University of KwaZulu-Natal
Glenwood and Durban, South Africa
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University description (as per official university website)
Institutional Profile & Brief Description of UKZN
The University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN) was formed on 1st January 2004 as a result of the merger between the University of Durban-Westville and the University of Natal. The new University brought together the rich histories of both former universities which encompass disadvantage and advantage respectively.
The two KwaZulu-Natal universities were among the first set of institutions to be merged in 2004 as part of government’s reform aimed at reconfiguring and restructuring higher education. The resulting merged institution is a large and complex contact university.
UKZN has 5 campuses in two major cities, four in Durban and one in Pietermaritzburg, with a total student population of approximately 42000, 20% of whom are postgraduates, and a total staff complement of approximately 4300. The internationalisation of the university is focused primarily on its postgraduate enrolments which are 14% of the total postgraduate enrolments while international undergraduate enrolments comprise only 4% of the total undergraduate enrolments.
UKZN adopted a college model as its governance organizational structure for its academic and administrative systems. It established 4 Colleges each headed by a Deputy Vice-Chancellor: the College of Agriculture, Engineering and Science; the College of Health Sciences; the College of Humanities; and the College of Law and Management Studies. The total number of Schools in UKZN is 52 although this number will reduce to approximately 20 through further reconfiguration and consolidation over the coming 12 months. In addition, there are two university-wide Deputy Vice-Chancellors of Research and of Teaching and Learning.
UKZN is classified by the national Department of Science and Technology as one of 5 research-led and research-intensive Universities in South Africa (Kahn M 2006). Over the past 7 years, UKZN has been consistently rated the 2nd or 3rd most research-productive university (as measured by the Department of Higher Education and Training’s SAPSE Units) of the 23 universities. It has the best instruction and research staff and student equity profile of all the research-intensive universities according to Education Statistics in South Africa (Department of Education 2007). UKZN achieved all these while undergoing a merger and a major transformation through prioritising diversity as a critical factor to excellence and equity. In total, 40% of staff time is allocated to research for all academic staff at UKZN. However, approximately 15% of all full time equivalent academic staff members are exclusively research staff.
The data for the period 2004-2005 needs to be interpreted cautiously. Whilst UKZN was legally a single institution, the data for this period was largely managed by the two separate systems of the legacy institutions. During 2004-2005, staff and schools were moved and consolidated on the different campuses. It was also during this period that harmonization of policies and data into a single set of institutional data from the two separate IT systems was undertaken.
VISION
To be the premier university of African scholarship.
MISSION
A truly South African university that is academically excellent, innovative in research, critically engaged with society and demographically representative, redressing the disadvantages, inequities and imbalances of the past.
PRINCIPLES AND CORE VALUES
The University aspires to be a positively transformed institution based on a clear
understanding of its goals for broad and comprehensive change underpinned by
shared values. These values serve as a framework for all its endeavours.
As the University community we pledge ourselves to:
Actively encourage and respect the right of all scholars, staff and students to
engage in critical inquiry, independent research, intellectual discourse and public
debate in a spirit of responsibility and accountability, in accordance with the
principles of academic freedom and institutional autonomy.
Promote access to learning that will expand educational and employment
opportunities for all.
Embrace our responsibility as a public institution to support and contribute to
national and regional development, and the welfare and upliftment of the wider
community, through the generation and dissemination of knowledge and the
production of socially-responsible graduates.
Conduct ourselves according to the highest ethical standards, and provide
education that promotes an awareness of sound ethical practice in a diverse
society.
Manage and run our institution in conscious awareness of the environment, and
foster a culture of responsible, ethical and sustainable use of natural resources.
Ensure effective governance through broad and inclusive participation,
democratic representation, accountability, and transparency that serves as an
example that contributes to building the democratic ethos of our country.
Acknowledge the value of the individual by promoting the intellectual, social and
personal well-being of staff and students through tolerance and respect for
multilingualism, diverse cultures, religions and social values, and by fostering the
realisation of each person’s full potential.
GOALS
The goals of the University are:
African-led Globalisation:
To promote African-led globalisation through African scholarship by positioning
the University, through its teaching, learning, scholarship, research, and
innovation, to enter the global knowledge system on it
Responsible Community Engagement:
To contribute through knowledge to the prosperity and sustainability of our
province, and to nation-building, by connecting with and committing ourselves to
the communities we serve in a manner that adds value and earns their respect,
admiration and trust.
Pre-eminence in Research:
To build a research ethos that acknowledges the responsibility of academic staff
to nurture its postgraduate students, and to be a pre-eminent producer of new
knowledge that is both local and global in context, and defines UKZN as the
premier university of African scholarship.
Excellence in Teaching and Learning:
To promote excellence in teaching and learning through creative and innovative
curriculum design and development, pedagogical strategies, and assessment
practices in accordance with the highest quality management principles.
Institution of Choice for Learners:
To establish the University as an institution of choice that values students in all
their diversity and has a student-centred ethos, providing students with curricula,
teachers, infrastructure and support services designed around their needs and
producing well-educated, competent, sought-after graduates.
Institution of Choice for Staff:
To establish the University as an institution of choice that attracts and retains
academic and support staff of the highest calibre by creating an intellectual
environment that fosters and stimulates academic life, and a climate of
organisational citizenship in which all staff recognise and understand their role in
ensuring the success of the University.
Efficient and Effective Management:
To establish and maintain efficient, effective management systems and processes
that provide a caring and responsive service to meet internal and external needs
in a pragmatic and flexible manner. |
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