University of Melbourne: Everything You Need to Know

Melbourne the capital city of Victoria state is the second largest city and metropolitan city in Australia. It just does not avail of necessary facilities in the state but is renowned for the education it offers through its prestigious and recognised institutions. The University of Melbourne stands out to be the promising one amongst the other in the city that comes to the mind of each international student who is willing to study in Australia. It is a member of Group of Eight (GO8) and is esteemed to position at the top of the QS world university Ranking chart. So, when a prospective student tries to search for the top universities in Australia then we would like to suggest the University of Melbourne, as it has a rich history of academic achievements and a commitment to innovation.  The University has cemented its position as a leading force in global education, shaping the future through its diverse and inclusive academic community.

So, in this blog, let us take you through the in-depth path in the exploration of the University of Melbourne, its history, faculty, student support and much more to the list. Join us till the end and make yourself aware of the steps you are going to take ahead in your academic pursuits, initiating with the commitment to choose the right university.
 

 Short Introduction to the University

As the name suggests the university is situated in the city of Melbourne and is globally renowned. It is the most favoured university and is highly preferred by the international students. The university is funded by the state or the national government, which brings in the establishment of new technology and innovations here. It truly is a unique learning landmark, with a range of sustainable facilities and precincts specially designed to enable ground-breaking discoveries. Research and education at the university seek to address real-world social concerns in the present, with a focus on critical global issues.

There are a lot of choices in choosing the courses that best meet the needs and interests of the students. Falling between undergraduate and postgraduate courses, these are a few of the courses that are available in the university agriculture, arts, biomedicine, commerce, design, environments, fine arts, music, oral health and science. After which you can choose more specific majors within these broad categories. There are more than 52, 000 students in the undergraduate degree, approx. 52% and 48% of graduate students, it has over 470,000 alumni members globally, 41% of international students coming from 150 countries worldwide, and a graduate outcome of 98%.
 

History of the University of Melbourne

The University of Melbourne was established following a proposal by Hugh Childers, the Auditor-General and Finance Minister, in his first Budget Speech on November 4, 1852. He allocated a certain amount for its establishment and in the later years, an act of incorporation was passed on January 22, 1853, which is counted as the official year of its foundation. The core subjects which were taught in that year were: arts, medicine, law and music. Further, the foundation stone was laid on July 3, 1854, and classes began in 1855 with three professors and sixteen students. The original buildings were opened by Lieutenant Governor Sir Charles Hotham on October 3, 1855.

a) 1900s to 1970s

After the expansion of the university through the establishment of Law in 1857, and faculties of Engineering and Medicine in 1861 and 1862, respectively, the university expanded its curriculum to include more practical courses in the early phase of the 1900s. By 1901, student enrollment exceeded 500. Despite economic challenges, the university grew, constructing several buildings between 1900 and 1906, aided by increased government funding. New programs in education, dentistry, and agriculture were established. Post-World War II, higher education demand surged, transforming the university into a leading research institution.

b) 1980s to 2000s: Consolidation and Expansion

During the 1980s and 1990s, the university collaborated with several other tertiary colleges. This led to the significant growth in its student population and campus footprint. The Melbourne Teachers' College and the Victorian College of the Arts were incorporated, among others. 

c) 2010s to Present: Restructure and Casualisation

From 2013 to 2015, a major administrative restructure led to the dismissal of 500 staff members. The university also invested $2 billion in new buildings. In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic shifted most teaching online, resulting in significant job cuts. The university faced wage theft controversies, repaying millions to underpaid casual staff. A new campus at Fishermans Bend, focusing on engineering, is planned to open in 2026. Recent years have seen strikes and protests from staff seeking better wages and working conditions.
 

Academic programs offered at the University of Melbourne, Australia

The university offers courses in diverse fields of study, be it Arts and Humanities, Clinical, Pre-Clinical and Health, Engineering and Technology, Life Sciences, Physical Sciences, Social Sciences, Business and Economics, Computer Science, Law, Education and Psychology.
 

