Situated in the north-eastern city of Vila Real, The University of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro (UTAD) became a fully-fledged Public University in 1986, although its history also includes a valuable heritage received from its predecessor, the Vila Real Polytechnic Institute, created in 1973. This Institute took on a relevant role in the development of the region, and in September 1979, it was converted into the Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro Higher Education Institute. It was due to the intense activity in the fields of teaching and scientific and technological research that, less than ten years later, the Government granted its status as a qualified University. Today UTAD is widely recognized as a significant reference in the Portuguese university system.
The University of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro, based in Vila Real, is an institution of high level oriented towards the creation and dissemination of culture, knowledge and science by merging teaching, scientific research and experimental development. Within the current framework of innovation, the Schools and Research Centres develop scientific activity that seeks to deepen knowledge and develop technology capable of addressing issues of global, national or regional scope.