Faculty of Arts and Humanities of University of Porto (reviews)

Perhaps the best thing about the Faculty of Arts at the Uporto is the environment, more than the education itself. Every place in the building feels cozy and conducive to just sit and relax, with friends or alone, in addition to having a great cafeteria and a beautiful view of Porto. I’m probably not completely passionate about my course or what I study, but I admit that my intellectual level has increased exponentially since I started my studies at Uporto. In fact, there are many trained professionals who are eager to teach, and resources that we have access to to help us. But even though I try, I can’t love this Faculty. Without going into too much detail, but the building is old and so are the teaching methods. Is not a modernized place and that can get in the way. In addition, it is still possible to encounter xenophobia on the part of some teachers.

The faculty of arts and humanities of the university of Porto is one of the oldest teaching establishments in Portugal. We can compare the university of Porto with Coimbra and Lisbon in terms of status. Coming from a polytechnic background it was somewhat of a cultural “shock” even as a local, to see just how engrained the teaching process was there. There is a higher emphasis towards technicality and theory and not much towards actual practice. The teaching there felt slightly outdated and on the verge of a Pink Floyd song. There wasn’t really much room for creativity in most of the subjects I took except for maybe 2 or 3. Perhaps I got used to something better or much more freeing by taking my bachelor’s degree at a polytechnic but if felt as if we had to follow a strict set of rules in order to succeed. The facilities themselves are great and have one of the best locations in Porto where you can find everything you want in the city in a heartbeat. Given the nature of the faculty (arts and humanities), there is definitely a lot more room for foreign students and they can be easily inserted in the community. You can really see that FLUP takes pride in having students from the 4 corners of the world. As an international student this university might be one of the very best if you want to have a great experience in Portugal.

The University of Porto is located very close to the center, the campus is immense and beautiful but it is not well adapted for disabled people, once there are a lot of stairs and tight corridors. Besides this, the structure is very good and it is a comfortable place to study either in the library or outside among the trees. During my course, I’ve faced great teachers that are dedicated to the students and give amazing classes, but I have also had some unpleasant teachers who are rude and disrespectful towards the students, especially immigrants. The hours are usually well distributed so students who may need to work can do it without missing classes. The programme is very good and the professors try and keep everyone at the same level, which sometimes may even be repetitive but still great. On the other hand, classes are mostly expositive and not very interactive, which can be a problem depending on the student. Nonetheless, to study in between those walls in the marvelous city of Porto, with internationally renowned researchers is for sure a very rewarding experience.

The name recognition of this faculty would have you believe that it is one of, if not the best, faculty of arts and humanities in all the country, however the lack of care from most of the administrative staff and professors, as well as the poor conditions of the building and outdated technology make the whole experience lackluster. A lot of the degrees focus on an extremely classical repertoire, that although sometimes expertly taught, leaves a lot to be desired, this is mostly due to the lack of funding in certain departments making it hard to separate academic work from pedagogical on, leaving the students with teachers that have no interest or skill in teaching but are forced to do so, much to their students, and their own, frustration, this was mostly experienced during my bachelor’s degree, as I have observed that professors who teach future masters tend to be more caring and have an updated curriculum. This does not mean that all professors are bad, many of them are extremely competent and caring, but the truth is that it depends on how lucky you are, and what you are studying. The almost adversarial relationship between the direction and the previous Student’s association was a disgrace, and shame, and showed the competence of the director and his associates, that is, mostly nonexistent, but fortunately, things seem to have calmed down. On a positive note, most of the staff is extremely amicable, and the cultural groups are a great plus.