The University of Melbourne Subject Rankings by the QS, 2024

 

 

University Campus 

The university has three other campuses in the city of Melbourne itself at Burnley, Southbank, and Werribee respectively. The main campus is located at Parkville Victoria 3052, with an area of around 35 hectares.

a) Parkville campus

It is the main campus of the University of Melbourne, which was originally established in a large area north of Grattan Street in Parkville. The campus was founded in the year 1853, offering a diverse range of cafes, two gyms, five university libraries, a bank branch, Post parcel lockers, etc on the campus itself. Within the territory of the campus, you will find eight hospitals and many other leading research institutes.

b) Southbank campus

Courses such as  Performing arts, visual arts, film and television, and music courses are taught at the Southbank campus. It is home to the Victorian College of the Arts and the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music.

c) Burnley Campus

It is located within the suburb of Burnley in Melbourne, which is around 5 km east of the Melbourne CBD. When we talk about its offerings then we must include that it is renowned for its teaching and research in urban, environmental and ornamental horticulture. At the campus, students are offered short courses, associate degrees, post-graduate studies, and research.

d) Dookie Campus

The campus has been a home to agriculture and agriculture teaching and learning since 1886. Subjects in agriculture, science, commerce, and environments are available at the campus.

 e) Creswick Campus 

The campus is located in Creswick, which is 120 km north-west of Melbourne. The campus faculty has been offering forest science education since 1910, leading it to be the only dedicated forest ecosystem science campus. It typically focuses on forest industry, conservation and molecular biology research.

 f) Werribee Campus

The campus is located in the southwest of Melbourne City, 30 km away. It is home to research and teaching for the Melbourne Veterinary School. Victoria's only accredited veterinary course is based at The University of Melbourne, at both the Werribee and Parkville campuses.

g) Shepparton Campus

200 km north of Melbourne is the campus of Shepparton of the University of Melbourne. The campus is a precinct of the Melbourne Medical School, and the Shepparton base is home to the Shepparton Rural Clinical School. The Shepparton Medical Centre was the first purpose-built teaching clinic in Australia.

 h) Upcoming campus

The Fishermans Bend is the upcoming campus of the University of Melbourne, which is the new engineering campus of the university. Currently, it is in its construction phase, one of the campuses is expected to start in 2024 with a planned opening in 2026.
 

Campus facilities

The campus facilities include facilities and support services to enable an international adjust to the environment and delve into the academic atmosphere. These services make them feel at home even after they stay away. These facilities include:

a) Libraries: The University of Melbourne facilitates libraries comprising over 3.5 million items including books, DVDs, photographic slides, music scores and periodicals as well as rare maps, prints and other published materials. 

The various library locations are-

(i) ABP Library

(ii) Baillieu Library

(iii) Brownless Biomedical Library

(iv) Biomedical Library

(v) Burnley, Creswick and Dookie Libraries

(vi) Eastern Resource Centre

(vii) Giblin Eunson Library

(viii) Law Library

(ix) Southbank Library

(x) Veterinary and Agricultural Science Libraries

The University of Melbourne Parkville libraries by discipline are-

(i)  Architecture, Building and Planning

(ii)  Arts

(iii)  Business and Economics

(iv)  Education

(v)  Law

(vi)  Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences

(vii)  Music

(viii)  Science and Engineering

(ix)  Veterinary and Agricultural Sciences

(x)  Visual and Performing Arts

b) Museums: The university has a few museums that help students be connected to history and allow them to allocate analysis by visiting them in their academics. 

(i) The Grainger Museum located at the university's Parkville campus, is the only purpose-built autobiographical museum in Australia. It has a collection of over 100,000 items including photographs, costumes, art, music scores and instruments. 

(ii) To view the collection of both historical anatomical and real human tissue specimens then the Harry Brookes Allen Museum of Anatomy and Pathology is the one for you. It is located at the Parkville campus and is one of Australia's largest collections of these items. 

(iii) The Henry Forman Atkinson Dental Museum, is the oldest dental collection in Australia, with over 3500 objects, photographs, documents, and catalogues.

