It was on the day that the Universidade Católica Portuguesa celebrated its 58th anniversary that the national ceremony to mark the start of the 2025-26 academic year took place in Porto. ‘We celebrate 58 years of a history of ambition, autonomy, and service to the church and the country,’ began President Isabel Capeloa Gil in her opening speech, recalling the Lusitanorum Nobilissima Gens Decree of 13 October 1967.
After welcoming the new students and expressing her ‘sincere admiration’ for the recent graduates who received their diplomas at this event, the President referred to the painting “Metáfora Bianco” by Brazilian artist and Franciscan friar Sidival Fila to reflect on the idea and current role of universities.
"The university is an institution rooted in tradition, but perpetually open to transformation and which must move forward through a continuous orientation towards hope, which it gives to its students and the stakeholders with whom it works. It is much more than a space for optimistic euphoria about technology. It is an institution that cultivates hope for the future,” observed Isabel Capeloa Gil. It is also, she added, “a place of constant searching, a heterogeneous space, receptive to diverse voices, where history is preserved and transmitted.”
In her speech, the President also highlighted some of the main projects to be developed this academic year, such as “UCP Nova Geração” (UCP New Generation), an ‘ambitious, demanding educational transformation project, one of the most difficult that the University has ever undertaken’. Aimed at first-cycle courses, it ‘encompasses teaching models and methodologies, a rethinking of the skill profiles required in complex and demanding professional, cultural and social contexts, and the integration of a compulsory shared curriculum’, with three axes that include subjects on identity and mission, the new humanities, and emerging technologies such as Artificial Intelligence and programming. He also mentioned the training projects under the Recovery and Resilience Plan and the ongoing infrastructure transformation at the four campuses, including the new Veritati Campus in Lisbon.
Isabel Capeloa Gil concluded by emphasising the “ethical dimension and moral leadership that educational institutions, such as universities, must assert” in order to “develop the country, empower people and promote research and science that is always oriented towards the common good”.
Invited to talk about her experience, alumna Raquel Seabra, now executive administrator at Sogrape, referred to Católica as “more than a school, it is a family, where values are shared and transmitted, bridges are built and dialogue is taught, a greater meaning that transcends us is shared, and individuals grow as part of a collective”.
"It is an impactful community, a network for sharing and support among its members, a safe place where ideas will continue to be discussed and knowledge, innovation and science will continue to be promoted without fear. It is home, the home where each and every one of us here in this room will find the comfort and security to be ourselves and make ourselves heard with our whole being," emphasised the manager, who graduated from Católica-Lisbon.
On this occasion, the UCP/Caixa Geral de Depósitos Awards, the Pedagogical Innovation Awards and the UCP4Success Scholarship were also presented. Teachers with 24 and 40 years of service were honoured with Medals of Merit.
At the end of the ceremony, the Bishop of Porto, Manuel Linda, left a message for the students and teachers: "Dear students, there is a diamond inside each one of you, and the education at this Catholic University helps to polish it and make it shine in a world that does not need darkness, but lights to illuminate us. Teachers, help your students to polish that same diamond. Be the light.”
