University of KwaZulu-Natal
The University of KwaZulu-Natal or UKZN is a university with five campuses all located in the province of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa.[5] It was formed on 1 January 2004 after the merger between the University of Natal and the University of Durban-Westville.[1]
History
University of Natal
University of Durban-Westville
Organisation
The university is governed in accordance with the Higher Education Act,[6] and the constitution of the university is specified in the Statute of the University of KwaZulu-Natal,[7] as approved by the South African Minister of Education and the Parliament of South Africa.
In terms of the statute, the university consists of:
- the chancellor (the titular head). The first chancellor of the merged university was Dr Frene Ginwala. It is currently Dr Zweli Mkhize.
- the vice chancellor (the executive head)
- two or more deputy vice chancellors (currently there are five full and one acting) [8]
- the registrar (responsible for registering students)
- the council (responsible for governance of the institution as a whole)
- the senate (responsible for governance of academic activities)
- the students representative council (responsible for students representation)
- the institutional forum (responsible for advising the council on matters of human rights and equality)
- the colleges (currently there are four)
- the academic and support staff
- the students
- the convocation (all the alumni and some others)
Academic structure
In terms of academic subdivisions, the university is made up of four colleges, each in turn made up of two faculties, which are in turn made up of several schools.[9] In most cases, a subdivision is spread across one or more of the university's geographical campuses. For example, the School of Chemistry is located across both Pietermaritzburg and Westville campuses.[10]
College of Agriculture, Engineering and Science
Faculty of Science and Agriculture
- Agricultural Sciences and Agribusiness
- Biochemistry, Genetics, Microbiology and Plant Pathology
- Biological and Conservation Sciences
- Chemistry
- Computer Science
- Environmental Sciences
- Geology
- Mathematical Sciences
- Physics
- Statistics and Actuarial Science
Faculty of Engineering
- Bioresources Engineering and Environmental Hydrology
- Chemical Engineering
- Civil Engineering, Surveying and Construction
- Electronic, Electrical and Computer Engineering
- Mechanical Engineering
College of Health Sciences
Faculty of Health Sciences
- Audiology, Occupational Therapy and Speech Language Pathology
- Dentistry
- Medical Sciences
- Nursing
- Pharmacy and Pharmacology
- Physiotherapy, Sport Science and Optometry
Nelson R Mandela School of Medicine
- Clinical Medicine
- Family and Public Health
- Maternal, Child and Women’s Health
- Pathology and Laboratory Medicine
- Medical Education
- Surgical Disciplines
College of Humanities
Faculty of Education
- Educational Studies
- Education and Development
- Language, Literacies, Media and Drama Education
- Maths, Sciences, Computer and Technology Education
- Social Science Education
Faculty of Humanities, Development and Social Sciences
- Anthropology, Gender and Historical Studies
- Architecture, Planning and Housing
- Development Studies
- IsiZulu
- Language, Literature and Linguistics
- Literary Studies, Media and Creative Arts
- Music
- Philosophy and Ethics
- Politics
- Psychology
- Religion and Theology
- Social Work and Community Development
- Sociology and Social Studies
College of Law and Management Studies
Faculty of Law
Faculty of Management Studies
- Accounting
- Economics and Finance
- Graduate School of Business
- Information Systems and Technology
- Management
- Public Administration
Campuses
The University is geographically divided into 5 distinct campuses,[11] which partially correspond to managerial and academic divisions of the university. Two campuses (Edgewood and the Medical School) house specific academic divisions (education and medicine respectively), but the remainder of the universities academic divisions are spanned across Howard College, Pietermaritzburg and Westville.
Pietermaritzburg campus
Pietermaritzburg campus was the main location of the University of Natal and its predecessor, the Natal University College, until the opening of the Howard College campus in Durban. This campus contains the university's oldest structure, Old Main Building, built in 1912.[11] Pietermaritzburg campus offers a broad range of academic degrees, and is the only UKZN campus providing training in agriculture, theology and fine arts.[11]
Howard College campus
Howard College campus was the Durban location of the University of Natal until the 2004 merger. It spans the Berea Ridge. Howard College offers a wide range of degrees, with some teaching divided between there and Westville.[11]
Westville campus
Westville campus is located in and environmental conservancy in Westville, about 20 km West of Durban.[11] It was formerly the site of the University of Durban-Westville before the 2004 merger. Westville offers a range of degrees, and will soon be the main home of the disciplines of commerce and management.[11]
Nelson Mandela medical school
Nelson Mandela medical school campus was originally a racially segregated part of the University of Natal, created in 1950.[11] It was one of the few tertiary institutions legally allowed to provide education to black people under apartheid. It was granted Nelson Mandela's name on its 50th anniversary in 2000. The medical school is the home of health sciences.
