What is the University de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria like?

Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria

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In this next section, I am going to talk about some aspects of the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, like the geographical setting of their facilities, the public transport, and how to travel around the city without spending much money, the quality of teaching (in my case the Engineering department), the sports facilities, cultural hot-spots, where to eat in the University, and more topics surrounding the University:

Geographical setting of the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (ULPGC)

The majority of the University's facilities are found scattered around the northern part of the island. Mostly concentrated around the Tafira campus, the main facilities are Legal Sciences, Business and Economics, Tourism, Architecture, Oceanography, IT, Theology, Telecommunications, Sport Sciences, and the Engineering facility. The location of the Univeristy campus is not a flat expanse of land, in fact, there are various low mountains and you will notice the physical demand when walking from one building to the next. The campus also has a library and student accommodation right in the middle. There's a gym and three football fields, one outside, one inside the sports centre, and one on the artificial field. In order to arrive at the University, you will need to get buses: the "Guaguas Municipales", which is yellow, or the bus "Global", which is green.

The other facilities are based within the city, like the teaching facilities, which are inside the obelisk near the San Telmo station, and the medical facilities near the Insular hospital. If you are an Erasmus student, you will stay in the city and you will need to get used to riding a bike everywhere; the ease of access here is something to remember, although you can always take the bus without problems.

The Veterinary facility is outside of the city. It is in the outskirts of Arucas next to the motorway. To get there you will need to take the bus, as trying to cycle all the way there would be a mission, especially as the motorway is really busy and dangerous for cyclists.

Where do you recommend finding accommodation?

If you are someone who doensn't mind putting their social life second and your facility is at the Tafira campus, your best bet is in the student accommodation at Tafira or in the surrounding areas like El Fondillo, La Calzada, Lomo Blanco, El Zurbarán, San Roque or you can get involved with the people in Tamaraceite, but it is a really lively part of town. If you live close to campus, you won't need to get the bus to your facility building, you will already be really close to campus. If you live in Tamaraceite, you will need to get the bus quite a lot.

However, if you are sociable and want to explore, I would advise you to live inside the city, as close to the coast as possible, like in Vegueta, la Isleta, Mesa y López, Guanarteme, El Rincón, San Telmo or near the beach in Las Canteras. Here you will have everything and a great time.

Where do you catch the public transport from to go to campus?

The city has two really big bus stations that are called San Telmo and Intercambiador de Santa Catalina. To get these to campus I have given the link below which will take you to where you can see the timetables and maps:

1. Línea 25
2. Linea 26
3. Línea 7
4. Línea 48

Links.

Are there any nightlife zones around the campus?

Inside the campus there aren't any places to go out in. You have to go out in the city or in the south of the island. What will happen on occasion is that the Tafira campus will organise "fiestas del vaso" parties which is normally for the students who finish their courses soon. These parties have music, beer and it is on campus so you will save money.

Where are the best places to eat on campus?

Almost all of the facilities on campus have their own cafe, but there is also a small cafe where personally I love to go to - for not much money. I usually go there, and if you prefer to save money, it is €45 for two, bread, a main meal, and a soft drink. Here is a list of my favourite cafes in order:

1. Las Casitas
2. Comedor
3. Cafetería de Telecomunicaciones
4. Cafetería de Derecho
5. Todas las demás

If you go to las Casitas, prepare yourself to listen to the waiters. They will leave your ears ringing because they shout really loudly from inside the kitchen that it will ring in your ears, but they are good people.

What is there around the university?

There are towns scattered around near the university that are home to students as well, like in el Fondillo or La Calzada. There are quiet towns where you will never find parties. Around the same campus, just behind the Telecommunications facility, you will find a small park that is half abandoned but is really beautiful. It is great to relax in after you have been studying and want a breather.

What is your opinion on the teaching?

I study electrical engineering at the Industrial Engineering department so I can only speak of the teachers that I have come across in my facility. Like everywhere and anywhere, there are good teachers and bad ones. You will always be able to find teachers who genuinely love their job to the point that they will ring you because you didn't attend their class to ask about any doubts around the class, just like you will have teachers who dislike their job and will ignore you. Those teachers, even after all the emails you send them, they don't reply, and even the meeting you asked for at a specific time, they don't show up to. As you see, there is everything. There are those feedback forms that you do at the end of the year for the professor evaluation, in which i have to write, from my point of view, they are quite useless as they ask questions related to the subject and the professor, referring to the final end-of-year results, which is pointless. But relax, we know that this happens in every university.

Is is easy to pass?

You will pass if you keep your work up to date and don't expect an easy work-load, at least in engineering. In the third and fourth year of engineering you will have lots of work to do, , as well as exams, in the same subjects, which you have to be really organised for to handle it all. There are also laboratory tests, where you will have to do reports.

The last years in University

The University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria has become a lot stricter with new regulations over the past couple of years. For example, you have to pass a minimum amount of credits regardless of your situation or abilities, a requirement which has hardened a lot, causing many students to drop out because they can't keep up with the new rules. The university cannot admit this type of student and therefore, they cannot continue their studies - something which has made education only go back in time.

Is there a languages department at the University?

Yes, there is a languages department at the Tafira campus where you can take courses to learn the language.

What is the climate like on campus?

The climate varies a lot from day to day and from where you are. At the start of the year in September, to the middle of October, you can wear light clothing to campus. However, when November comes, and it reaches 18:00, it gets really quite cold. The weather starts to change again when May arrives and you can wear summer clothes again.

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