An Introduction to Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana (UPB)
The Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana also known as the UPB is a private university that has been a fundamental part of Medellín since 1936. Its first location was the Medellin campus but it has since expanded to a total of five campuses throughout Colombia.
It offers classes from preschool through graduate school, with some students starting their education as preschoolers and graduating as PHD students.
Location
The UPB is located in Laureles, on “la 70 and Nutibara”. The campus has a total of 21 main buildings and facilities. The school is so well-known that you can hop into a taxi and they will know exactly where to go because it located in the center of the city.
It has three different entrances, one on la 70, one in front of Unicentro (a mall in the area) and one on Nutibara.
Programs
The university is known for having the oldest Industrial Design program in Colombia, one of the first nanotechnology program and the first video game design engineering program in the country.
It is also known for having one of the oldest and best law schools, a top fashion design program, the most popular communication/public relations program and some of the best engineering majors as well.
The UPB has a separate location in Robledo, which is specifically for the Medical school/hospital. The Medical program is also one of the best in all of Colombia.
Language Classes
The language school offers seven languages, English, Italian, German, Portuguese, French, Japanese and Spanish.
The schools Spanish program is one of the few to offer assistance when applying for your TP-3 visa, or student visa as well as your PIP-2 to stay in Colombia for up to 90 days.
Most of the language programs offer up to ten levels and the classes are small and personalized.
Sports Facilities
The university is known caring about the student’s character development as much as the development of the intellect and this is due to it being a Catholic university.
They are building human beings, not intellectual robots, who actively participate in the world around them.
They have invested a large sum of money into the sports facilities around the campus. It boasts two public soccer fields, a running track, and a pool, a coliseum and tennis courts. The multiple soccer teams, the rugby team and the ultimate Frisbee team all use the soccer field.
The university has a full-sized gym open to adults and teens above the age of fifteen. The gym offers different memberships; you can pay for a day, a month, a fourteen day pass, or longer terms like three months, six months or a year; available for students and tourists.
The coliseum is used for basketball, volleyball, handball, “microsoccer” (indoor soccer in a smaller field) and other sports. The coliseum is also used for concerts and many other events.
Campus in General
The campus offers bicycle parking zones by almost every building and is becoming pedestrian friendly
Throughout the entire university you can find green areas/path that will lead to a boulevard of little fast food huts. You can choose from the greasy, fried typical Colombian food, to the healthy fruit shack and everything in between.
Right in front of the boulevard is a large seating area commonly known by the students as Comfama because of how full it tends to be.
If you don’t feel like sitting in this crowded area there are places all around campus to sit in the grass or some picnic tables under the shade of the numerous trees all around campus.
Safety
The school is very protective of its students and multiple guards can be seen at any time around campus. It is enclosed with a fence and students can only get in with a special school ID.
Visitors must present themselves at the one of the three guard gates within the circular campus with some form of identification to get in.
The university looks forward to foreign students who either want to take a language class or want to proceed to university studies once they have completed the required courses in Spanish.
