''Opus'' is a

student newspaper A student publication is a media outlet such as a newspaper, magazine, television show, or radio station produced by students at an educational institution. These publications typically cover local and school-related news, but they may also repor ...

published at the University of Newcastle,

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

by the

Newcastle University Students' Association The University of Newcastle Students' Association (UNSA) is the student organisation at the University of Newcastle, NSW, Australia (UON). The organisation provides a range of student services and supports campus life activities and events. UNS ...

(NUSA). ''Opus'' was founded in 1954 by then economics lecturer Cyril Renwick, at what was then the Newcastle University College of the

University of New South Wales The University of New South Wales (UNSW), also known as UNSW Sydney, is a public research university based in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is one of the founding members of Group of Eight, a coalition of Australian research-intensiv ...

, in the

Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to: *Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England *Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England *Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area in Australia, named after Newcastle ...

suburb of Callaghan. Renwick proposed a student journal to promote student unity and expression. Teaming up with his secretary's husband, George Kirkby, the first edition of Opus was a four-page broadsheet newspaper replete with the refinement and formality of 1950s journalism.Perrin, M. 2008, Opus and its History, ''Opus'', No. 1 2008, pp. 6-7> The format and style of ''Opus'' has changed many times throughout its history. The 1970s the publications name was briefly changed to ''The Stockton Ferry''. In a 1998 interview, the late emeritus Professor

Godfrey Tanner Ronald Godfrey Tanner FRGS (24 September 1927 – 10 July 2002) was an Australian professor of classics, associated for the greater part of his career with the University of Newcastle. Educated at Melbourne and Cambridge, Tanner was appointed to ...

explained that

" 'The Stockton Ferry'' wasthe brainchild of James Beisers and his co-editor who were into drug reform. The idea being that readers would be encouraged to take short trips after reading its contents."

A special edition of the magazine, released in 2002, and edited by BA graduate Matthew Glenn Ward commemorated the life of

, a prominent

classics Classics or classical studies is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, classics traditionally refers to the study of Classical Greek and Roman literature and their related original languages, Ancient Greek and Latin. Classics ...

professor at the university who had died that year. ''Opus'' takes its name from the former Newcastle City motto, ''finis coronat opus'' which is

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

for "completion crowns the work". The implementation of

voluntary student unionism Voluntary student unionism (VSU), as it is known in Australia, or voluntary student membership (VSM), as it is known in New Zealand, is a policy under which membership of – and payment of membership fees to – university student organisations i ...

by the Howard government in 2006 had a significant impact on the viability of student media across Australia, compulsory student union membership fees having been the major source of income for most. ''Opus'' has been able to continue publishing despite the new law. ''Opus'' was rebranded and relaunched in 2016 after a period of stagnation. ''Opus'' is edited by the UNSA Media Officer and a team of volunteers. In 2018, ''Opus'' became a newspaper again, published monthly. Then in 2020 Opus was taken over by UNSA and returned to reoccurring magazine publication with online publication as well.

References

State Library of New South Wales record

Newcastle University Students' Association

External links

OPUS MAGAZINE website
{{AusStudentNews Student newspapers published in Australia Magazines established in 1954 University of Newcastle (Australia)