The Aquinas College of Higher Studies also known as Aquinas University College is a Sri Lankan

nonprofit A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

private

Tertiary education Tertiary education, also referred to as third-level, third-stage or post-secondary education, is the educational level following the completion of secondary education. The World Bank, for example, defines tertiary education as including univers ...

institute that provides both

academic degrees An academic degree is a qualification awarded to students upon successful completion of a course of study in higher education, usually at a college or university. These institutions commonly offer degrees at various levels, usually including unde ...

and

vocational training Vocational education is education that prepares people to work as a technician or to take up employment in a skilled craft or trade as a tradesperson or artisan. Vocational Education can also be seen as that type of education given to an ind ...

History

The Aquinas College of Higher Studies was founded in 1953 by Catholic priests Peter A. Pillai the former rector of St.Joseph's College and

Thomas Cooray Thomas Benjamin Cooray (Sinhala language: තෝමස් බෙන්ජමින් කුරේ), O.M.I. (28 December 1901 – 29 October 1988) was a Sri Lankan cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church who served as the Archbishop of Colombo ...

the Archbishop of Colombo as a Catholic university open to all ethnic and religious groups. It was registered in 1954 by the Ministry of Education Ceylon and was established in Colombo 8. Initially it offered external degrees from local state universities such as Universities of

Kelaniya Kelaniya ( si, කැලණිය ta, களனி) is a suburb of Colombo in the Western Province, Sri Lanka. It is known for the Buddhist temple built on the banks of the Kelani River, which divides the suburb from Colombo District. The templ ...

Peradeniya Peradeniya ( si, පේරාදෙණිය, translit=Pēradeniya; ta, பேராதனை, translit=Pērātaṉai) is a suburb of the city of Kandy Kandy ( si, මහනුවර ''Mahanuwara'', ; ta, கண்டி Kandy, ) is a m ...

Colombo Colombo ( ; si, කොළඹ, translit=Koḷam̆ba, ; ta, கொழும்பு, translit=Koḻumpu, ) is the executive and judicial capital and largest city of Sri Lanka by population. According to the Brookings Institution, Colombo me ...

and

Sri Jayewardenepura Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte, commonly known as Kotte (), is the legislative capital of Sri Lanka. Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte is a satellite city and located within the urban area of Sri Lanka's de facto economic, executive, and judicial capital ...

as well as foreign universities while agricultural training was carried out in the 47 acre farm in Walpola, Ragama. After 2005 when it received approval to grant degrees Aquinas moved on to develop its own degree programs. Since then it has expanded both degree programs and infrastructure as well as attracting students from SAARC countries.

Organisation

The Aquinas College of Higher Studies is run as nonprofit philanthropic institution administered by the

Archdiocese of Colombo The Roman Catholic Metropolitan Archdiocese of Colombo ( la, Archidioecesis Columbensis in Taprobane) is a Latin Metropolitan Archdiocese of the Roman Catholic Church, whose ecclesiastical province covers all Sri Lanka plus the Maldives (which are ...

. The College also works in close collaboration with foreign Universities and Higher Educational Authorities. It is accredited to provide its own academic degrees by the University Grants Commission (UGC) and is registered with the Tertiary and Vocational Educational Commission (TVEC) to provide vocational education.

Faculties

Faculty of Agriculture

* Department of Agri-Business Management * Department of Crop Management * Department of Livestock Management

Faculty of Business and Hospitality Management

* Department of Business Management * Department of Hospitality Management

Faculty of Education & English

* Department of Education * Department of English

Faculty of Science And Technology

* Department of Information & Communication Technology * Department of Nursing & Pharmacy

Faculty of Social Sciences And Humanities

* Department of Humanities * Department of Psychology * Department of Religious Studies * Department of Sister Formation

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Aquinas College of Higher Studies 1954 establishments in Ceylon Educational institutions established in 1954 Agricultural universities and colleges Universities and colleges in Colombo District Vocational universities and colleges Universities in Sri Lanka