Curtin University (previouslyCurtin University of Technology andWestern Australian Institute of Technology) is an Australianpublic research university based inBentley, Perth, Western Australia. It is named afterJohn Curtin, Prime Minister of Australia from 1941 to 1945, and is Western Australia's largest university, with 58,607 students in 2022.[13]
WAIT was established in 1966. Curtin was conferred university status after theParliament of Western Australia passed legislation in 1986. Since then, the university has expanded its presence and has campuses inSingapore,Malaysia,Dubai andMauritius, and has ties with 90 exchange universities in 20 countries.[14] The university comprises five main faculties with over 95 specialists centres. It had a campus inSydney from 2005 to 2016.[15]
Curtin University is a member of theAustralian Technology Network. Curtin is active in research in a range of academic and practical fields.[16] As of 2020, it is Western Australia's only university whose students have won the Australian Institute of Nuclear Science and Engineering's Postgraduate Student Gold Medal.[17]
Curtin University was founded in 1966 as the Western Australian Institute of Technology.[18] The four people who drove its establishment were Lesley Phillips, who was Superintendent of Technical Education from 1943 to 1948; George Hayman,[a] who held the same position from 1948[19] to 1962;[20] T. L. Robertson, Director of Education; and Haydn Williams, Director of Technical Education.[19]
Its nucleus comprised the tertiary programs of thePerth Technical College, which opened in 1900.[21] The university's Bentley campus was selected in 1962 and officially opened in 1966. The first students enrolled in 1967.[citation needed] Haydn Williams was the first director of WAIT.[19]
In 1969, three more institutions were merged with WAIT: theKalgoorlie School of Mines (opened in 1902), theMuresk Agricultural College (opened in 1926), and the Schools of Physiotherapy and Occupational Therapy (in operation since the 1950s atShenton Park).[22] Between 1966 and 1976 WAIT experienced an expansion from 2,000 to 10,000 students.[23]
In December 1986 WAIT was made a university, under provisions of theWA Institute of Technology Amendment Act 1986.[24] Curtin University took its name from former Prime Minister of AustraliaJohn Curtin. In 1987, Curtin University of Technology became Western Australia's third university and Australia's first university of technology.[citation needed] By the mid-1990s, it had enrolments of 20,000 students, making it one of Australia's largest universities.[25][page needed]
In 2005, Curtin andMurdoch University were engaged in a feasibility study into the possibility of a merger.[27] On 7 November 2005, the institutions announced that a merger would not be undertaken.[28]
In 2008, Curtin opened acampus in Singapore, its second offshore presence.[26] In 2009, Curtin became the first university in the Australian Technology Network to be listed on the Academic Ranking of World Universities of research universities.[29]
In 2010, Curtin dropped the "of Technology" suffix, from then operating as "Curtin University".[citation needed]
Curtin University's main campus is inBentley, Western Australia, about 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) south-east of thePerth central business district.[30] The campus was developed on a former pine plantation established in the 1930s.[25]
Curtin has multiple smaller off-site campuses in the Perth metropolitan area. The Graduate School of Business building is in thePerth central business district in the renovated former Government Printing Office, and the law school is onMurray Street in the old Public Health Department and Chief Secretary's building, a listed building on the State Register of Heritage Places. In 2016, Curtin entered into an agreement with theNational Trust of Australia (WA) to use the restored Old Perth Boys' School at 139 St Georges Terrace for community and industry engagement. In 2018, Curtin renovated the original Perth Technical College building at 137 St Georges Terrace to create meeting rooms and learning spaces for professional development and postgraduate courses.[31]
Curtin operated a campus in the suburb ofJoondalup, which opened in 1994.[32]It was operated in conjunction with the Australian Institute for University Study.[33]The campus was closed around 2005. After being abandoned for several years it is now used forNorth Metropolitan TAFE campus.
Exploration Geophysics andPetroleum Engineering are at the co-location research facilities of the Australian Resources Research Centre (ARRC),[34] which also houses offices ofCSIRO Earth Science and Resource Engineering[35] and National Measurement Institute.[36] The ARRC is in the Technology Park Bentley, adjacent to the main Bentley campus. Some university staff, researchers and students on practicum work in other locations, such as the Oral Health Centre of WA (OHCWA) in Nedlands[37] and atRoyal Perth Hospital, amongst other organisations.
