History
The university was formed by the merger of the University of Natal and the University of Durban-Westville, in 2004. The Council of the University of Natal voted on 31 May 2002 to offer the post of Vice-Chancellor and University Principal to world-renowned medical scientist and former Medical Research Council President – Professor Malegapuru Makgoba, who assumed office on 1 September 2002. He was entrusted with leading the University of Natal into the merger with the University of Durban-Westville. In so doing, he became the last Vice-Chancellor of the University of Natal. Professor Makgoba succeeded Professor Brenda Gourley as Vice-Chancellor. Having served a brief stint as the interim Vice-Chancellor in 2004 he was formally appointed as the founding Vice-Chancellor of the newly merged University of KwaZulu-Natal. He was installed at a ceremony on 30 September 2005. Professor Makgoba served two five-year terms of office and retired in 2015. His tenure, however, was plagued with controversies. Makgoba is said to have created a "culture of hostility" at the university that resulted in an exodus of world-class academics. He was succeeded by Dr Albert van Jaarsveld.University of Natal
University of Durban-Westville
Organization
The university is governed in accordance with the Higher Education Act of 1997, and its constitution is specified in the Statute of the University of KwaZulu-Natal, as approved by the South African Minister of Education and the Parliament of South Africa. In 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 Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng. * the vice chancellor (the executive head) * two or more deputy vice chancellors (currently there are five full and one acting) * 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
The university is made up of four colleges, which are in turn made up of several schools. In most cases, a subdivision is spread across one or more of the university's campuses. For example, the Chemistry is in both the Pietermaritzburg and Westville campuses.College of Agriculture, Engineering and Science
* School of Engineering(all) * School of Agricultural, Earth and Environmental Sciences * School of Chemistry and Physics * School of Life Sciences * School Mathematics, Statistics and Computer Science *College of Health Sciences
* School of Clinical Medicine * School of Laboratory Medicine and Medical Sciences * School of Health Sciences * School of Nursing and Public HealthCollege of Humanities
* School of Religion, Philosophy and Classics * School of Arts * School of Social Sciences * School of Applied Human Sciences * School of Built Environment and Development Studies * School of EducationCollege of Law and Management Studies
* Graduate School of Business and Leadership (Business Management Association in cooperation with Hampton College Durban) * School of Accounting, Economics and Finance * School of Law * School of Management, IT and Governance An institute built in cooperation with the Howard Hughes Medical Institute is the new KwaZulu-Natal Research Institute for Tuberculosis and HIV, opened in 2012. It is on the Nelson Mandela School of Medicine campus.Campuses
The university is geographically divided into five distinct campuses, which partially correspond to its managerial and academic divisions. Two campuses (Edgewood and the Medical School) house specific academic divisions (education and medicine respectively), but the remainder of the university's academic divisions span 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. Pietermaritzburg campus offers a broad range of academic degrees and is the only UKZN campus providing training in agriculture, theology and fine arts.Howard College campus
Howard College campus was the Durban location of the University of Natal until the 2004 merger. It is located on the Berea Ridge. and is situated in a thriving environmental conservancy. The campus was opened in 1931, having been donated by Mr T. B. Davis, in honor of his son, Howard Davis, who died in the Battle of the Somme during the first world war. Howard College offers a wide range of degrees, with a large engineering department consisting of Electrical engineering and Chemical engineering. The College of Humanities and College of Law and Management are also positioned on this campus together with the Centre For Creative Arts (CCA) and the Elizabeth Sneddon Theatre which host annually the Durban International Film Festival (DIFF), Poetry Africa, Time of the Writer and the creative dance festival JOMBA! which is produced by the FlatFoot Dance company.Westville campus
Westville campus is in an environmental conservancy in Westville, about 20 km West of Durban. 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.Nelson Mandela medical school
Nelson Mandela medical school campus, created in 1950, was originally a racially segregated part of the University of Natal reserved for non-white students. It was one of the few tertiary institutions legally allowed to provide education to black people underEdgewood campus
Edgewood campus is located inStudent life
UKZN is home to various student organizations such as debating unions, film clubs, poetry societies, and sports teams. The UKZN Rugby team - The UKZN Impi - features in the highly contested Varsity Cup national rugby competition, and the Howard College Debating Union competes in both the World Universities Debating Championships as well as the South African National Universities Debating Championships. UKZN established the Centre for Creative Arts (CCA) in 1996. The CCA is a multi-disciplinary arts organisation based within the School of Arts at the University of KwaZulu-Natal. It coordinates several respected annual festivals, providing students with access to creative platforms and interesting opportunities aimed at developing their artistic talents. The four main festivals organized by the UKZN CCA are: * Time of the Writer The UKZN Time of the Writer festival invites international authors to take place in a variety of roundtable discussions, readings, seminars, book launches, and developmental programmes such as workshops, master classes and motivational talks. The festival has been running since 1998. *Law clinics
UKZN has two law clinics, one in Pietermaritzburg and one in Durban, that provide free legal assistance to those that are unable to afford it. Specializing in the areas of HIV and AIDS, Family Law, and social justice matters, the UKZN law clinics are considered to be among the leading law clinics in the country. The law clinics also provide a practical training environment for final year law students, who are mentored by the clinic's experienced practitioners. Both clinics also engage directly with the communities throughout the province through regular outreach initiatives, where the students and legal practitioners travel to various remote, impoverished communities with the intention of providing access to justice for those that are most vulnerable.Ranking
UKZN was ranked fourth out of the universities in South Africa by theControversies
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 protests, with some protests from 2009 onward involvingNotable alumni
*See also
* Open access in South Africa and List of South African open access repositoriesReferences
External links
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