The opening ceremony for University’s 800th academic year is to be held on Thursday 19 May 2022 at 11am in the Aula Magna “Galileo Galilei” at Palazzo Bo, Padua.

The ceremony will be attended by the President of the Italian Republic, Sergio Mattarella. Besides the address of the Unipd Rector, Daniela Mapelli, there will be speeches by the President of the Italian Senate, Maria Elisabetta Alberti Casellati, the President of the Council of Students, Emma Ruzzon, the Minister for University and Research, Maria Cristina Messa, and the President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola. Professor Carlo Fumian’s inaugural lecture, “Above all liberties”: learning, speaking and arguing according to conscience”, will close the ceremony.

In recognition of the University of Padua’s place among the oldest universities in the world, the ceremony will be preceded by a procession of rectors from Italian and international universities, which will start at 9:45am from Palazzo della Ragione and end at Palazzo del Bo, where the rectors will join the academic, political, religious, military and civil authorities in attendance.

For reasons of protocol and due to capacity limits required by the State Ceremonial service in view of the current pandemic, access to the Aula Magna will be limited and by invitation only.

The ceremony will be streamed live from 9:45am on www.unipd.it/en/800ay, as well as on the university’s Facebook page and Youtube channel.