Cultural initiatives

The Collegio constantly invites the students to take part in the innumerable cultural initiatives that the City of Padua offers

Furthermore it organises conferences where illustrious cultural personalities of the academic world, the Church and, not rarely, meetings with those alumni that, having distinguished themselves in various fields, come back to talk to the young Gregorianum students about their own cultural, professional and human experiences in a fertile exchange between generations.

The Collegio should be considered an experience of community life, a developmental tool for meeting people coming from different environments,but bound by the common intention of living their period of education and training at the university in a christian way, in view of exercising their future professions.

For this reason the students themselves are called upon to propose the themes and topics that will be faced together, in the meetings and debates they will have organised on problems regarding the University, Society and the Church.

The religious proposal

In the full knowledge and respect of the freedom of each conscience the Collegio sets out to mature the most profound values, help seize life's more serious commitments and accompany through the experience of faith.

First of all it offers an occasion that would hardly possible to repeat in their future experiences, and that is, the daily rapport with one or more priests with whom to install a frank and intense talks on the topics which every now and then arises when living together.

Far from wanting to replace the original and irreplaceable personal relationship between conscience and God, the Collegio offers some moments of organised community prayer which can help in orienting to more open and fruitful personal commitments.

The Eucharist is celebrated every morning and, at the end of the day, the recitation of the Compieta becomes a moment for reflection and prayer.

The students are especially invited to the community celebration of the Eucharist held each Wednesday evening.

Traditionally, in the spirit of the Liturgy, particular moments are stressed: the Marian month of May, the week of prayer for the unity of christians, and a day for spiritual retreat at Pentecost.

Educational formation

Fully aware that the students need a cultural model tending towards a complete educational formation of the individual, along with the university courses the Collegio also proposes religious and cultural meetings.

Over the years the original course of theology that had been proposed to the students has evolved towards the organisation of study groups holding seminaries on Scriptures (Old and New Testaments) or on documents of the Church/p>

Since 1963 the Collegio has proposed, for the completion of the students' academic training, foreign language courses, having realised the importance that the knowledge of languages would have assumed in the perspective of the supernationality of culture and international mobility in the highly qualified world labour market. The language courses especially aim at supplying the students the means for accessing information in texts, magazines and newspapers published in foreign languages. At present the course are organised in four levels for the English language and two levels for the German language. Attending the lessons is compulsory for the students and for passing to the next level the students must pass an examination which is considered as having the same importance as a University faculty examination.

Computer courses have been introduced in recent years for the students of all the University faculties. These are held in the computer room of the Collegio.

Academic assistance

The Collegio proposes to create the best conditions so that each student may successfully face his chosen course of study.

Each year the students are called to discuss their study plan with the Director and to continuously verify that it is respected.

The first year at the University constitutes a particularly delicate moment in the students career: a change in teaching, the relationship with lecturers, the method of study and very often the amount of work. So to accompany the student and allow him to serenely face the start his career, the Collegio offers a series of opportunities that allows the student to dedicate himself with greater awareness to his study commitment.

In particular, internal courses are held by graduates and graduate students on the more important subjects of the first year, with the possibility of broadening their knowledge and doing exercises on specific topics. Furthermore for freshmen of the scientific faculties the Collegio organises a week of preparatory courses in mathematics for all scientific degrees. The cohabitation of the students with the assistants make this information exchange thorough and timely whenever the opportunity or the need presents itself, even apart from institutional courses.

Naturally, the Collegio, has no intention of being simple coaching of the students and each lesson aims at learning a method of study that allows the student to be independent in continuing his academic career, rather than at a simple repetition of the notions already contained in the university lecturers.

Furthermore the possibility that cohabitation in the Collegio offers each student of sharing his study commitment with other students of the same faculty, of the same year, or of the subsequent courses, favours the creation of a positive solidarity in the group and occasions of reciprocal help along the course of studies, which constitutes the most effective instrument of academic assistance.