The university

The University

From the beginning, UQAR has sought to train people who will actively contribute to building a better world and has devoted itself to creating and spreading universal knowledge. After several decades, the results speak for themselves: over 32,000 graduates have acquired the skills required to help build a future for their respective regions, wherever they are in the world.

THIRST for Knowledge

Université du Québec à Rimouski (UQAR) is a comprehensive French-language institution of higher education firmly rooted in the local community. Since its establishment by a group of visionaries in 1969, UQAR has helped to develop and spread knowledge across a vast area. The Rimouski campus where UQAR is headquartered meets the training and research needs of the Bas-Saint-Laurent, Gaspésie, Îles-de-la-Madeleine, and Côte-Nord regions in particular, while the Lévis campus mainly serves the riverside communities of Chaudière-Appalaches.

UQAR is part of Université du Québec, the biggest university network in Canada with over 86,000 students. UQAR is present in various fields of knowledge and is actively involved in many teaching and research partnerships. Over the years, UQAR has developed special expertise in several areas of research that have significantly contributed to the institution's international reputation, notably Marine Sciences, Regional Development, and Nordicity.

With its attractive undergraduate and graduate research and teaching programs, UQAR welcomes some 5,500 students every year, more than 230 of whom are international students from over 35 countries. It has one of the province's highest success rates and its graduates are widely sought after by employers who recognize the quality of their training.

So if you have a thirst for knowledge, discovery, and success, or simply a thirst to push your own limits, look to UQAR to help satisfy your thirst. But remember-learning often makes you hungrier to know even more...

THIRST for Choice: a Decentralized University

Studying at UQAR means, first and foremost, opting for all the advantages of a university with a human face. UQAR has two campuses on the south shore of the St. Lawrence River: one in Rimouski, the other in Lévis. These two regional centers offer a lively cultural and sports scene typical of university towns, all in perfectly safe surroundings.

UQAR also has a tradition of decentralizing its activities. Professors and lecturers travel to various communities throughout the region to offer continuing education programs in a variety of fields (education, administration, nursing science, regional development, and more). Certain research activities are also conducted off campus, notably in the Gaspé Peninsula and the Magdalen Islands.

Rimouski

The administrative center of the Bas-Saint-Laurent region and a bustling maritime community, Rimouski is also a genuine "student city" that hums with the activities of over 15,000 students every year (all levels considered). The label is no exaggeration when you stop to consider that students represent nearly one in three people living in this town of 50,000. TELUS Quebec, a major communications company, is also headquartered here.

Whether you're interested in culture or sports, you'll be spoiled for choice! Cinemas, shows, cafés, theaters, museums, art galleries, and concerts-every week brings its lot of activities and new faces to Rimouski.

With its superb natural setting and wide open spaces, Rimouski is the ideal spot for outdoor adventure-just outside the city center! Bike paths, sailing, golf, skiing, kayaking, hikes through the forest or alongside the water's edge, everything is within easy reach, including indoor sports!

Rimouski also offers an outstanding range of social, cultural, and sporting activities: Festi Jazz, the Carrousel international youth film festival, Cinéma 4, an improv league, the Océanic hockey club, and much more!

Lévis

Voted Québec's City of the Year in 2005, Lévis is renowned for its social and economic vitality and is also home to the headquarters of the Desjardins financial cooperative. Located directly opposite Québec City, it offers its 125,000 residents breathtaking views and all the benefits of living right beside the river.

The city and surrounding area are also home to a wide variety of social, cultural, and sporting venues, services, and activities sure to meet the needs of students who choose to study in Lévis. These include historic Old Lévis, the bike path along the river, restaurants, bars, sidewalk cafés, golf, shows, and cinemas, to name but a few. And nothing could be easier than a short trip across the river to visit any of the countless attractions and museums in Québec City, the provincial capital that is celebrating 400 years of history.

UQAR's new Lévis campus is based in a brand new building. The state-of-the-art facility has an interior design that takes full advantage of natural sunlight and renewable energy (geothermy and solar panels). Those studying at the Lévis campus enjoy a living environment that is geared to success.