Edgewood campus
Edgewood campus is located in Pinetown, east of Durban. The buildings originally formed the Edgewood College of Education, which was incorporated into the University of Natal in 2001.[11] Edgewood is the main location of the university's Faculty of Education.[11]
Ranking
UKZN was ranked third in South Africa, and in the 401–500 range worldwide by the Academic Ranking of World Universities in 2010.[12] It was ranked fourth in South African and in the 501–550 range worldwide by the QS World University Rankings in 2010.[13]
UKZN's website was ranked sixth out of university websites in South Africa (and 1,051st worldwide) in the January 2011 edition of the Webometrics Ranking of World Universities.[14]
Controversies
There have been a number of controversies at the University of KwaZulu-Natal since its foundation.
Firstly, there have been several staff strikes and student strikes,[15][16] [17] [18] [19] with some strikes from 2009 onward involving police intervention and the use of riot control measures, as well as violence on the part of some strikers.[20][21]
Secondly, there have been a series of legal and disciplinary actions taken by senior university management against academics for speaking in public about the university.[22] [23] [24] [25] These actions have drawn wide criticism, both from academics and from organisations such as Cosatu and UNESCO.[26] They were also the cause of a 2008 staff strike.[15]
Notable alumni
As the university has only existed since 2004, very few of its graduates have had the opportunity to attain great fame. There are, however, numerous notable alumni of its founding institutions:-
University of Durban-Westville
University of Natal
- Steve Biko, anti-apartheid activist [28]
- Tommy Bedford, rugby player and anti-apartheid activist
- Colin Bundy, Warden, Green College, Oxford; Deputy Vice Chancellor, University of London
- Mangosuthu Buthelezi, leader of the Inkatha Freedom Party
- Sheila Cussons, poet
- Lev David, writer, radio producer/presenter and media consultant
- Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, Minister of Foreign Affairs in South Africa
- Adrian Furnham, organizational and applied psychologist and management expert
- Craig Joubert, rugby referee
- Mazisi Kunene, poet
- David Lewis-Williams, professor emeritus of Cognitive Archaeology at the University of the Witwatersrand
- Douglas Livingstone, contemporary poet
- Lara Logan, television journalist for CBS News
- Colin Moss, actor
- Fatima Meer, writer, academic and anti-apartheid activist
- Frank Mdlalose, first Premier of KwaZulu-Natal
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- D.J. Opperman, Afrikaans poet
- David Papineau, academic philosopher
- Alan Paton, author, Cry, The Beloved Country
- Shaun Pollock, cricketer
- Mamphela Ramphele, academic, businesswoman, medical doctor and anti-apartheid activist
- Sydney Skaife, entomologist, naturalist and conservationist
- William Smith, television mathematics and science teacher
- John van de Ruit, novelist, actor, playwright and producer
- Trevor Wadley, electrical engineer and inventor of the Wadley Loop
- Alan Whiteside, AIDS researcher and author
- Karthy Govender, commissioner for South African Human Rights Commission
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References
- ^ a b c d e f "History of the University of KwaZulu-Natal". University of KwaZulu-Natal. http://www.ukzn.ac.za/About-UKZN/UKZN-History.aspx. Retrieved 2011-08-28.
- ^ Moodley, Indu. "The University of KwaZulu-Natal's first chancellor - Dr Frene Ginwala". University of KwaZulu-Natal. http://www.ukzn.ac.za/aboutus/ukznchancellor.asp. Retrieved 2007-11-18.
- ^ "Vice-chancellor Professor Malegapuru William Makgoba". University of KwaZulu-Natal. Archived from the original on September 13, 2007. http://www.ukzn.ac.za/About-UKZN/ukzn_executive_management.aspx. Retrieved 2007-11-18.
- ^ a b c d "University of KwaZulu Natal". Southern African Regional Universities Association. http://www.sarua.org/?q=uni_University%20of%20KwaZulu%20Natal. Retrieved 2011-08-27.
- ^ a b "Choice of campuses". University of KwaZulu-Natal. Archived from the original on August 29, 2011. http://www.ukzn.ac.za/About-UKZN/ukzn_campuses.aspx. Retrieved 2007-11-18.
- ^ Parliament of South Africa (1997). "Higher Education Act". Government Gazette, Vol 390, No. 18515. http://www.info.gov.za/gazette/acts/1997/a101-97.pdf.
