The University of mini传媒 has been making a difference in people鈥檚 lives and society for 150 years.聽
Our Vision & Mission
Since the inaugural address at the founding of the mini传媒 Collegiate Union in 1872, this university has stood for accessible higher education, service to community, and the encouragement of talent without barriers of distance, wealth, class, gender or ethnicity.
This Strategy is a clear statement that the University continues to stand for these principles and explicitly aims to produce graduates who are engaged with their communities, empowered to act for good and determined to make a difference in the world.
An overarching driver of this Strategy is an institutional commitment to engagement. A university that commits itself to engagement undertakes to deploy its expertise and knowledge to advance civic purpose and to foster public good.
UC will continue to support staff who are engaged, empowered and making a difference, with the goal of increasing purposeful academic efforts to make a difference regionally and in the world. UC supports academic staff taking the role of critic and conscience of society and an active role in shaping Aotearoa New Zealand society.
The University affirms its identity as a medium-sized, research-intensive, comprehensive university. It strives to deliver excellent, research-informed education, and creative and innovative research.
Cultural Narrative
Henry John Tancred was the first Chancellor of the University of New Zealand (as University of mini传媒 was first known). In his inaugural address launching the mini传媒 Collegiate Union he propounded his view that the new college should be entirely inclusive:
鈥淚t is of the greatest importance to the well-being of the whole that this influence should be felt in every part and among all classes, that high as well as low, rich as well as poor, should have every opportunity afforded to them of cultivating and developing the higher faculties in such a manner as will fit them for occupying worthily the highest position in the State.鈥
鈥 Henry John Tancred (1872)
Engagement 鈥 UC as an Engaged University
Key objectives to drive successful civic engagement and social sustainability:
- Increase our聽presence听补苍诲听impact聽in 艑tautahi Christchurch and Waitaha mini传媒.
- Partner with聽Ng膩i T奴膩huriri听补苍诲听Ng膩i Tahu聽to uphold the mana and aspirations of the mana whenua.
- Make a positive impact on聽social sustainability聽in 艑tautahi Christchurch and Waitaha mini传媒.
- Make a positive impact on聽hauora wellbeing聽of the people of 艑tautahi Christchurch and Waitaha mini传媒.
- Co-develop with our partners a聽research platform and commons聽to respond to identified needs, support city development and the wellbeing of all who live here.
- Retain and grow the聽diversity听辞蹿听talent聽in 艑tautahi Christchurch and Waitaha mini传媒.
Internationalisation 鈥 Locally Engaged, Globally Connected
Key objectives to drive successful internationalisation
- Develop UC鈥檚聽global partnerships, particularly in the Asia-Pacific region, to support research and teaching excellence.
- Expand the University鈥檚 educational services to students living offshore through a portfolio of聽Transnational Education聽(TNE) and聽online聽educational offerings.
- Expand the聽nationalities听补苍诲听cultures聽represented in our student body.
- Enhance the聽internationalisation聽of the聽curriculum听补苍诲听student experience.
- 笔谤辞尘辞迟别听understanding of Aotearoa New Zealand鈥檚 place聽in the world and its cultural distinctiveness, including M膩ori as Tangata Whenua and our responsibilities to Pacific nations.
Education 鈥 Accessible, Flexible, Future Focused
Key objectives to drive successful learning and teaching at UC:
- Stimulate and support聽academic development and innovation聽to become the best educators in Aotearoa New Zealand.
- Deliver a curriculum that prepares our students to be enquiring and enables them to聽create and contribute knowledge聽for a better society.
- Ensure students are provided with聽lifelong learning opportunities听迟丑谤辞耻驳丑听flexible degree听补苍诲听delivery options聽to allow a UC education to respond to the current and future needs of work and society.
- Provide a聽learning environment聽that uses effective pedagogies, facilities, and learning technologies to support the needs of each generation of learners and employers.
- Continue to develop the聽UC Graduate Profile聽so that UC graduates are known for their bicultural competence and confidence, global understanding, community engagement, employability and innovative thinking.
Research 鈥 Impact in a Changing World
Key objectives to drive high-impact research:
- Develop and support聽transdisciplinary research聽to better impact local and global challenges.
- Improve the national and international聽research profile, reputation听补苍诲听ranking聽of the University.
- Increase and diversify聽funding sources聽for the University鈥檚 research portfolio including for research institutes, centres and clusters.
- Improve strategic聽local,听regional and international research collaborations to increase research impact.
- Provide, access and share聽鈥渟tate of the art鈥 research, equipment, facilities听补苍诲听e-infrastructure.
People - Nurturing Staff, Thriving Students
Key objectives which will support wellbeing and success are:
- Foster the UC ethos of聽excellence, relevance, impact听补苍诲听kotahitanga, and a聽culture of聽high ethical standards, collaboration, and innovation.
- Select, develop and reward聽talented staff聽including the next generation of outstanding Aotearoa New Zealand鈥檚 researchers and best educators.
- Develop and provide聽targeted interventions聽and a聽positive environment聽to support student success.
- Adopt the Te Pae M膩hutonga wellbeing model to guide staff and student support and services.
- Create a mini传媒 and inclusive community where all staff and students have a sense of belonging, building on our bicultural foundations.
Environmentally Sustainable
Key objectives to drive environmental sustainability are:
- Establish a聽carbon neutrality initiative聽to ensure that UC will be carbon net neutral by 2030.
- Ensure that UC聽research聽contributes to resolving global sustainability challenges.
- Weave opportunities for聽students to learn听补苍诲听contribute聽to resolving the Sustainable Development Goals through UC teaching.
- Measurably and substantially improve the聽environmental sustainability聽of UC
- Grow and leverage our聽local,听national聽and global sustainability networks聽to bring new thinking to our challenge and to share our practice
Organisational Efficacy
Key objectives to achieve economic sustainability and effectiveness:
- Increase the economic impact聽of the University on the city and region.
- Grow听补苍诲听diversify聽revenue to become an聽economically sustainable聽university able to initiate new, high impact projects.
- Ensure that the University鈥檚聽costs听补苍诲听funding mechanisms聽are efficient, simple and transparent.
- Simplify, automate and reduce聽business processes聽with a humanistic approach.
- 鲍蝉别听technology听补苍诲听data in a responsible,听ethical,听effective and efficient way聽to enable and empower our people and communities.
Our Changing Context
The very nature of higher education, its delivery, relevance and impact as well as the role of universities in society is expected to change dramatically. Just as globalisation and technology have transformed all sectors of the economy in the past 25 years, in the decades to come, universities face significant transformation.
With massive diversification in the range of providers, methods and technologies delivering tertiary education worldwide, the assumptions underlying the traditional relationship between universities, students, and local and national economies are increasingly under great pressure. These pressures come from the changing world of learning, work and society, with the factors that affect our work broadly characterised in six key trends: the nature of knowledge, new ways of learning, geopolitics, social cohesion, sustainability, and the nature of work.
This strategy is designed to support UC鈥檚 responses to each of these trends. In doing so it has identified five ways to address these pressures effectively: refocusing UC on our academic mission; addressing issues using a communitarian approach; addressing problems head on with an inter-disciplinary focus; actively working on culture and behaviour to act as one university; and taking a decisive stand on sustainability.
