Living in Santarém
Santarém is a Portuguese city and is recommended for all students who want to have an experience of living in a city where calm life is combined with hospitality, gastronomy, tradition, history, modernity, culture and leisure destination.
1. Directions | Accessibility
Santarém is centrally located and is the capital city of a region known as Ribatejo. Offering excellent access, either by road or by rail, Santarém is nearby by the main rail route crossing the country. The Northern Line is one of the most modernized highways in the country, double row, electrified and disposing a large number of connections to Lisbon and other parts of the country.
It is also the central land transport supply being located:
- About 65 km from the capital of the country - Lisbon;
- 40 minutes from Lisbon (by train or car);
- 45 minutes from Lisbon International Airport;
- 60 minutes from Coimbra (by train or car);
- 45 minutes from the port of Peniche;
- 45 minutes from Fátima (religious center known throughout the World).
2. Living costs
Santarém is a city with a low living cost compared to the European Union standards, also in terms of country standards.
| Miscellaneous expenses | Value |
|---|---|
| Meal (meal in the canteen) | 3,00€ a 4,00€ |
| Meal at low expense restaurant | 7,50€ |
| Accommodation (residence) | 150€ a 200€ /mês (custo médio) |
| Hospital Emergencies | 20,00€ (fixed rate) |
| Museums (student discount) | 2,00€ a 10,00€ |
| Cinema (student discount) | 5,70€ |
| Theatre (student discount) | 10,00€ a 22,00€ |
| Ballet, Opera, Concerts | 20,00€ a 75,00€ |
| Nightclubs | desde 12,00€ |
3. Accommodation and Housing
Santarém has a big offer for residential students preferably in the city center and with easy access and close to the ISLA. Most rooms have an income of about € 150, 00 monthly. However, sometimes the rent does not include other expenses (such as electricity and water), so it should be taken into account that there may be an extra expense.
Here are some tips to help in this search:
- Verify the proximity of the School (in Santarém it is possible to travel on foot).
- Choose a furnished apartment.
- Chance of having guest and that they can be lodged there without paying more;
- Ask if the price of the rent includes:
- Water, electricity and gas;
- Internet;
- Other services, such as air conditioning, use of common areas, other equipment (microwave, etc...).
4. Food | Canteens
The food in the school canteen has an average cost of 4.50 €. The average cost of a meal in a restaurant is 7.50 €.
5. Medical Social Services
Santarém has a public hospital and a private hospital both with all medical valences and emergency 24 hours / day service.
Consultation in the emergency room has a fixed cost of 20 €.
6. Insurance
The school insurance is included in the anual school fee.
7. Electricity and Energy
220 volts, 50 Hertz frequency. Electrical outlets, according to the European standard. You can use American plugs with a transformer and adapter. In Santarém, the most common kind of energy is electricity and natural gas is being introduced.
8. Telecommunications and Post office
There are numerous cabins and public pay telephones from which you can make international calls using coins, telephone cards, debit or credit cards.
The post office CTT - Postal and Telecommunications of Portugal (100 meters from ISLA) still allows access to fax services and internet and is open generally from Monday to Friday, from 08h30 to 18h00 (in some cases, e.g. shopping centres, the closing hour is later).
The telephone books are presented by region and trade list is called Yellow Pages.
The 3 mobile networks that can be used in Portugal are:
- MEO
- NOS
- Vodafone
The experience with students from other countries shows that sometimes it is more suitable to purchase a mobile phone for making international calls from Portugal. To speak to Portugal the country code is +351. To phone from Portugal to another country you must dial 00 + country code number you want to call.
9. Banking
When opening a bank account in any bank Portuguese, international students must submit the followingdocuments:
- Tax Identification Number (TIN) issued by the Portuguese Departments of Finance;
- Identification document (passport);
- Proof of residence;
- Proof of income during their stay in Portugal (purse).
With the opening of account, the student will be entitled to a debit card that will allow agencies to operate the account or electronic boxes and also make payments and purchases.
Banks are open Monday to Friday from 8:30 to 15:00 and closed on weekends.
10. Service of international relations
The service of international relations of ISLA Santarém (GRI) supports students in all situations related to mobility programs, internships or other outside school activities.
11. Service support to international students
ISLA Santarém offers a support service to international students providing personal and ongoing support. Additionally there is a tutoring service in which all students have a teacher / tutor that provides them with all the support in all situations and is also available 24 hours a day.
12. Libraries
Students have a library with over 10,000 titles. Additionally have access to several unique libraries of supeiror teaching Lusophone Group institutions;
- Emerald
- EBSCO A to Z
- Victor de Sá Library
Students can also search the numerous online libraries such as free access:C
- CiteSeer
- ERIC (Education Resources Information Center)
- Official Journal of the European Union
- UMinho repository
- ULisboa repository
- Cientific Open Access Repository of Portugal
- Open University repository
- Bibliographic Archive of the University of Aveiro
13. Laboratories
ISLA Santarém available to students modern laboratories for different academic activities, namely:
- Computer labs
- Cisco Network labs
- Chemistry and microbiology labs
- Safety and health at work labs
14. International Programs and Mobility
Students have access to several international programs entered in the European ERASMUS + - 2014-20120 (the program of the European Commission in the field of Education, Training, Youth and Sport).
15. Courses of Portuguese language and culture for foreigners
As established in the Regulation of International Student, ISLA Santarém offers foreign students courses of Portuguese language and culture, to promote academic and social integration of international students. In case of school performance, results obtained in these courses are contain the Diploma Supplement of the cycle of study obtained by international students.
16. Stages
ISLA Santarém has hundreds of protocols with companies and Institutions in the region, in which students can undertake curriculum through internships.
Students have the opportunity to contact with the labor market, complementing education with academic training acquired in a business context.
17. Leisure Activities and sports
Students have available various leisure activities and sports, taking advantage of existing partnerships andprotocols between the ISLA and gymnasiums, sports and cultural centers.