Fiji National University

Fiji National University is a public university in Fiji that was formally constituted on 15 February 2010 under the Fiji National University Act 2009.

By 2019, student numbers at the University had grown to almost 70,000. While each of the colleges has its own campus, the University also has two out-reach campuses in Ba and Labasa, which offer a range of programmes from different colleges, supported by distance learning, to broaden access to higher education across the country. In addition, the National Training and Productivity Centre has a national network of smaller training campuses in Suva, Nadi and Lautoka.

Structure and facilities

In addition to the six founding colleges, the Training and Productivity Authority of Fiji (est. 1973) also became part of the new University. Following the creation of the University, the organisation structure was rationalised into five colleges, one national centre and one pacific centre:

• College of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry
• College of Business, Hospitality and Tourism Studies
• College of Engineering & Technical Vocational Education and Training
• College of Humanities, Education and Law
• College of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences

National Training and Productivity Centre.

Pacific Centre for Maritime Studies

Although it was formally established in 2010, Fiji National University has a long history of relevant education dating back to the origins of its component Colleges, through institutions that were established according to national needs and aspirations as these developed.

The University is part of Australia's Academic and Research Network (AARNet), the company that provide internet services to the Australian education and research communities and their research partners. This has allowed the University to have superfast broadband in partnership with DigitalFIJI. Books and journals have been replaced by digital collections and libraries have been transformed into modern “social learning commons” where students can work alone or in groups, accessing a wealth of learning materials virtually.

The University has also invested, with financial support from the Fiji Government, in upgrading its facilities and constructing new buildings. A new “green field” campus in Labasa was scheduled to have opened in 2020, but has been delayed by the termination of construction company's contract, compounded by the Covid-19 pandemic. A new gymnasium complex, four-storey business school at the Nasinu Campus and a new three-storey teaching building at Fiji Maritime Academy have been completed. A major programme of renovations saw most of the University's halls of residences and catering facilities upgraded.

Academic leadership

The first Vice Chancellor, Dr Ganesh Chand, served from the foundation of the University in 2010 until 2014. He was later the Vice Chancellor of Solomon Islands University from 2019-22. The second Vice Chancellor was Professor Nigel Healey, a British-New Zealand economist who served a four-year term between 2016 and 2020. He left FNU at the end of his term to become Provost and Deputy President of the University of Limerick in Ireland. His successor was Professor Toby Wilkinson, a renowned British Egyptologist. Professor Wilkinson served for 15 months until March 2022, before returning to the University of Cambridge for family reasons. Professor Wilkinson is now the Fellow for Development at Clare College. Professor Lyn Karstadt, formerly Deputy Vice Chancellor of Murdoch University in Western Australia, served for one year until February 2023, before Professor Unaisi Nabobo-Baba assumed the position.

Component Colleges

The Fiji National University comprises 5 colleges and 2 centres spread throughout 15 campuses across the country. The university also has 15 libraries around Fiji. The main administration centre of Fiji National University, including the hub of its extensive teacher training faculty, is located at what was once Fiji's prestigious Queen Victoria School (known as "Vuli-Ni-Tu"), established at Nasinu in 1907.

The College of Medicine, Nursing & Health Sciences contains the Fiji School of Medicine and the Fiji School of Nursing. The merger of the Fiji School of Medicine and the Fiji School of Nursing into the Fiji National University saw the creation of five schools under the College of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences: the School of Health Sciences; the School of Oral Health; the School of Medical Sciences; the School of Public Health and Primary Care and School of Nursing. It includes the new Pasifika Campus opposite the Colonial War Memorial Hospital. The former Medical School was originally established in 1885 as the Suva Medical School to train vaccinators. It now provides training in most health science disciplines including medicine, dentistry, pharmacy, physiotherapy, radiography, laboratory technology, public health, health services management, dietetics and environmental health. The former Fiji School of Nursing was one of the oldest nursing education institutions in the Pacific and was founded in 1893. It offers basic and post-basic nursing programmes for Fiji and regional students. Graduates are capable of working in general health services, maternal and child health care service, mental health service, and, in urban, rural and remote community health services.

The College of Business, Hospitality & Tourism Studies has business degree programmes which are nationally accredited. The College's programmes are all vetted by the relevant Industry Advisory Committees before being approved by the University's Senate. Accreditation for some programmes such as Accounting is also provided by the professional body, the Fiji Institute of Accountants. Currently FNU has programmes in two streams, the Technical & Vocational Education Training Stream and the Higher Education Stream. With the aim to take education closer to the community, FNU programmes particularly in Accounting, Economics, Computing Science and others, are all offered via 5 campuses around Fiji including Nadi, Lautoka, Ba and Labasa. FNU is currently rolling out postgraduate programmes on a number of commerce subjects.

Notable alumni

Jasa Veremalua (born 1988), rugby union player for the Tel Aviv Heat

Эх сурвалж: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)