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University of Waikato
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The University of Waikato is located in Hamilton and Tauranga, New Zealand, and was established in 1964. It has strengths across a broad range of subject areas, particularly its degrees in Computer Science and in Management. Its School of Maori and Pacific Development is acknowledged as the world centre for study in this subject area.
In 2002 over 14,000 students were enrolled at the university. More than a quarter of students were aged over 25, and over half were women.
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The University of Waikato is located in Hamilton and Tauranga, New Zealand, and was established in 1964. It has strengths across a broad range of subject areas, particularly its degrees in Computer Science and in Management. Its School of Maori and Pacific Development is acknowledged as the world centre for study in this subject area.
In 2002 over 14,000 students were enrolled at the university. More than a quarter of students were aged over 25, and over half were women. It has the highest proportion of Maori students on any campus in New Zealand. The Maori character of the campus is an important aspect of its overall identity.
The University of Waikato in Hamilton is spread over 0.67 km² (170 acres) of landscaped park-like grounds, and includes extensive sporting and recreational areas surrounding three ornamental lakes. Many sporting and cultural groups are active on campus, including various international students' clubs. The university provides study facilities including modern lecture rooms and laboratories, a library of over 1,000,000 volumes, and an extensive computer network with over 800 terminals.
The University of Waikato at Tauranga (formerly Tauranga University College) offers 150 papers.
The university consists of seven Schools of Studies (Faculties).
- Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences
- Waikato Management School
- School of Education
- School of Science and Engineering
- School of Computing and Mathematical Science
- School of Law
- School of Maori and Pacific Development
These schools offer undergraduate, graduate and postgraduate degrees in their respective subject areas.
Research
The university's research involvement is varied, and it is noted for research in the management disciplines of Accounting, Finance and Human Resource Management; Computer Science, Mathematics, Science, particularly in the Biological Sciences including both Ecology, Evolution and Behaviour and Cellular, Molecular and Whole Organism Biology, and Chemistry, Education and the Social Sciences.
The University has many research facilities, including
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- Stable Isotope Unit
- Management Research Centre
- Technology Management and Innovation Unit
- Centre for Labour and Trade Union Studies
- Carbon Dating Unit
- Honey Research Unit
- Thermophile Research Unit
- Antarctic Research Unit
- International Global Change Institute
Research is further reinforced by close contact between the University and commercial or governmental research facilities located on or adjacent to the campus. Significant among them are the Ruakura Research Centre (the largest agricultural and horticultural research facility in the Southern Hemisphere), Landcare Research, National Institute for Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA Ecosystems), and the Institute of Professional Legal Studies.
Cementing the University's role as a key New Zealand research institute is UNILink, the University's own consulting division, dedicated to national and international sourcing of commercial research contracts. As a result the University attracts the highest percentage of research income in proportion to its student population of any university in New Zealand.
Particular strengths
The Mathematics department was rated first in New Zealand on the PBRF rankings in both 2004 and 2007.
The Department of Biological Sciences earned first place rankings in both panels of PBRF: Ecology, Evolution and Behaviour and Cellular, Molecular and Whole Organism Biology. Within EEB, the department has long-term FRST funding in the areas of restoration ecology in both terrestrial and freshwater systems, reaching from urban to natural ecosystems, and from molecular ecology to environmental biology.
The School of Maori and Pacific Development is almost certainly the leading centre of academic study of things Maori; Russell Bishop is the Chair Professor. Similarly, the law school is a leading centre for research into the Treaty of Waitangi. Because of the youth of the university the library's holdings are relatively undeveloped, but there are significantly holdings of Tainui taonga.
The Computer Science department is particularly strong, with research groups in networking, machine learning (Weka), digital libraries (Greenstone), Formal methods for Software Engineering and usability.
The School of Law is the newest in New Zealand, and focuses upon Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) as opposed to a more adversarial approach as taken by the other New Zealand law schools. As well as offering graduates their Bachelor of Laws (LLB), if students elect to take Commercial Transactions as well as Mediation: Laws, Principles and Practice, they may also apply for Associate status with the Arbitrators and Mediators Institute of New Zealand (AMINZ). This gives them professional status when conducting these activities and is globally recognised. Also, unlike the other Schools of Law, students simply have to pass their papers to move forward to the following year. Waikato does not cull the following year's intake by dropping a lower percentile of students. This leads to a more collaborative approach to study which is of great advantage when in practice.
The university is co-located with Ruakura, a center for research in the primary industries.
Due to the proximity of the Waikato River and Lake Karapiro the university has excellent rowing teams and competes against University of Oxford and University of Cambridge in alternating years on the Waikato River in The Great Race.
Performance Based Research Fund Rankings
Performance Based Research Fund rankings are used to help rate different Universities in New Zealand.
In 2007 The University of Waikato was once again ranked fifth in New Zealand.
They also achieved top rankings in 10 (Only Otago received more first placings with 14) subjects areas:
- Accounting and finance
- Chemistry
- Communications, journalism and media studies
- Computer science, information technology, information sciences
- Ecology, evolution and behaviour
- Education
- Management, human resources, industrial relations, international and other business
- Molecular, cellular and whole organism biology
- Music, literary arts and other arts
- Pure and applied mathematics.
Their School of Computing and Mathematical Sciences, Management School and Combined School of Education were also ranked top in New Zealand.
