Port-aux-Français University Campus

The Port-aux-Français University Campus (: Campus universitaire de Port-aux-Français) is a campus located in the city of Port-aux-Français in the Republic of the Southern Indian Ocean Islands, housing faculties and departments of the University of Kerguelen and the University of Applied Sciences of the Austral Indian Ocean Islands, in the La Synagogue neighbourhood. It is the main campus of the University of Kerguelen.

Overview
The campus has an area of 3.8 km² and houses eight main and six secondary buildings. It is located between the Rue de la Synagogue and the Rivière Château in a natural area consisting mainly of meadowy, foresty and riverside biomes. The grounds are very open and well-kept, as well as publically accessible, functioning as a park of Port-aux-Français.

Architecture
The buildings on the campus are almost all, which was purposefully chosen for to create a sense of ancience and longetivity, as well as an air of grandeur and respectability. There is a small number of buildings in the, which have been purposefully designed unmodern for the same reason.

Architects which have contributed to the designs of the campus buildings are Marianne Mélieu, Ariane Beaufort, Paul Souaix, John Manning and Anna Ford-Petersen.

La Grande Entrée
La Grande Entrée is the main building of the campus and stands right along the Rue de la Synagogue. It was designed by Marianne Mélieu in 1962 to be considered as a proposal for the to be founded University of Kerguelen. Her design was accepted in 1964, building started in 1965 and finished in 1970. The building was the main reception area for the grand opening of the university in 1972.

The building houses the office of the Rector Magnificus of the University of Kerguelen, who is simultaneously the conrector of Port-aux-Français. It houses the Main Hall of the campus and the University of Kerguelen, used for festivities and receptions. It further houses the university administration, student affairs, the student deans and psychologists, the general meeting chambers for discussions and debates, as well as the Bibliothèque de Port-aux-Français, the main library of Port-aux-Français.

La Maison de France
La Maison de France is the building used by the Faculty of Philosophy of the University of Kerguelen, located due northwest of La Grande Entrée. It was designed by Ariane Beaufort in 1958 and she entered it as a proposal for the to be founded university in 1962. Against her expectations her design was accepted in 1964, after which building started in 1965 and ended in 1970. The building was occupied by the new university in 1971 and opened in 1972.

The building houses the offices of the academic staff of the Faculty of Philosophy, classrooms for teaching, and a lecture hall for lectures. There is also a small library which provides reference materials for both students and employees.

Dôme des eaux
The Dôme des eaux is the building used by the Faculty of Behavioural and Social Sciences of the University of Kerguelen, located centrally on the campus. It was designed by Marianne Mélieu in 1962 to be considered as a proposal for the to be founded University of Kerguelen. Her design was accepted in 1964, building started in 1965 and finished in 1970.

The building houses the offices of the academic staff of the Faculty of Behavioural and Social Sciences, a number of classrooms for teaching, two lecture halls, a cafetaria (for everyone on the campus), and a library providing reference materials for various branches of psychology, pedagogy and politics.

Cathédrale de la théologie
The Cathédrale de la théologie is the building used by the Faculty of Theology and Religious Sciences of the University of Kerguelen, located due southeast of La Grande Entrée. The cathedral-like building was designed by Paul Souaix in 1955, originally as a cathedral in Port-Christmas. The erection of a cathedral was eventually deemed to excessive and unnecessitated by the City Assembly of Port-Christmas, and thus the design was dropped. Souaix entered it into the list of proposals for the to be founded university, and selected in 1964. Building started in 1965, ended in 1970, and the building was officially put to use in 1971.

The building houses the offices of the academic staff of the Faculty of Theology and Religious Sciences, a number of classrooms and study areas, a small lecture hall, and a library with reference materials and religious texts.

Le Beffroi
Le Beffroi is a clocktower building used by the Faculty of Arts of the University of Kerguelen, located due northwest of the Dôme des eaux. The building was designed by John Manning, who entered it as a proposal for the to be founded university. His design was accepted in 1964, building started in 1965 and finished in 1970. The building was opened in 1972.

The building houses the offices of the academic staff of the Faculty of Arts, a number of classrooms and art studios, a lecture hall, a library with reference materials, and a small art museum which is open to the public. The museum exhibits several paintings by Édouard de Fervières-Lesvériés de la Fourrière and.

Le Château en Rivière
Le Château en Rivière is a castle-like building located on the riverside of the Rivière Château and houses the Department of Biology of the University of Applied Sciences of the Austral Indian Ocean Islands. The building was designed by Anna Ford-Petersen and entered as a proposal in 1962. The proposal was accepted in 1964, building started in 1965, and ended in 1970.

The building was originally meant to house the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Kerguelen, but it was decided in 1968 to house that faculty in Port-Couvreux. The building was doomed to be unattended and plans were underway to make it a dormitory, but the already existent University of Applied Sciences of the Austral Indian Ocean Islands expressed interest in acquiring the building. A deal was reached between the universities and the Department of Biology took residency in the building in 1974.

The building houses the offices of the conrector of Kerguelen and the academic staff of the Department of Biology, a number of classrooms for teaching and practicals, a lecture hall, and a library with reference materials.

Résidence universitaire Rallier du Baty
The Résidence universitaire Rallier du Baty is the only main building in the Baroque-style architecture and houses one of the campus' two dormitories. The proposal for the building was handed in by Ariane Beaufort in 1962 and was accepted in 1964, after which construction started in 1965 and ended in 1970. Students started taking residency there in 1972.

The building houses a dormitory which provides living chambers for 850 people in total. All rooms have an area of 18 m², catering for one student and provide a double bed, a desk, a fridge, a toilet, a shower and a basic kitchen. All dormitories are unisex, and students are allowed to sleep in each other's rooms. Free condoms are supplied on a weekly basis.

L'église académique
L'église académique is a former church which was already located on the premises, but was in disuse after the complete disappearance of Christianity from Port-aux-Français. It was transformed into a dormitory, and students took residence there in 1972.

The building houses a dormitory which provides living chambers for 350 people in total. All rooms have an area of 15 m², catering for one student and provide a double bed, a desk, a fridge, a toilet, a shower and a basic kitchen. All dormitories are unisex, and students are allowed to sleep in each other's rooms. Free condoms are supplied on a weekly basis.

Riverside
The northeastern side of the campus lies on the riveride of the Rivière Château, which sets for a quite muddy and overgrown area. The riverside is popular for walks and general recreation with students and staff alike, and is traversed by the Château Trail. Upstream from Le Château en Rivière is a small beach which is used for swimming; it is allowed to be nude on this beach.

The riverside is characterised by its forest of birch trees, pine trees, and swampy underground. Several species of bird of prey have their nests in the trees along the river, and a variety of small rodents and insects inhabit the banks. The campus riverside is also popular for fishing, which is allowed only with a university permit.

Arboretum
The campus also oversees the Port-aux-Français Arboretum, even though the Arboretum is not located on the campus premises. The Arboretum holds several rare trees, as well as the more usual ones.

The Arboretum especially prides its collection of, and , but also houses , , and a variety of flowering trees.

The Arboretum provides living places for both birds and insects, and boasts one of the few permanent couples to breed on the Kerguelen Islands. It also houses a small family of, a population of rabbits, and several homes.