University of Technology Sydney

The present-day University of Technology originates from the Sydney Mechanics' School of Arts (the oldest continuously running Mechanics' Institute in Australia), which was established in 1833. In the 1870s, the SMSA formed the Workingman's College which was later taken over by the NSW government to form, in 1882, the Sydney Technical College. In 1969, part of the Sydney Technical College became the New South Wales Institute of Technology (NSWIT). It was officially unveiled by Neville Wran.

It was reconstituted as the University of Technology, Sydney (UTS), in 1988 under the University of Technology, Sydney Act of NSW State Parliament, which was later superseded by the University of Technology, Sydney, Act 1989 (NSW). In 1990, it absorbed the Kuring-gai College of Advanced Education and the Institute of Technical and Adult Teacher Education of the Sydney College of Advanced Education, under the NSW Higher Education (Amalgamation) Act 1989.

Although its antecedent institutions go back as far as 1893, they took new shapes from the 1960s, creating a new University focused on practice-oriented education with strong links to industry, the professions and the community, and with a growing research reputation and a strong commitment to internationalisation.

UTS has had three phases in its history:

• In the first phase, effort was concentrated on embedding an amalgamation of institutions which were structurally and culturally different. This strengthened the research culture and established a more consistent approach to teaching and learning.
• The second phase, beginning in the mid-1990s, saw a strong focus on international student recruitment, combined with an expansion of professional post-graduate programs for domestic students. Greater emphasis on both research and flexible learning also became priorities during this period.
• The third phase began in 2000 with a 10-year strategic vision. This involved concentrating research funding into four major research institutes, upgrading physical infrastructure at the city campus, enhancing teaching and learning, and continuing entrepreneurial activity.