In 2006 The University of Waikato was ranked first in 9 subject areas:
- Biology Ecology, Evolution, and Behaviour, score 5.9
- Biology Molecular, Cellular and Whole Organism Biology, score 5.4
- Chemistry, score 5.8
- Computer Science, Information Technology and Information Sciences, score 4.9
- Communications, Journalism and Media Studies, score 4.1
- Management, Human Resources, Industrial Relations, International Business and Other Business, score 4.4
- Accounting and Finance, score 3.5
- Pure and Applied Mathematics, score 6.0
- Music, Literary Arts and Other Arts, score 5.3
The 2003 evaluation found Waikato to be fifth out of New Zealand's eight universities.
In 2004 the University came first in:
- Pure and Applied Mathematics, score 5.7
- Chemistry, 5.1
- Computer Science, Information Technology and Information Sciences, 4.7
- Molecular, Cellular and Whole Organism Biology, 4.2
- Communications, Journalism and Media Studies, 3.8
- Management, Human Resources, Industrial Relations, International Business and Other Business, 3.4
- Accounting and Finance. 2.8
Academic year
The academic year runs from March to November. It is divided into two semesters by a four-week study break in June/July. Most schools within the University offer a mid-year intake so it is possible to enrol in the March-June or the July-November semesters, as well as in the year-long program. Summer School is available for many courses and allows students to accelerate the completion of their degree. The International MBA is taught over one year and begins in July.
The summer school semester runs from the beginning of January to the end of February.
International students
Waikato has a strong commitment to attracting international students. In 2002 the University had over 1500 international students from more than 60 different countries, particularly from the Pacific Rim and Asia regions. There are also a growing number of students from diverse places such as Nepal, Eritrea, Mongolia, Ukraine, and various African countries. Many international students start at Waikato by enrolling in a one-year Certificate of Attainment in Foundation Studies. This prepares students from a non-English background for university study in New Zealand. Courses in English for students from non English speaking backgrounds are also offered through the University of Waikato Language Institute.
The University has approximately 1000 places in accommodation available for students, a number of which are set aside specifically for international students. Many students choose to stay in the University Halls of Residence
during their first year, and then move into a student flat (private rental accommodation) in subsequent years. Hamilton is an inexpensive city to live in for students on a limited budget.
Post Graduate Student Association
The was a development that come about as a need in the performance Based Research Funding (PBRF) environment. The group of students looked after the Masters and PhD students interest and had Dr Peter Hodder as a contact person appointed by Professor Richard Bedford at the time Pro Vice Chancellor Academic. Past presidents of the PGSA are 2002-2004 Gareth, 2004-2005 Roddy Young, 2005- Caroline. The outline of PGSA activities are .
Waikato University Alumni
The Waikato University Alumni is made up of past students at Waikato University and staff. The numbers of Alumni have steadly built from 1964 to number around 100,000. Seen as an important part of the development on the university the Alumni is looking at new ways to be more interactive with the Alumni members.
Other Notable features
The University rowing team is particularly strong. In 2002 the university started challenging a rowing team from another university to compete against it in the Great Race for the Harry Mahon Memorial Trophy. This has become an important annual event in Hamilton.
Sport and Leisure opportunities
There are a number of Sport and Leisure activities close to the University of Waikato that students can participate in. A wide variety of social and also competitive activities, they are all within walking distance from the University.
The Unirec Centre
The Unirec Centre offers people with an opportunity of cheap exercise and a wide variety of social sports. The Unirec Centre offers a cardio studio with different cardio equipment, weight room, REV indoor cycling, squash courts and a sports hall. The Unirec centre also offers a wide variety of exercise programmes, and is able to offer a personalised exercise programme for individuals.
Membership options
The Unirec Centre offers a wide variety of membership options, Health and Wellbeing Clubs, Group Exercise Classes, Personal Exercise Programmes, Squash, Social Sport and more.
ASB Social Sport
ASB Social Sport offers a variety of social indoor and outdoor sport. The indoor social sports start in March and have 6 leagues that goes until the beginning of November. The sports offered are Netball, Soccer and Volleyball. The leagues take place at the Unirec Centre. All the indoor leagues are $150 per team.
The Outdoor sports offered are Touch, and Soccer.
Sport and Clubs
The University of Waikato has a variety of different sport clubs. University Netball, Team Waikato, Rowing Club, , Hockey Club and Rugby Club .
The University also have a wide variety of partner clubs and sports.
Facilities
The Don Llewellyn Sports Pavilion is the home of the University’s sport teams. It provides changing rooms for home and away teams, and is a perfect place to socialise for players and supporters after a game. It also offers a place to meet for the public and it’s perfect to relax and have something to drink. The Pavilion is located next to the University fields for rugby, cricket and soccer and the tennis and netball courts. .
The University campus swimming pools are open for public from 1 December to 31 March from 12 pm to 6 pm. The pools include a 50 meter aquatic leisure pool and a diving pool. They are unheated..
See also
Sites
The University of Waikato is located on many different sites
- Main Hamilton Campus, on Knighton Road
- Tauranga Campus, on Durham Street
- Ruakura Satellite Campus, off Ruakura Road
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Scientific Instrumentation
The University has a large number of instruments available to assist research. These include
- A 300 MHz and a 400 Hz NMR
- A MALDI
- ESMS
- GCMS
- LC-MS
- Malvern Mastersizer and Zetasizer
- Waters HPLC
- Tensile testers
- Viscometers
- ICP-OES
- AA
- X-ray diffraction equipment
- Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) with EDAX and Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM)
- Liquid nitrogen, for University use only
- IR and UV/Vis Spectrometers
- FTIR Microscopy
Some instruments are available for hire to external users
External links
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