Today marks an historic chapter in the 500-year history of the University of Aberdeen as it merges with the city’s Northern College.
The merger of the Northern College’s Aberdeen and Dundee campuses with the universities of both cities follows years of negotiations between the institutions and will bring together the distinctive strengths and experience of all three.
The new Faculty of Education will become the University’s fifth faculty and will create a wider and richer intellectual and professional environment for the development of teaching and related professions.
Minister for Enterprise and Lifelong Learning Wendy Alexander approved the planned merger earlier this year. She said: “Students will benefit from access to a greater range of courses and the opportunity to participate in the wider academic and social communities within the universities.
“The strong research ethos of the two universities will offer development possibilities to the staff, and in return the universities will benefit from the College’s strong links with schools and other educational bodies.
“By combining their resources and expertise, the merged institutions will demonstrate high levels of academic quality, diversity and flexibility.”
Professor Rice described the addition of teacher training to the University’s portfolio as ‘extraordinarily exciting’.
“There is a very strong case for adding teacher education and training to the University’s portfolio. We take great pride in our tradition of educating doctors, lawyers, ministers and other professionals and this is a very exciting opportunity to restore teachers to that tradition.
“It is important that the professional development of teachers goes hand-in-hand with their personal intellectual development and a full spectrum university can, by its very nature, provide the stimulating academic environment in which both elements can be provided.”
Ms Cathy Macaslan will be Acting Dean for the new Faculty of Education. One of the main benefits of the merger, according to Ms Macaslan, is the fact that students will now be taught along with other professionals following many other programmes.
“At the moment, our students are really quite isolated from other students, but this merger will allow them to benefit from a wider range of opportunities on offer from a much larger institution,” she said.
“For example, the evolving agenda in schools at the moment is the integration of services for children and families around schools as teachers are now expected to work with social workers, health professionals and community workers. This policy of inter-professional collaboration can only be enhanced by cross-disciplinary access to students and researchers of other professions.
“The fact that the University has a strong portfolio of Government-related research will help to inform our thinking on the development of our own curriculum and priorities for teacher education.”
The new Faculty of Education will continue to be located at Hilton Place, with a view to relocating at Old Aberdeen within the next four years.
For further information contact: Angela Begg, Media Relations, on: (01224) 272960.
Issued by Public Relations Office, External Relations, University of Aberdeen, King's College, Aberdeen. Tel: (01224) 272014 Fax: (01224) 272086.
University Press Office on telephone +44 (0)1224-273778 or email a.ramsay@admin.abdn.ac.uk.