The Hayman Theatre was established in 1973 as Hayman Hall, for the use of theatre arts students.[38] The Hall's name derives from George Hayman,[a] who played a major part in establishing WAIT in 1967.[39] The theatre study company Theatreground as well as theWestern Australian Theatre Company used the space. It was refurbished in 1977, creating the Theatre Upstairs above the main stage. After the Bentley Campus was expanded, in 2017 Hayman Theatre moved to Building 302.[38]
In April 2017 Curtin University established its newest campus inDubai atDubai International Academic City.[40] Australian Ambassador to the UAE HE Arthur Spyrou officially opened the campus on 10 September 2017.[41] Curtin University Dubai courses use the same structure and unit curriculum as those at the Bentley campus. Curtin University Dubai is accredited by theKnowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA).[citation needed] The academic qualifications Curtin grants are certified by KHDA and recognised in the Emirate ofDubai by all public and private entities.[citation needed]
Curtin's largest international campus is inMiri,Sarawak, Malaysia. Curtin's operations in Miri began in February 1999. In 2002, a purpose-built campus was opened as Curtin's first offshore campus and the first foreign university campus in East Malaysia. It has around 4,000 students from over 45 countries, and academics from more than 15 countries.[42] Curtin Malaysia is the only approvedCISCO Networking University in Miri and Brunei.[43]
Curtin University opened a Singapore-based campus on 23 November 2008.[44][45] Curtin Singapore courses use the same structure and unit curriculum as those at the Bentley campus.[citation needed] In 2022, Curtin Singapore moved to a new campus located at 10 Science Park Road, The Alpha, Science Park II.[46]
Curtin University opened its fourth international campus in Mauritius on 3 May 2018 on the campus of Charles Telfair Institute inMoka south ofPort Louis.[47][48]
Curtin University Sydney (Curtin Sydney) was established on 20 June 2005. The first campus was inThe Rocks area. It later moved to the suburb ofChippendale, where it occupied theBerlei Building. Curtin Sydney's operation was contracted out to private tertiary education providerNavitas Group. It offered international students diploma, undergraduate and postgraduate courses. In 2014 Curtin Sydney was involved in a cash-for-results scandal where students since 2012 had paid MyMaster, a Sydney company, up to $1,000 each to write essays and assignments for them, as well as to sit online tests.[49] In 2015, Curtin announced that Curtin Sydney would close in 2017.[15]
From 2007, the university's teaching and research was divided into five faculties (previously known as divisions), which each include a number of schools.[50] These schools were consolidated in 2020 during a period of staff cuts.[51] These are:
Centre for Aboriginal Studies
Faculty of Business and Law
School of Accounting, Economics and Finance
School of Management and Marketing
Curtin Law School
Faculty of Health Sciences
Curtin Medical School
Curtin School of Allied Health
Curtin School of Nursing
Curtin School of Population Health
Faculty of Humanities
School of Design and the Built Environment
School of Media, Creative Arts and Social Inquiry
School of Education
Faculty of Science and Engineering
School of Civil and Mechanical Engineering
School of Earth and Planetary Sciences
School of Electrical Engineering, Computing and Mathematical Sciences
School of Molecular and Life Sciences
Western Australian School of Mines: Minerals and Energy Engineering
The main library building is the TL Robertson Library, on the Bentley campus.[52] It opened in 1972. After the building was extended in the 1990s, the university began a major refurbishment in 2021, due for completion in 2023.[53] Also on the Bentley campus is the John Curtin Prime Ministerial Library, holding a large collection of papers relating to John Curtin as well as other special collections, including the papers of political figures John Dawkins, Geoff Gallop, Hazel Hawke, and Carmen Lawrence, and Curtin academics Mike Daube (tobacco control) and Jules Black (sexology).[54]
In the 2024Aggregate Ranking of Top Universities, which measures aggregate performance across the QS, THE and ARWU rankings, the university attained a position of #191 (11th nationally).[72]
The Australian Government's QILT[c] conducts national surveys documenting the student life cycle from enrolment through to employment.[79] These surveys place more emphasis on criteria such as student experience, graduate outcomes and employer satisfaction[79] than perceived reputation, research output and citation counts.[80]
