The University of Otago, Christchurch is one of seven component schools that make up the

University of Otago The University of Otago () is a public university, public research university, research collegiate university based in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand. Founded in 1869, Otago is New Zealand's oldest university and one of the oldest universities in ...

Division of Health Sciences. The University of Otago, Christchurch is based primarily at

Christchurch Hospital Christchurch Hospital is the largest tertiary hospital in the South Island of New Zealand. The public hospital is in the centre of Christchurch city, on the edge of Hagley Park, and serves the wider Canterbury region. The Canterbury District ...

, in

Christchurch Central City Christchurch Central City or Christchurch City Centre is the geographical centre and the heart of Christchurch, New Zealand. It is defined as the area within the Four Avenues (Bealey Avenue, Fitzgerald Avenue, Moorhouse Avenue and Deans Aven ...

, and works in partnership with the Canterbury

District Health Board District health boards (DHBs) in New Zealand were organisations established by the New Zealand Public Health and Disability Act 2000 under the Fifth Labour Government of New Zealand, Fifth Labour Government, responsible for ensuring the provisio ...

. It has over 1,000 medical and postgraduate students on campus. All University of Otago medical students who gain entry after the competitive Health Sciences First Year programme, or who gain entry via alternative admissions pathways, spend their second and third years studying at Otago Medical School in

Dunedin Dunedin ( ; ) is the second-most populous city in the South Island of New Zealand (after Christchurch), and the principal city of the Otago region. Its name comes from ("fort of Edin"), the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of S ...

. In their fourth, fifth, and sixth years, medical students can either continue to study in Dunedin, or at the Christchurch or

Wellington Wellington is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the third-largest city in New Zealand (second largest in the North Island ...

campuses.

History

Starting in 1924, students could complete their last year of training at hospitals in either

Auckland Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...

, Christchurch, or

as well as Dunedin. In 1938, branch faculties were established in Christchurch, Auckland, and Wellington. The Christchurch branch faculty became a clinical medical school in 1973, the forerunner to the University of Otago, Christchurch. The inaugural dean was

George Rolleston George Rolleston (30 July 1829 – 16 June 1881) was an English physician and zoologist. He was the first Linacre Professor of Anatomy and Physiology to be appointed at the University of Oxford, a post he held from 1860 until his death in 1881. ...

. Professor David Murdoch was Dean of the University of Otago, Christchurch from 2016 to 2021, when he was appointed Vice-Chancellor of the University of Otago. Professor Suzanne Pitama, the first Māori female Dean of any University of Otago medical campus, was appointed Dean in 2021. In 2022, construction started on a new campus on Oxford Terrace/Tuam Street in the city centre. It is expected to be a medical school and construction is scheduled to be complete in April 2026. It is a six-storey building that will hold four floors of clinical research facilities, laboratories and teaching facilities. In 2024, the new campus (under construction) was named "Wai-Ora" in recognition of

Ngāi Tahu Ngāi Tahu, or Kāi Tahu, is the principal Māori people, Māori (tribe) of the South Island. Its (tribal area) is the largest in New Zealand, and extends from the White Bluffs / Te Parinui o Whiti (southeast of Blenheim, New Zealand, Blenhe ...

and the water of the nearby

Avon River / Ōtākaro The Avon River / Ōtākaro ( ; ), sometimes rendered as the River Avon, flows through the centre of the city of Christchurch, New Zealand, and into the Pacific Ocean via the Avon Heathcote Estuary / Ihutai, which it shares with the Ōpāwaho / H ...

References

External links

University of Otago Division of Health Sciences

University of Otago Medical School

University of Otago, Christchurch
, University of Otago, Christchurch University of Otago {{NewZealand-university-stub