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	Established: 6 November 1874 First Council Meeting: 11 December 1874 First Chancellor: Sir Richard Hanson (Chief Justice of South Australia) First Vice-Chancellor: The Right Reverend Dr Augustus Short (Bishop of Adelaide)

Our story: progressive from the start

Through teaching and learning of high quality, through outstanding research, and through a strong tradition of community service, the University of Adelaide has built a continuing reputation for life impact.

The beginnings

In 1872, the Baptist, Congregational and Presbyterian churches in the province of South Australia founded a Union College "to provide young men with an education beyond school level". Courses were offered in Classics, Philosophy, English Literature, Mathematics and Natural Science.

That same year, a wealthy grazier and copper miner, Walter Watson Hughes, proposed a donation of 20,000 pounds to the new college — an immense sum in those days, and more than enough to found a university.

So the University of Adelaide came into being, with a Bill "for an act to incorporate and endow the University of Adelaide" receiving the Governor's assent on 6 November 1874. The University began teaching in March 1876, with the Bachelor of Arts the first degree offered. The University was formally inaugurated on 25 April 1876, and fully constituted on 2 May 1877, when the admission of 73 graduates of other universities to degrees ad eundem gradum of the University of Adelaide enabled the Senate to be established.

A progressive institution

Adelaide is the third-oldest university in Australia and older than all but a handful of universities in England.

From the start, it was a progressive institution. It was the first Australian university to admit women to academic courses — in 1881, ahead of Oxford (1920) and Cambridge (1948). It was the first Australian university to grant degrees in Science — its first science graduate was also its first woman graduate, Edith Emily Dornwell. It was the first Australian university to establish a Conservatorium of Music, a Chair of Music, and a Doctor of Music, and the first to grant that degree to a woman (Ruby Davy in 1918). Adelaide graduated Australia's first woman surgeon (Laura Margaret Fowler), the first woman elected to a university Council in Australia (Helen Mayo), and the first Australian woman to be a Queen's Counsel, South Australian Supreme Court Judge, Deputy Chancellor and then Chancellor of an Australian university, and Governor of an Australian State — the redoubtable Dame Roma Mitchell.

A reputation for excellence

The University of Adelaide was quick to establish a reputation for excellence in education and research. Teachers and graduates soon made an impact that was felt not only in South Australia but also in national and international arenas.

An early Professor of Mathematics and Physics was Sir William Bragg, who went on to win the Nobel Prize in 1915 for his work on X-ray crystallography. He shared the honour with his son, Sir Lawrence, a graduate of the University.

Another graduate honoured with a Nobel Prize (1945) was Lord Howard Florey, who pioneered the application and manufacture of penicillin.

The early Antarctic explorer, Sir Douglas Mawson, had a 50-year association with the University, including 31 years as Professor of Geology and Mineralogy.

In more recent times, mechanical engineering graduate Dr Andy Thomas was Payload Commander aboard the space shuttle Endeavour on its 10-day mission in 1996. He was also chosen by NASA for the Shuttle-Mir research project, and is now Deputy Chief of the Astronaut Office.

Today, the University's Creative Writing students have the opportunity to benefit from the advice of Nobel Laureate for Literature 2003, JM Coetzee, who in 2002 accepted appointment as an Honorary Visiting Research Fellow within the University.

The Nobel Prize in Medicine 2005 was awarded to Dr J. Robin Warren, who graduated MB BS from the University of Adelaide in 1961. He shares the prize with Barry Marshall "for their discovery of the bacterium Helicobacter pylori and its role in gastritis and peptic ulcer disease," and becomes the fifth person directly associated with the University of Adelaide to win a Nobel Prize.

An international institution

The University of Adelaide has built a rich tradition of excellence to become a leader in Australian higher education and research. Since its foundation, it has produced 101 Rhodes Scholars, and the University is now known internationally for the quality of its programs and its high-calibre graduates, whose skills go beyond the workplace to make an impact on the world.

The University of Adelaide extends across four campuses and accommodates more than 20,400 students, including approximately 4,700 international students from 90 countries. The 1250 high-quality teaching and research staff come from all parts of the globe.

The academic enterprise, by its nature, is not limited by national boundaries, and the University works to ensure that the many informal linkages that exist between its academic staff and their colleagues worldwide are complemented by a series of formal relationships with other universities, as well as non-university institutions, government bodies, NGOs and industry groups, to benefit both its research programs, and the learning and teaching experience of its students.

At the time of writing, the University of Adelaide had in place formal linkages with 138 universities in 25 countries.

Good governance

The University of Adelaide is governed by its Council, which is established by the University of Adelaide Act. The Council's responsibilities are to oversee the management and development of the University, devise or approve strategic plans and major policies, and monitor and review the operation of the University.

Council has 21 members, is chaired by the Chancellor, and is advised by seven standing committees. Other Management Committees advise the Vice-Chancellor and President and senior managers.

The University's Chief Executive Officer is the Vice-Chancellor and President. He is supported by the Deputy Vice-Chancellor & Vice-President (Academic) , Deputy Vice-Chancellor & Vice-President (Research) and Vice-President (Services & Resources).

The University's academic activities are grouped into five Faculties: Engineering, Computer & Mathematical Sciences; Health Sciences; Humanities & Social Sciences; Professions; and Sciences. Each Faculty is headed by an Executive Dean.