Organisation - Ombudsmen

The Student Ombudsman is appointed by the General Board of U.Porto and is tasked with promoting dialogue between students and the University’s lecturers, staff and management bodies. The ombudsman acts as an independent, impartial and confidential mediator in the event of a conflict.

Students should address complaints regarding issues with University bodies to the Ombudsman.

Students may submit a complaint to the ombudsman regarding an action or failure to act on the part of the bodies, services or members of staff of the University or its Organisational Units. Students may also submit suggestions regarding educational matters or social action. The Ombudsman and his staff are obliged to treat all information with complete confidentiality.

The Ombudsman’s duties are defined in the Regulation for the Student Ombudsman of the University of Porto.

Carlos Costa, Emeritus Professor and former dean of the Faculty of Engineering (FEUP) has been the Student Ombudsman of U.Porto since 2017.

The Ombudsman for Non-Academic Staff defends and advocates for the legitimate rights and interests of this staff, within the university context, although the ombudsman does not have decision-making power. The Ombudsman acts independently, impartially and confidentially to assess individual or collective complaints regarding the actions or failure to act on the part of the entities that make up the University. The Ombudsman may also put forward recommendations in order to prevent or redress situations of injustice.

The Ombudsman’s duties are defined in the Regulation for the Ombudsman for Non-Academic Staff of the University of Porto.

For matters of urgency and requests for in-person meetings, the Ombudsman may be reached by email: [email protected].