(iv) The Fiona & Sidney Myer Gallery is located at the university's Southbank campus, which is a space facilitating and encouraging connections between professional artists, academics, students, and the wider public. 

c) Sports facilities: Sport is overseen by Melbourne University Sport (MU Sport), which is a department of the university. It facilitates all sports, fitness and recreation equipment and resources, programs and activities of the university. 

Melbourne University Sport offers access to a range of sporting clubs: aikido, athletics, badminton, baseball, basketball, cheerleading, cricket, cycling, dancesport, dragon boat, fencing, men's football, women's football, futsal, gridiron, hockey, inline, karate, kendo, lacrosse, mountaineering, netball, quidditch, rowing, rugby union, etc.

More facilities include the gym, fitness programs, group fitness classes, cardio theatre, strength zone, group cycling studio, MindBody studio, Cardio Box studio, two multipurpose stadiums, indoor heated 25m lap pool, personal training studio, group fitness room, squash courts, and change rooms. 

d) Student unions and associations: These serve to be room for all the students to connect and interact with one another as a part of socialisation. There are basically two student organisations in the university, one is the  University of Melbourne Student Union (UMSU), and the other one is the Graduate Student Association. Other than these the Graduate Student Association (GSA) is an independent association that automatically provides all enrolled graduate students at the university with support, representation, events, and training.

e) Student Accommodation Facilities: The University of Melbourne offers a range of accommodation options for students living on campus. Some students might not want to stay on campus so they can look for off-campus facilities near the university including, shared apartments, homestays, etc. On campus has the benefit that the students stay connected with the events including any social events where they can connect with a network of students. Most of the accommodation options are located near the main landmarks of Parkville.

 
University of Melbourne Admission and Application

The international applicants must pay the application fees of AUD 120 to apply for UG and PG admissions at the University of Melbourne, Parkville. The fees are nonrefundable.
 

How to Apply to the University of Melbourne?

a) Undergraduate Admissions

(i) Students have to select their course of study.

(ii) Students can apply for University of Melbourne Parkville admission in three ways: Victorian Tertiary Admissions Centre (VTAC), directly to the University of Melbourne or through an overseas representative.

(iii) Students applying through VTAC have to first create an account, then log in and fill in the details.

(iv) Students applying directly on the university website, have to create an account, log in with the username and password and fill out the application form.

(v) Next, students have to submit the documents.

(vi) After that, students have to pay an application form fee of AUD 120.

(vii) Finally, submit the application form.

(viii) Students will receive a confirmation email.

(ix) Students can track the status of their application by logging into the portal.

b) Postgraduate Admissions

(i) Select the programme of study.

(ii) Students have to apply online on the university website- unimelb-web.t1cloud.com.

(iii) Fill out the application form and submit the documents.

(iv) Pay the application form fee of AUD 120.

(v) Finally, submit the application form.

(vi) Students can track the status of their application by logging into the portal.

(vii) Assessment of application takes 4-8 weeks.

(viii) If the application is successful, an offer letter will be sent.

c) Documents Required for the University of Melbourne Parkville Admissions

(i) Academic transcripts

(ii) Degrees and certificates

(iii) Student Visa Australia

(iv) Passport

(v) English language proficiency scores: TOEFL/IELTS/PTE

(vi) CV (for doctoral programmes)

(vii) Research proposal (doctoral programmes)

(viii) GRE or GMAT test results or writing samples (doctoral programmes)

(ix) Two references
 

Conclusion

The students who are willing to study in Australia can choose the University of Melbourne as their primary destination or focus institution for seeking higher education. The university has various courses and student facilities that help them secure jobs in the future and make them feel at home during their stay. It offers undergraduate and master's degrees in Australia for international students, as a total of 41% of the total student population is overseas. And not just that you will remain occupied with academic or job spheres but you will collect memories that you’ll cherish lifelong. The connections you will be making and the experiences will continue to impact your life in meaningful ways. 

If you're considering being a part of the world-class education that can open doors to endless opportunities with the University of Melbourne, visit OZ assignments for more information.

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