University of Padua

About the institution

Established in 1222, the University of Padua is one of the world’s oldest higher education institutions. It is famous for its scientific golden age, which saw Galileo, Falloppio and Vesalius teach at the University.  Elena Cornaro Piscopia, the first female Doctor of Philosophy, graduated during this time. Today, Padua is widely recognised as one of Italy’s leading research universities. Around 65,000 students are enrolled at Padua.

The University of Padua is located in a range of buildings around the historic centre of Padua, which is 40 kilometre or 25 miles West of Venice in the North-East of Italy. Like St Andrews, Padua is a historic university city, with strong links to the local community.

Our relationship

The links between Padua and St Andrews stretch back hundreds of years. Archbishop Alexander Stewart, later co-founder of St Salvator’s College, studied at Padua in the early 1500s. James Gregory, later Professor of Mathematics at St Andrews and the inventor of the Gregorian telescope, undertook a research stay in Padua from 1664 until 1668. In 2022, the two universities signed a strategic partnership agreement, building on strong research links across all disciplines.

St Andrews and Padua collaborate on a range of activities, including:

• Undergraduate student exchanges in Art History and Italian.
• Undergraduate summer opportunities, hosted by Padua.
• Tailored opportunities for Global PhDs.
• Jointly funded small-scale research and teaching projects through the Padua-St Andrews Joint Seed Funding Scheme.
• Virtual activities, including the Padua-St Andrews International Staff Week (2021).
• Research collaboration in Arts and Sciences.
• Participating in ad-hoc professional staff exchanges and our Professional Staff Week.