University of Tasmania

The University of Tasmania (UTAS) is a public research university, primarily located in Tasmania, Australia. Founded in 1890, it is Australia's fourth oldest university. Christ College, one of the university's residential colleges, first proposed in 1840 in Lieutenant-Governor Sir John Franklin's Legislative Council, was modelled on the Oxford and Cambridge colleges, and was founded in 1846, making it the oldest tertiary institution in the country. The university is a sandstone university, a member of the international Association of Commonwealth Universities, and the Association of Southeast Asian Institutions of Higher Learning. The university offers various undergraduate and graduate programs in a range of disciplines, and has links with 20 specialist research institutes and co-operative research centres. Its Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies has strongly contributed to the university's multiple 5 rating scores (well above world standard) for excellence in research awarded by the Australian Research Council. The university also delivers tertiary education at the Australian Maritime College, the national centre for maritime education, training and research. The University has also demonstrated strong outcomes on climate change, sustainability, and resource management, earning it a high global ranking in the Times Higher Education Impact Ratings in 2022 and 2023. UTAS's initiatives include climate-focused research, offering over 100 courses with climate-focused units, low-carbon energy use in new campus developments, divesting from fossil fuels, and a commitment to carbon neutrality, which has been certified by Climate Active since 2016. The University of Tasmania was established on 1 January 1890, after the abolition of overseas scholarships freed up funds. It immediately took over the role of the Tasmanian Council for Education. Richard Deodatus Poulett Harris, who had long advocated for the establishment of the university, became its first warden of the senate.