Rio de Janeiro State University

The Rio de Janeiro State University^[2] (Portuguese: Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro) is one of the largest universities in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Its Faculty of Law is one of the best in Brazil^[3]. The main campus is Francisco Negrão de Lima at the Maracanã section of Rio de Janeiro city. Other campuses are: Nova Friburgo (Polytechnic Institute), Duque de Caxias, Ilha Grande, Resende, Teresópolis e São Gonçalo.

History

On December 4, 1950 the university was founded as a federal district university (UDF). Due to political shifts, the university experienced various name changes. In 1961, after the federal district moved to Brasilia, the name became Guanabara State University (UEG). In 1975 the university received its current name, when the State of Guanabara merged with the old State of Rio de Janeiro to form the new State of Rio de Janeiro.

The university's first four schools were Rio de Janeiro Faculty of Economic Sciences, Rio de Janeiro Facutly of Law, Faculty of Philosophy of the La Fayette Institute, and the Faculty of Medical Sciences.^[2]

Some of the schools (e.g. the Faculty of Law, founded in 1935) are older than the university itself, and were joined together upon the University's founding.

Education

UERJ currently counts approximately 23 thousand students. These alumni have at their disposal one of the biggest educational structures within the state, with 31 undergraduate courses, unfolded in different qualifications, education and bachelor courses. The university also boasts 40 postgraduate programs, divided into 38 master degree courses, two professional master degree courses and 23 doctorate degree courses. The institution offers 80 courses of lato sensu postgraduate in Humanities and Social Sciences, Biomedical Sciences, Mathematics, Computer Science and Natural Sciences.

In addition, the University offers primary and secondary education in the Instituto de Applicação Fernando Rodrigues da Silveira - CAp/UERJ to approximately one thousand students. This Unit serves as a teacher training center, being known for its high quality education, noticed in the great number of students admitted in many universities entrance examinations.

UERJ has ample infrastructure to support the academic and cultural qualification of its students, such as auditoriums, multimedia resources, computer and science laboratories, besides different training centers. There is also a library network, Rede Sirius, composed by 21 libraries. The net offers more than one hundred thousand titles in different fields of knowledge, as well as some rare items, documents, iconography and the archives of the university. As a complement to the learning process, UERJ offers training scheme scholarships, including those of scientific and teacher training.

The academic excellence of the faculty is another characteristic of this institution. UERJ is always stimulating the technical and scientific improvement of its teaching staff. Thus, the University develops programmes of Teaching as well as Institutional Qualification, such as the Prociência.

Health

UERJ offers the population of the state a vast structure of health assistance, with top services and highly qualified professionals, adding education and research to these services. This structure has been developed since the foundation of the institution, with the incorporation of the already existing units, as Pedro Ernesto University Hospital (HUPE) and Piquet Carneiro Polyclinic (PPC), along with the creation of specialized centers.

Hupe was integrated to UERJ in 1962 and has become a household name within the state of Rio de Janeiro, not only for its role of providing medical assistance to the local population, but also in terms of its teaching practice and scientific research. With 50 medical specialties, it offers about a thousand surgeries a month and more than 30 thousand monthly medical care procedures.

Besides Hupe, there are specialized centers created to support the specific public demands. Some of them are pioneer, as the Center for the Study of Teenagers Health (Nesa) and the Clinic for the Treatment of Pain, which combats chronic pain. There are also Center for Senior Citizens’ Care (Nai), Clinic for Hypertension Care (Clinex), Ricardo Montalban’s Outpatient Psychiatric Hospital, among others.

Moreover, Piquet Carneiro Polyclinic, a former Medical Care Center, integrates teaching and assistance at the University. Monthly, the Polyclinic is responsible for more than 15 thousand ambulatory and domiciliary appointments, counting on many medical specialties. In its Center for Minor Surgery, the medical teams execute surgeries of little complexity which needs no hospitalization.

The structure of health assistance at UERJ still counts on other centers that offer specialized assistance to the population, as the University Center for Cancer Control) created in partnership with the National Institute for Cancer and Petrobras (the Brazilian Oil Company).

In spite of all these actions, the site of the main campus is still a problem of public health, as a preferred spot for suicides. Due to easiness of public access, lack of vigilance and tall buildings with wide windows and interconnected by free ramps, many suicidals choose the facilities to jump off. Nevertheless, the dean offices treat the subject as a taboo and do not publish statistics of such cases, allegedly in order to avoid further attempts.^[4]

Graduation courses

References

External links

• http://www.uerj.br - UERJ's Website (Portuguese)
  • Languages (English)/(Spanish)/(French)
• http://www.esdi.uerj.br/english/index.html - ESDI's Website
• http://www.esdi.uerj.br - ESDI's Website (Portuguese)