculty of Pharmacy | Architects: Pedro Matos Gameiro and Carlos Crespo
– Sub-unit 3 | Architect: João Pedro Serôdio
– Icnas – Institute of Nuclear Sciences Applied to Health | Architect: João Pedro Serôdio | Serôdio, Furtado & Associados
– Biomed III – Atelier Inês Lobo
– Central Library – Cadaval de Sousa/Costa Lopes , CLCS – Arquitectos, Lda
– University residency – Architect Paula Santos
– Canteen – Lima Gaspar and Lobato Santos
The University of Coimbra is nowadays an example in the constant demand for growth and management improvement, research and pedagogical models, as well as in the growing connection with the local community, thus improving science, technique and culture as a cornerstone of people’s lives. This is why the University of Coimbra plays a leading role in many projects, not only in Portugal, but also in Europe.
