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This page is about a New Zealand university. For other universities with 'Victoria' in their name, see Victoria University (disambiguation).

Victoria University of Wellington Te Whare Wānanga o Te Ūpoko o te Ika a Māui
Motto	Sapientia magis auro desideranda (Wisdom is more to be desired than gold)
Established	1897
Type	Public
Chancellor	Tim Beaglehole
Vice-Chancellor	Pat Walsh
Students	20,380 total
Postgraduates	4,200 graduate
Location	Wellington, New Zealand
Website	www.vuw.ac.nz

Victoria University of Wellington, also known in Māori as Te Whare Wānanga o te Ūpoko o te Ika a Māui,^[1] was established in 1897 by Act of Parliament, and was a former constituent college of the University of New Zealand. It is particularly well known for its programmes in law, the humanities, and some scientific disciplines, but offers a broad range of other courses as well. Entry to all courses at first year is open, although entry to second year in some programmes (eg, law, architecture) is restricted. Victoria had the third highest average research grade in the New Zealand Government's 2003 Performance-Based Research Fund exercise.^[2]

Contents 1 General information 2 History 3 Organisation 3.1 Faculties and Schools 3.2 Institutions 4 Undergraduate Degrees Offered 5 Postgraduate Degrees offered 6 Notable Alumni 7 Notable Academics 8 Panorama 9 References 10 External links

Victoria has 20,380 students (including some 3,400 international students), of whom 14,000 are undergraduates. It has around 1,900 full-time equivalent staff.

Its main campus is in Kelburn, a suburb on a hill overlooking the Wellington central business district, where its administration and humanities & social science and science faculties are based. The law and commerce and administration faculties are in the Pipitea Campus, near Parliament Buildings, which consists of the Rutherford Building, the restored Government Buildings, and the West Wing of the Wellington Railway Station. A smaller campus in the Te Aro district of Wellington is the base for the architecture and design schools. The Faculty of Education is in the Karori campus.

Day-to-day governance is in the hands of the University Council, which consists of 20 people: five elected by the Court of Convocation, three elected by the academic staff, one elected by the general staff, two appointed by the student union executive, four appointed by the Minister of Education, four selected by the Council itself, and the Vice-Chancellor. The Court of Convocation is composed of all graduates who choose to participate.

For New Zealand residents entry to most courses is open, with a few exceptions. Performance Music requires an audition. There is selection for entry into the second year in degrees such as the LLB, BArch and BDes.

The University is one of only three institutions (University of Auckland and Unitec New Zealand being the others) to offer a degree in Architecture in New Zealand.

Victoria in conjunction with Massey University also governs The New Zealand School of Music

Victoria is named after Queen Victoria, as 1897 was the 60th anniversary of her coronation. There was initially a dispute as to where to site it, and it opened in temporary facilities in Thorndon. It was eventually decided to place it in Kelburn, where it still has its primary campus. This decision was influenced by the Cable Car company's offer of a donation^[3] of £1000 if Victoria were located in Kelburn so students would patronise the car between the city and the University. The foundation stone of the historic Hunter Building was laid in 1904. On the dissolution of the University of New Zealand in 1961 Victoria became the independent Victoria University of Wellington, conferring its own degrees.

An extramural branch of Victoria was founded at Palmerston North in 1960. It merged with Massey College on 1 January 1963. The merged college itself, having become a branch of Victoria upon the University of New Zealand's 1961 demise, became an independent Massey University on 1 January 1964.^[4]

In recent years, Victoria has had to expand out of its original campus in Kelburn, and new campuses have been set up in Te Aro (architecture and design), Pipitea (opposite Parliament, housing the law, and commerce and administration schools) and Karori (education) - the Wellington College of Education, established in 1880, merged with the University to become its revived Faculty of Education on 1 January 2005.

The university's faculties are:

• Architecture and Design [1]
• Commerce and Administration [2]
• Education [3]
• Humanities and Social Sciences [4]
• Law [5]
• Science [6]

The University's Schools are:

• Graduate School of Nursing, Midwifery and Health
• School of Accounting and Commercial Law
• School of Architecture
• School of Art History, Classics and Religious Studies
• School of Asian and European Languages and Cultures
• School of Biological Sciences
• School of Chemical and Physical Sciences
• School of Design
• School of Early Childhood Teacher Education
• School of Economics and Finance
• School of Education Studies
• School of English, Film, Theatre, and Media Studies
• School of Geography, Environment and Earth Sciences
• School of Government
• School of History, Philosophy, Political Science and International Relations
• School of Information Management
• School of Law
• School of Linguistics and Applied Language Studies
• School of Marketing and International Business
• School of Mathematics, Statistics and Computer Science [7]
• School of Primary & Secondary Teacher Education
• School of Psychology
• School of Social and Cultural Studies
• Te Kawa a Māui
• Te Kura Māori
• Victoria Management School

Other important Teaching and Learning entities are:

• International Institute of Modern Letters
• Centre for Continuing Education and Executive Development
• Stout Research Centre for New Zealand Studies
• Va'aomanu Pasifika (Pacific Studies unit)
• The New Zealand School of Music, a joint venture with Massey University.

