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University of KwaZulu-Natal

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The University of KwaZulu-Natal is a university in the KwaZulu-Natal Province of South Africa. It was formed on 1 January 2004 through the merging of two major educational institutions in KwaZulu-Natal – the University of Natal and the University of Durban-Westville.

Campuses

The main clock tower of the Collin Webb Hall, located on the Pietermaritzburg campus.
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The main clock tower of the Collin Webb Hall, located on the Pietermaritzburg campus.

Howard College, Pietermaritzburg, and Westville campuses are general campuses, at which the majority of the subjects offered by the university are taught. Nelson Mandela Medical School is a medical school, while Edgewood is a teachers' training college.

The medical school is nearby Howard College Campus. Westville campus is around 10 km out from there, in Westville. Edgewood, being in Pinetown, is around 20 km out, while Pietermaritzburg is around 80 km away from Howard College.

Organisation

The University is divided into four colleges, each divided into faculties: Each faculty is further subdivided into schools, many of which were created by the merger of several departments. Although departments are no longer officially part of the management structure, many schools are still effectively subdivided into departments. An example is the School of Biochemistry, Genetics, Microbiology and Plant Pathology.

Each college, faculty and school has a head, who reports to the head above him or her. The University also has the normal support structures including HR, ICT and Finance, there are approximatly 6000 staff members at the University and over 40000 students.

History

The University of Natal was a white university under apartheid, though it had a history of fighting the government for the ability to accept students belonging to other ethnic groups. The University of Durban-Westville was created by the apartheid government to serve the Asian racial group, which, in South African terms, refers to people from South Asia, particularly those of Indian and Pakistani descent.

The merger of the universities came about from a government plan to reduce the number of higher learning institutions in South Africa, and to redress past inequities between the two institutions.

Each campus is connected via highly sophisticated wireless networking equipment that makes data and voice communications between campuses possible.

External links

South African universities

Traditional universities
Cape Town | Fort Hare | Free State | KwaZulu-Natal | Limpopo | North-West
Pretoria | Rhodes | Stellenbosch | Western Cape | Witwatersrand

Comprehensive universities
Johannesburg | Nelson Mandela | Unisa | Venda | Walter Sisulu | Zululand

Universities of technology
Cape Peninsula | Central | Durban | Mangosuthu | Tshwane | Vaal

 


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