The University of Auckland | |
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Te Whare Wānanga o Tāmaki Makaurau | |
Motto | Latin: Ingenio et labore |
Motto in English | By natural ability and hard work |
Established | 1883 |
Type | Public |
Chancellor | Roger France |
Vice-Chancellor | Stuart McCutcheon |
Students | 39,940 total, 31,689 full-time equivalent (2009) [1] |
Postgraduates | 6,410 full-time equivalent |
Location | Auckland, New Zealand |
Campus | Urban, 16 hectares |
Affiliations | Universitas 21, AMBA, EQUIS, AACSB. APRU |
Website | www.auckland.ac.nz |
The University of Auckland (Māori: Te Whare Wānanga o Tāmaki Makaurau) is a university located in Auckland, New Zealand. It is the largest university in the country and the highest ranked in the 2011 QS World University Rankings,[3] having been ranked 82nd worldwide. Established in 1883 as a constituent college of the University of New Zealand, the university is made up of eight faculties over six campuses, and has more than 39,000 students at April 2010.[4] Over 1,300 doctoral candidates were enrolled at the University of Auckland in 2007.
It also provides the most conjoint combinations in New Zealand, with over 50 combinations. Conjoint programs allow students to achieve multiple degrees in a shortened period of time.
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The University of Auckland began as a constituent of the University of New Zealand, founded on 23 May 1883 as Auckland University College. Stewardship of the University during its establishment period was the responsibility of John Chapman Andrew (Vice Chancellor of the University of New Zealand 1885–1903). Housed in a disused courthouse and jail, it started out with 95 students and 4 teaching staff; by 1901, student numbers had risen to 156. Most of the students were training towards being law clerks or teachers and were enrolled part-time. From 1905 onwards, an increasing number of students enrolled in commerce studies.
The University conducted little research until the 1930s, when there was a spike in interest in academic research during the Depression. At this point, the college's executive council issued several resolutions in favour of academic freedom after the controversial dismissal of J. C. Beaglehole (allegedly for a letter to a newspaper where he publicly defended the right of communists to distribute their literature), which helped encourage the college's growth.
In 1934, four new professors joined the college; Arthur Sewell (English), H.G Forder (Mathematics), C. G. Cooper (Classics) and James Rutherford (History). The combination of new talent, and academic freedom, saw Auckland University College flourish through to the 1950s.[5]
Professor Stuart McCutcheon became Vice-Chancellor on 1 January 2005. He was previously the Vice-Chancellor of Victoria University of Wellington. He succeeded Dr John Hood (PhD, Hon. LLD), who was appointed Vice-Chancellor of the University of Oxford.
The University opened a new business school building in 2007, following the completion of the Information Commons. It has recently gained international accreditations for all its programmes and now completes the "Triple Crown" (AMBA, EQUIS and AACSB).
On 1 September 2004, the Auckland College of Education merged with the University's School of Education (previously part of the Arts Faculty) to form the Faculty of Education. The faculty is based at the Epsom Campus of the former college, with an additional campus in Whangarei.
The North Shore Campus, established in 2001, was located in the suburb of Takapuna. It offered the Bachelor of Business and Information Management degree. At the end of 2006, the campus was closed and the degree relocated to the City campus.
The head of the University is the Chancellor, currently Roger France, however this position is only titular (a figurehead). The actual chief executive of the University is the Vice-Chancellor, currently Professor Stuart McCutcheon.
Since eliminating open entry in 2009,[6] all applicants must have a university entrance qualification. Domestic students are required to achieve the NZQA University Entrance Standard,[7] while international students must achieve an equivalent approved qualification in their country.[8] Admission to the University also requires applicants to meet the preset academic and English language entry requirements specific to the degree for which they are applying.[9] Some programs also have a preset number of places available within the degree.
All students who did not complete their high school education or equivalent in English are also required to provide a valid IELTS score (minimum of 6.0) or equivalent.[10]
The University provides a range of accommodation options for students. Several hundred live in Residential Halls, which provide food, accommodation, social and welfare services.
The university ceased leasing Railway Campus in November 2008.[11]
The University of Auckland is spread across 7 campuses, all situated in Auckland Region and Northland Region in the upper North Island of New Zealand.
Until his death in 2009, the longest serving staff member was Emeritus Professor of Prehistory, Roger Curtis Green, BA BSc (New Mexico), PhD (Harv.), FRSNZ, MANAS. He had been on the staff 1961-66 and from 1973 onwards. The longest serving, non-'retired' staff member is Bernard Brown, ONZM, LLB (Hons) (Leeds), LLM (Sing.). He has been a full-time senior lecturer in the faculty of law 1962-65 and 1969 onwards. William Phillips, the influential economist largely famed for his Phillips curve, taught at the university from 1969 until his death in 1975.
Auckland UniServices Limited is the commercial research and knowledge transfer company for the university.[20]
The University of Auckland was the only New Zealand institution ranked in the top 50 in 2007 of the THE-QS World University Rankings (in 2010 Times Higher Education World University Rankings and QS World University Rankings parted ways to produce separate rankings), ranked at number 50. It was ranked at number 61 in 2009. In 2011, it ranked at number 145 (in 2011 Times Higher Education World University Rankings).
In 2010 QS World University Rankings[21] ranked Auckland 68th overall in the world, scoring very consistently in the subject rankings: 51st in Arts & Humanities, 55th in Engineering & IT, 41st in Life Sciences & Biomedicine, 68th in Natural Sciences and 38th in Social Sciences.
In 2011 QS World University Rankings[22] ranked Auckland 82nd overall in the world. In the subject rankings it ranked less than the previous year: 55th in Arts & Humanities, 62nd in Engineering & IT, 50th in Life Sciences & Biomedicine, 73rd in Natural Sciences, 41st in Social Sciences and 33rd in Accounting & Finance.
The University of Auckland is a research-led University, and had the second highest ranking in the 2006 Performance Based Research Fund (PBRF) exercise conducted by the government that evaluated the quality of researchers and research output of all tertiary institutions in New Zealand. With only 18% of PBRF-eligible staff in New Zealand's 33 tertiary institutions Auckland has 33% of the country's A-rated researchers and gained 30% of PBRF funding.[23]
In the previous PBRF evaluation in 2003, when the University was ranked the top research university in New Zealand, the Commission commented: “On virtually any measure, the University of Auckland is the country’s leading research university. Not only did it achieve the highest quality score of any TEO [tertiary education organisation], but it also has by far the largest share of A-rated researchers in the country.” [24]
The Auckland University Students' Association (AUSA) represents students at the University. AUSA publicises student issues, administers student facilities, and assists affiliated student clubs and societies. AUSA also produces the student magazine Craccum and runs the radio station bFM. The name of the alumni association is the University of Auckland Society.
CECIL (CSL, short for Computer Supported Learning) is the university's learning management and course management system and was developed in house. It has more than 44,000 logins per day (2008 April). Cecil support staff work with academics on research into cheating detections during online assessment,[25] productivity improvement using a learning management system (LMS),[26] and effectiveness of tools in LMS.[27] Cecil contains many of the features of similar systems such as Sakai Project and WebCT. Cecil also provides interactive tools for collaboration and other tools specific to the University.[28] CECIL is currently run on a Microsoft SharePoint 2007 based system, but preparations are underway to upgrade to a Microsoft SharePoint 2010 based system. [29]
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