• Toihuarewa
• International Institute of Modern Letters
• MacDiarmid Institute for Advanced Materials and Nanotechnology
• Malaghan Institute of Medical Research
• Wilson Centre for Molecular Ecology and Evolution
• McKenzie Centre for the Study of Families
• Centre for Biodiversity and Restoration Ecology
• Centre for Biodiscovery
• Centre for Marine Environmental & Economic Research
• Centre for Strategic Studies New Zealand
• Institute of Policy Studies
• Adam Art Gallery
• New Zealand Electronic Text Centre
• Victoria University of Wellington Students' Association
  • Salient (student magazine)
  • Victoria University of Wellington Debating Society

• Bachelor of Architecture - BArch
• Bachelor of Arts - BA
• Bachelor of Biomedical Science - BBmedSc
• Bachelor of Building Science - BBSc
• Bachelor of Commerce and Administration - BCA
• Bachelor of Design - BDes
• Bachelor of Engineering - BE (Commencing in 2007)
• Bachelor of Information Technology - BIT (Will be replaced by BE from 2007)
• Bachelor of Laws - LLB
• Bachelor of Music - BMus
• Bachelor of Science - BSc
• Bachelor of Science and Technology - BScTech
• Bachelor of Tourism Management - BTM
• Early Childhood Teacher Education, Primary and Secondary Teaching - BEd, BA/BTeach; BSc/BTeach; BCA/BTeach; BA/BTeach(ECE)

Victoria offers more than 25 Masters degrees in around 100 specialist subject areas, including:

• Master of Architecture - MArch
• Master of Design - MDes
• Master of Industrial Design - MIndDes
• Master of Building Science - MBSc
• Master of Commerce and Administration - MCA
• Master of Applied Finance - MAF
• Master of Business Administration - MBA
• Master of Financial Mathematics - MFinMath
• Master of Information Management - MIM
• Master of Library and Information Studies - MLIS
• Master of Management Studies - MMS
• Master of Public Management - MPM
• Master of Public Policy - MPP
• Master of Strategic Studies - MSS
• Master of Tourism Management - MTM
• Master of Education - MEd
• Master of Teaching - MTeach
• Master of International Relations - MIR
• Master of Museum and Heritage Studies - MMHS
• Master of New Zealand Studies - MNZS
• Master of Midwifery - MMidW
• Master of Nursing/Master of Nursing (Clinical) - MNurs
• Master of Theatre Arts - MTA
• Master of Music - MMus
• Master of Laws - LLM
• Master of Biomedical Science - MBmedSc
• Master of Computer Science - MCompSc
• Master of Conservation Biology - MConBio
• Master of Development Studies - MSc (Development Studies)
• Master of Environmental Studies - MSc (Evironmental Studies)
• Master of Marine Conservation - MMCon
• Master of Arts - MA
• Master of Science - MSc
• Doctor of Philosophy - PhD
• Doctor of Science - DSc
• Doctor of Music - DMus
• Doctor of Literature - DLitt
• Doctor of Commerce - DCom
• Doctor of Laws - DLaws

Of either the university and college of education:

