Adelaide University offers places for Canterbury students

University of Canterbury. Photo / Star Canterbury

Up to 500 University of Canterbury undergraduate students will study at the University of Adelaide this semester after the Australian university offered places to its quake-affected counterpart.

It is expected that students selected for the exchange will be able to travel to Adelaide as soon as this weekend and will stay in halls of residence or private billets.

They will join existing academic programmes, mainly at first-year level, and will return to Canterbury for the second semester.

A delighted University of Canterbury vice-chancellor Rod Carr said the offer would address some short-term issues and advance long-term plans for the institution, which has a student roll of about 16,000.

"This will help give our students the opportunity to add an international component to their degree."

University of Adelaide vice-chancellor and president Professor James McWha says he was pleased to be able to help.

Christchurch and Adelaide are sister cities and the two universities had a special relationship, he said.

"Our sympathy and understanding extends to the people of Christchurch, and we see this as an opportunity to strengthen the ties between our two institutions at a time when it is most needed."

Adelaide confirmed there would be no additional tuition fees charged to students. However, students will have to pay for their accommodation in Adelaide.

Students are eligible for loans and allowances as if they were studying at Canterbury, StudyLink said.

Meanwhile, both of Canterbury's universities, Canterbury and Lincoln, were well-advanced with their plans to re-open progressively following last week's earthquake, said Tertiary Education Minister Steven Joyce.

Lincoln University, which has a student roll of around 2500, will be open for staff today and postgraduate research students are being encouraged to begin contacting their supervisors. Lincoln aims to be fully open by March 14.

Canterbury University had planned to restart progressively and was looking at a number of measures to relieve pressure on the campus and the city in the short to medium term. They included some distance learning options, arranging for field trips for the beginning of the semester and taking up the University of Adelaide's offer.

Mr Joyce said the situation for the Christchurch Polytechnic and Institute of Technology (CPIT) was more challenging, given the bulk of its campus was within the cordoned off area of central Christchurch.

Officials were working with CPIT as well as other institutes, looking at relocating within the city and temporarily hosting courses at other institutions.

CPIT's Sullivan Avenue campus was expected to open shortly and CPIT was looking at options to teach more students there.

The institutions were aware that some students might wish to leave the city and they are working hard to ensure there were appropriate options for out-of-town study, Mr Joyce said.

"The Government has also relaxed enrolment caps at funded institutions outside of Christchurch to allow them to take on some students directly affected by the earthquake if required."

- NZPA