In the 2023 Employer Satisfaction Survey, graduates of the university had an overall employer satisfaction rate of 90.1%.[81]
In the 2023 Graduate Outcomes Survey, graduates of the university had a full-time employment rate of 80.9% for undergraduates and 87.9% for postgraduates.[82] The initial full-time salary wasA$75,000 for undergraduates andA$93,000 for postgraduates.[82]
In the 2023 Student Experience Survey, undergraduates at the university rated the quality of their entire educational experience at 77.4% meanwhile postgraduates rated their overall education experience at 75.5%.[83]
In 2022, the university formed an international university alliance with theUniversity of Aberdeen in Scotland, United Kingdom andUniversity of Calgary in Alberta, Canada to address global challenges together.[84] The alliance provides joint research centres, collaborative academic programs, industry linkage, and student and staff mobility exchanges.[85] Curtin is also a member of theAustralian Technology Network.[86]
The Curtin Student Guild is thestudent union at Curtin University. It was founded in 1969 as the WAIT Student Guild.
The guild provides student representation services through the provision of faculty, international, postgraduate and equity representatives and the professional support service Student Assist.[87]
The guild operates most food and beverage outlets on campus, including Guild Cafés (Central, Engineering, Library), Angazi, Concept Coffee Co and Mallokup food outlets. Other commercial services include G-Mart, Curtin University'sgeneral store, printing, stationery and news outlet and The Tav.[88]
The guild operates and funds all Curtin student clubs and societies. It also runs a number of events throughout the year, most notably the Toga Party held in semester one and the previous notable event Grasslands Music Festival held in semester two. The guild publishesGrok magazine.
The Student Guild is governed independently of the University by students through the Guild Council, which consists of executive members: president, vice-presidents, secretary and councillors. All other representatives sit on the Representation Board. Students elect their representatives annually in September.[89] MajorGroups that contest elections include Illuminate, consisting of broadlyleft-wingIndependent students; Left Action, aligned withSocialist Alternative; groups aligned with theLabor Right; andJoke Ticket's, from various political leanings.[90] The Guild currently has an Illuminate majority.
Curtin University offers on campus accommodation at five separate precincts, managed by UniLodge:[93] Kurrajong Village,[94] Erica Underwood House,[95] Guild House,[96] Vickery House[97] and St Catherine's College.[98]
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Past prominent faculty members include the postmodernistNiall Lucy, writerElizabeth Jolley and journalistRobert Duffield.[citation needed] The broadcasterErica Underwood was the first woman to serve on the main council in 1974 when it was the council of theWestern Australian Institute of Technology.[110]
Curtin has become active in research and partnerships overseas, particularly in mainland China, and has received funding from major Chinese companies, such asTencent.[111] It is involved in a number of business, management, and research projects, particularly in supercomputing, where the university participates in a tri-continental array with nodes in Perth,Beijing, andEdinburgh.[112] The Chinese PremierWen Jiabao visited theWoodside-funded hydrocarbon research facility during his visit to Australia in 2005.[113] Funding from major Chinese companies connected to the state have led to concerns that Curtin University has limited academic freedom on certain topics.[111]
In 2020, a roof at Curtin University collapsed, killing a 23-year-old construction worker after he fell more than 20 m (66 ft), and leaving two other construction workers injured.[114][115]
^"AINSE Gold Medals".AINSE. Australian Institute of Nuclear Science and Engineering.Archived from the original on 18 April 2021. Retrieved3 March 2021.
^White, Michael (1996),WAIT to Curtin : a history of the Western Australian Institute of Technology, Paradigm Books (Curtin University),ISBN978-1-86342-490-5
^abcd"History".Curtin University. 5 February 2020. Retrieved21 August 2023.
^Oliver, Bobbie,"Erica Reid Underwood (1907–1992)",Australian Dictionary of Biography, Canberra: National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, retrieved1 May 2024