• Fleur Adcock, MA (distinguished poet and Queen's Gold Medal for Poetry recipient)
• Barbara Anderson, BA (prominent author & poet)
• Sir Brian Barratt-Boyes, BSc (pioneering cardiologist)
• Jacqueline Sturm, BA, MA, Honorary Doctor of Literature, (wife of the late James K. Baxter, the first Maori woman to earn BA at this university).
• Dr John Cawte Beaglehole, BA, MA (Captain Cook expert and OM recipient)
• Sarah Billinghurst, BA (artistic director Metropolitan Opera)
• Dr Robert Burchfield, BA (lexicographic scholar)
• Alistair Campbell, BA & DipT (renown Cook Island poet and novelist)
• John Campbell, BA(Hons) (New Zealand television personality)
• Jane Campion, BA (Oscar and Palme D'Or-winning director/screenwriter)
• John Clarke, BA (creator of Fred Dagg)
• Baron Cooke of Thorndon, LLB & LLM (former Law Lord)
• Frank Corner, MA, Honorary Doctor of Laws, (New Zealand diplomat and public servant)
• Sir Thomas Eichelbaum, LLB (former Chief Justice of New Zealand)
• Gareth Farr, BMus(Hons.) (Composer and Percussionist)
• Sir Michael Fay, LLB (merchant banker & third-richest person in New Zealand)
• John Feeney (documentary filmmaker, nominated for two Academy Awards)
• Patricia Grace, DipTchg, honorary Doctor of Literature (prominent author)
• Sir Michael Hardie Boys, BA/LLB (former Governor-General of New Zealand)
• Prof Harry Hawthorn, BA (eminent NZ-Born Canadian anthropologist)
• Dr Fred Hollows, BA (eminent NZ-Born Australian eye surgeon)
• Prof Witi Ihimaera, BA, honorary Doctor of Literature (prominent author of Whale Rider)
• Sir Robert Jones, BA (property tycoon)
• Sir Kenneth Keith, LLM, Honorary Doctor of Laws, (international jurist)
• Hon. Doug Kidd, LL B (former Speaker of the New Zealand House of Representatives)
• Dr Michael King, BA, DLitt (respected historian)
• Sir George Laking, LLB (New Zealand diplomat and public servant)
• Sir Jack Marshall, BA, LLB (former Prime Minister)
• Sir Thaddeus McCarthy, LLM (Court of Appeal judge)
• Prof Alan MacDiarmid, BSc, MSc, Honorary Doctor of Science (2000 winner of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry)
• Sir Alister McIntosh, MA (New Zealand public servant)
• Dr John Money, BSc (world-renowned sexologist)
• Sam Neill, BA (famous character Actor)
• Sir Guy Powles, LL B (New Zealand diplomat and first Ombudsman)
• Beverley Randall, BA, TTC (children's author)
• Sir Paul Reeves, BA, MA (former Governor-General of New Zealand & Archbishop and Primate of New Zealand)
• Dr Jonathan Sarfati, BSc(Hons) & PhD (New Zealand Chess Champion and author)
• Dr Bill Sutch, BCA, MA (public servant, suspected spy)
• Sir Ronald Syme, MA (pre-eminent classicist historian & OM recipient)
• Sir Brian Talboys, BA (former Deputy Prime Minister)
• Hon. Georgina Te Heuheu, BA, LLB (MP and first Māori woman to gain a law degree)
• Don Hunn, MA, (State Services Commissioner)
• Sir Jack Hunn, LLM (New Zealand public servant)
• Fran Walsh, BA, Honorary Doctor of Literature, (multiple Oscar winner, wife of film director Peter Jackson)
• Dr Marilyn Waring, BA(Hons) (feminist, former MP, and Professor at AUT University)
• Albert Wendt, MA (renown Samoan poet and author)
• Gillian Whitehead, BMus(Hons), Honorary DMus (New Zealand composer)
• Sir Richard Wild, LL M (former Chief Justice of New Zealand)
• Thomas Stafford Williams, BCA (New Zealand's only cardinal)
• Jack Yan, LL B, BCA(Hons), MCA (businessman, publisher, and Good Morning panellist)

Of either the university and college of education:

• Dr James Belich (prominent New Zealand historian, currently teaching at the University of Auckland) (Alumnus MA)
• Dr (Vera) Doreen Blumhardt (art educationalist, potter, former WCE lecturer) (honorary graduate, 2003 [8])
• Prof Paul Callaghan (Alan MacDiarmid Professor of Physical Sciences and Director of the MacDiarmind Institute for Advanced Materials & Nanotechnology)
• Mai Chen (law, prominent public law expert)
• Sir Frank Holmes (Emeritus Professor of Economics) (Alumni BA)
• Jack Lasenby (children's author, teacher education lecturer 1975-1987 [9])
• Douglas Lilburn (late Professor of Music)
• Leslie Lipson (Founder of Political Science)
• Prof Bill Manhire (creative writer, author, poet)
• David Norton (Professor of English, editor of the New Cambridge Paragraph Bible)
• Sir Tipene O'Regan (Māori leader, former WCE lecturer) (Alumnus BA(Hons), honorary graduate, 2006)
• Vincent O'Sullivan (English literature, Emertius Professor, prominent New Zealand poet)
• The Rt. Hon. Sir Geoffrey Palmer (law, former New Zealand Prime Minister) (Alumnus BA/LLB, honorary graduate).
• Dr Matthew Palmer (former Dean of Law School, son of Sir Geoffrey Palmer above) (Alumnus LLB)
• Prof Matt Visser (Specialist in general relativity)

1. ^ Victoria University's Māori Name, retrieved 27 December 2006
2. ^ Performance-Based Research Fund—Evaluating Research Excellence: the 2003 assessment, retrieved 27 December 2006. Specifically this PDF at p. 49.
3. ^ Victoria University of Wellington 1899 ~ 1999 A History p. 25. Retrieved 27 December 2006.
4. ^ "History", Massey University Calendar 2007. Retrieved 27 December 2006.

• Victoria University of Wellington's website
  • VUW Student Recruitment and Course Advice
• Victoria University of Wellington Students' Association
• Victoria University of Wellington History at the New Zealand Electronic Text Centre

Coordinates: 41°17′20″S, 174°46′06″E