University of Cape Town
university
| University of Cape Town link () | |
|---|---|
| File:University of Cape Town logo.png | |
| Formation | 1829 |
| Headquarters | Cape Town, South Africa |
| Public university in Cape Town, South Africa | |
The University of Cape Town (UCT) is a public research university located in Cape Town in the Western Cape province of South Africa. UCT was founded in 1829 as the South African College making it the oldest higher education institute in South Africa.[1]
Consisting of 57 departments organised in 6 faculties and the multidisciplinary Centre for Higher Education Development, the university has approximately 29,000 to 30,000 students in the liberal arts, pure sciences and professional degrees.
History
The founding of the university dates back to 1829 when the South African College was established. The UCT was formally established as a university on 2 April 1918.
After the unification of the South African colonies in 1910, the new government of the Union seriously considered the implementation of a large institution of higher education responding to the vision desired by Cecil Rhodes in his will. Two of Rhodes' former associates, Otto Beit and Sir Julius Wernher, and a donation from mining magnate Alfred Beit financed the construction of this new university in 1918. Work lasted a decade before the University of Cape Town was able to inaugurate the Groote Schuur campus, on the part of the domain bequeathed by Rhodes.