The Federal University of Espírito Santo (Ufes) is an autonomous institution linked to the Ministry of Education (MEC) , with didactic-scientific, administrative and financial and patrimonial management autonomy, and which operates based on the principle of inseparability between teaching, research and extension, with a vocation to act in all areas of knowledge.

Founded on May 5, 1954, Ufes has four university campuses - in Goiabeiras and Maruípe, Vitória; and in the municipalities of Alegre, in the south of the state; and São Mateus, in the north of Espírito Santo - with a total territorial area of ​​13.8 million square meters. Its global physical infrastructure is 302,500 square meters of built area.

Ufes offers 103 face-to-face undergraduate courses, with around 5,004 vacancies offered annually. In graduate school, she has 62 academic and professional master's courses, and 32 doctorate courses. It has a staff of around 1,800 full-time teachers and 2,000 technical-administrative staff. In face-to-face undergraduate courses, approximately 20,000 students are enrolled, and 3,500 in graduate school. Its central administrative headquarters is located on the university campus of Goiabeiras, in Vitória.

In scientific and technological research, Ufes has about 500 projects in progress, and in university extension it develops 650 projects and programs with coverage in all municipalities in Espírito Santo, covering about 3.5 million people.

Ufes also provides various services to the academic public and the community, such as theater, cinema, art galleries, museums, language teaching center, libraries, planetarium and astronomical observatory, auditoriums, sports hall and other sports facilities. It also offers services in the health area through the University Hospital Cassiano Antonio Moraes (Hucam), with assistance in different medical specialties, being a reference in medium and high complexity care.