- ^ Parliament of South Africa (2005). "Statute of the University of KwaZulu-Natal". Government Gazette, Vol 684, No. 29032. http://www.info.gov.za/gazette/notices/2006/29032.pdf.
- ^ University of KwaZulu-Natal. ["http://www.ukzn.ac.za//aboutus/ukznexec.asp" "Executive of the University of KwaZulu-Natal"]. "http://www.ukzn.ac.za//aboutus/ukznexec.asp".
- ^ [UKZN. "Faculties & Schools". http://www.ukzn.ac.za/Faculties-schools.aspx. Retrieved 26 August 2011.
- ^ [UKZN. "School of Chemistry". http://chemistry.ukzn.ac.za/Homepage.aspx. Retrieved 26 August 2011.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i "About UKZN". UKZN. http://www.ukzn.ac.za/About-UKZN/ukzn_campuses.aspx. Retrieved 2011-08-26.
- ^ "South Africa Universities in Top 500 - 2010". Academic Ranking of World Universities. http://www.arwu.org/Country2010Main.jsp?param=South%20Africa. Retrieved 15 September 2010.
- ^ "University of KwaZulu-Natal". Top Universities. QS Quacquarelli Symonds. http://www.topuniversities.com/university/434/university-of-kwazulunatal. Retrieved 15 September 2010.
- ^ "Top Africa". Ranking Web of World Universities. http://www.webometrics.info/top100_continent.asp?cont=africa. Retrieved 26 February 2010.
- ^ a b Dell, Sharon (2008-11-14). "UKZN staff prepare for strike". The Witness. http://www.witness.co.za/index.php?showcontent&global%5B_id%5D=16128. Retrieved 2011-08-26.
- ^ Mbonambi, Gugu (2010-03-09). "March disrupts lectures on KZN campus". The Mercury. http://www.iol.co.za/news/south-africa/march-disrupts-lectures-on-kzn-campus-1.475804. Retrieved 2011-08-26.
- ^ Subramoney, Thrishni (2011-09-09). "UKZN management to take action against strike". East Coast Radio. http://www.ecr.co.za/kagiso/content/en/east-coast-radio/east-coast-radio-news?oid=895536&sn=Detail&pid=490476&UKZN-management-to-take-action-against-strike. Retrieved 2011-08-26.
- ^ Ndlovu, Sinegugu (2011-03-31). "Campus turns into battlefield". The Mercury. http://www.iol.co.za/news/south-africa/kwazulu-natal/campus-turns-into-battlefield-1.1050125. Retrieved 2011-08-26.
- ^ "Campus turns into battlefield". Sapa. 2011-03-30. http://www.iol.co.za/news/south-africa/kwazulu-natal/students-protest-at-ukzn-1.1049758. Retrieved 2011-08-26.
- ^ "UKZN Student Protest Turns Ugly". The Mercury. 2009-03-24. http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-196296674.html. Retrieved 2011-08-26.
- ^ MAGWAZA, NOMPUMELEL (2009-03-24). "Blind student hurt as protest turns ugly". The Mercury. http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:http://lists.fahamu.org/pipermail/debate-list/2009-March/021267.html. Retrieved 2011-08-26.
- ^ McKune, Craig (2009-01-20). "Management shows contempt for academic freedom at UKZN". South African Journal of Science. http://www.scielo.org.za/scielo.php?pid=S0038-23532009000100003&script=sci_arttext. Retrieved 2008-12-08.
- ^ "FXI distressed by disciplinary action against two UKZN Professors". NTSEU. http://ntesu.ukzn.ac.za/node/2. Retrieved 2011-08-26.
- ^ Gower, PRIMARASHNI (2008-03-15). "UKZN academics question senate probe". Mail and Guardian. http://mg.co.za/article/2008-04-15-ukzn-academics-question-senate-probe. Retrieved 2011-08-26.
- ^ "Controversy and transformation at UKZN". Science and Development Network. http://sharondavis.co.za/content/view/92/35/. Retrieved 2011-08-26.
- ^ Hlongwane, Agiza (2008-12-07). "Clean up your act, UKZN warned". Sunday Tribune: p. 1. http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=13&art_id=vn20081207082026114C840107. Retrieved 2008-12-08.
- ^ "John McCoy". Fulbright Online. 2011-08-26. http://scienceandtech.fulbrightonline.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=315&ml=5&mlt=system&tmpl=component.
- ^ "Stephen Bantu Biko". South African history online. 09 2007. http://www.sahistory.org.za/pages/people/bios/biko-s.htm. Retrieved 2007-11-20.
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