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

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• Howard College Campus, Glenwood, Durban
• Pietermaritzburg Campus, Pietermaritzburg
• Westville Campus, Westville
• Nelson Mandela Medical School, Durban
• Edgewood Campus, Pinetown (Teacher's training)

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

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The University is divided into four colleges, each divided into faculties:

• The College of Humanities
  • The Faculty of Education
  • The Faculty of Humanities, Development, and Social Sciences

• The College of Agriculture, Engineering and Science
  • The Faculty of Engineering
  • The Faculty of Science and Agriculture

• The College of Health Sciences
  • The Faculty of Nursing
  • The Nelson Mandela Medical School
  • The Faculty of Health Sciences

• The College of Law and Management Studies
  • The Faculty of Law
  • The Faculty of Management Studies

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

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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

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• University homepage

Universities and colleges in South Africa | Pietermaritzburg | KwaZulu-Natal Province | Durban | Nursing schools in South Africa