The University of South Australia (UNISA) is a public tertiary institution based in the city of Adelaide and serves both metropolitan and rural communities. It is the largest university in the state, offering degrees in a diverse range of disciplines and with a significant number of international students.
UNISA includes two campuses in Adelaide’s city centre, two metropolitan campuses in the surrounding suburbs and two regional campuses in rural South Australia. The City East campus lies adjacent to the University of Adelaide on the former South Australian Institute of Technology site. It is home to the Division of Health Sciences which offers degrees in nursing and midwifery, pharmacy and population health. The campus is also home to the Centre for English Language and the South Australian Institute of Business and Technology. The City West campus is where the creative arts, architecture, commerce and management, business and law studies are located. It’s home to one of South Australia’s largest galleries, the Anne and Gordon Samstag Museum of Art, within the Hawke Building, together with Australia’s only architecture museum and the award-winning Jeffrey Smart learning centre. The Magill campus is where the humanities and social sciences are located, including journalism, psychology and public relations, while the campus at Mawson Lakes offers programs in computing and information technology, engineering, science, civil aviation, e-commerce and environmental studies. It also features leading research institutes such as the new Future Industries Institute, together with Adelaide’s only planetarium. Regional campuses at Whyalla and Mount Gambier offer degrees in nursing, social work, early childhood education and community wellbeing, specifically targeting the needs of rural Australia.
Both the City East and City West campuses are within an easy walking distance of Adelaide’s city centre, with trams, buses and trains connecting with the metropolitan campuses at Magill and Mawson Lakes. Whyalla and Mount Gambier are both accessed by long-distance bus services from Adelaide, as well as regular regional flights.
The University of South Australia was established in 1991 when the South Australian Institute of Technology and the South Australian College of Advanced Education were merged. The institution also includes Australia’s oldest public art school which was established in 1856.