University of Yangon
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| Yangon University | |
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| ရန်ကုန် တက္ကသိုလ် Yangon Tekkatho IPA: [jàngòʊn tɛʔga̰ɵò] |
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| Motto: | With Truth and Loyalty |
| Established: | 1878 |
| Type: | Public |
| Rector: | Dr. Tin Tun |
| Faculty: | 1023 |
| Undergraduates: | 13,500 |
| Postgraduates: | 1,000 |
| Location: | Kamayut 11041, Yangon, Yangon Division, Myanmar |
| Campus: | Urban |
| Affiliations: | ASEAN University Network (AUN), ASAIHL |
Yangon University (also the University of Yangon; Burmese: ရန်ကုန် တက္ကသိုလ်), located in Kamayut, Yangon, is the oldest and most well-known university in Myanmar. The university offers mainly offers graduate degree (master's, post-graduate diploma and doctorate) programs in liberal arts, sciences and law. Full-time bachelor's degree programs have not been offered at the university's main campus since the student protests of 1996.
Yangon University is the progenitor of most major universities in the country. Until 1958 when Mandalay University became an independent university, all institutions of higher education in Myanmar were under Yangon University. After the University Education Act of 1964, all professional colleges and institutes of the university such as the Institute of Medicine 1, Rangoon Institute of Technology and Yangon Institute of Economics all became independent universities, leaving the university with liberal arts, sciences and law.
From the beginning, Yangon University has been at the center of civil discontent throughout its history. All three nationwide strikes against the British (1920, 1936 and 1938) began at then Rangoon University. Anti-colonial movement's leaders like Aung San, U Nu, Ne Win and U Thant were all alumni of the university. The tradition of student protest at the university continued in the post-colonial era--in 1962, 1974, 1988 and most recently in 1996.
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[edit] History
Established in 1878 as an affiliated college of the University of Calcutta, Rangoon College was operated and managed by the Education Syndicate set up by the British colonial administration.[1] The college was renamed Government College in 1904, and University College in 1920. Rangoon University was founded in 1920, when University College (secular) and Judson College (Baptist-affiliated) were merged. The American Baptist Mission decided to recognize Judson College (formerly Baptist College) as a separate institution within Rangoon University.[1] Rangoon University modeled itself after University of Cambridge and University of Oxford.[2] All subsequent institutions of higher learning founded by the British were placed under Rangoon University's administration: Mandalay College in Mandalay in 1925, Teachers Training College and Medical College in Yangon in 1930, and Agriculture College in Mandalay in 1938.[3]
Although it was attended only by the elites of the day, the university nonetheless was at the center of anti-colonial movement. All three nationwide strikes against the British colonial government (1920, 1936 and 1938) began at the university. By the 1930s, the university was the hotbed of Burmese nationalism, producing who-is-who of future Burmese politics like Aung San, U Nu, Ba Maw, Ne Win, Ba Swe, U Thant and Thein Pe Myint.
Throughout the 1940s and 1950s, Rangoon University was the most prestigious university in Southeast Asia and one of the top universities in Asia, attracting students from across the region.[4][2]
After the military coup of 1962 under Gen. Ne Win and the Burmese Way to Socialism, Rangoon University was put directly under the control of the Directorate of Higher Education, a central government agency, whereas previously it was run by a council of professors, scholars and government officials.[2] In addition, the medium of instruction was changed to Burmese, a radical departure from English, which had been the University's medium of instruction since its founding. Educational standards began to decline markedly and international bodies stopped recognizing degrees issued or obtained at the University.[2] The university was also renamed the Rangoon Arts and Sciences University (Burmese: ရန်ကုန် ဝိဇ္ဇာ သိပ္ပံ တက္ကသိုလ်; abbreviated RASU), after certain departments and faculties (medicine, economics, education, etc.) were separated from the University in 1964.
In 1989, after the military junta had changed place names throughout Myanmar, the University was renamed Yangon University. The University was closed for most of the 1990s, because of fears of a repeat of the 8888 Uprising, in order to prevent student activists from assembling. To this day, the university is shut down at irregular intervals by the government. To prevent students from congregating, the government has dispersed the existing institutions and departments that make up Yangon University into separate learning institutions scattered throughout the city. Today, only graduate studies, certain professional courses, and a few diploma courses are conducted at the University's main campus. Newer universities such as Dagon University, University of East Yangon and University of West Yangon are designated for undergraduates.
Yangon University celebrated its Diamond Jubilee in a week-long celebration, which began on 1 December 1995. The Jubilee marked the school's formal establishment of 75 years. For its commemoration, the government built the Diamond Jubilee Hall, a four-storied building in the University's grounds, which cost K 630,000,000, and a new set of postage stamps was also produced. [5]. Once-affiliated institutes and departments (e.g., the Institute of Economics, Yangon which began life as a department at Yangon University), which had already separated, also celebrated.
[edit] Historical events
Rangoon University students staged a peaceful demonstration and protest on campus against 'unjust university rules' on 7 July 1962. Ne Win sent his troops to disperse the students which led to dozens of students being shot dead and the historic Rangoon University Student Union (RUSU) building dynamited to rubble the next morning.
In November 1974 the former UN Secretary General U Thant died, and on the day of his funeral on 5 December 1974, Rangoon University students snatched his coffin on display at the Kyaikkasan Race Course, and erected a makeshift mausoleum on the grounds of the RUSU in protest against the government for not honouring their famous countryman with a state funeral. The military stormed the campus on 11 December killing some of the students, recovered the coffin, and buried U Thant at the foot of the Shwedagon Pagoda.
[edit] Campus
Yangon University is located in Yangon, along the southwestern bank of Inya Lake, the largest lake in the city. It is on the corner of Pyay Road and University Avenue Road in Kamayut Township, north of downtown Yangon. The modern campus of Yangon University completed construction in 1920. There are two campuses, namely Main Campus and Hlaing Campus, the former being the most well-known. Judson Church, inside the main campus of the University, is a Baptist church, and like Judson College, named after Adoniram Judson, a 19th century American missionary who compiled the first Burmese-English dictionary. The main campus also contains a convocation hall.
[edit] Departments
- Department of Mathematics
- Department of Physics
- Department of Chemistry
- Department of Industrial Chemistry
- Department of Zoology
- Department of Botany
- Department of Law
- Department of English
- Department of Burmese
- Department of History
- Department of International Relations
- Department of Geology
- Department of Oriental Studies
- Department of Information Technology
- Department of Geography
[edit] Accommodation
[edit] Main campus
University accommodation in Burma is not mixed and the availability is limited. Women's halls have limited rules while men's have none.
- Bago Hall
- Bagan Hall (women's)
- Dagon Hall
- Innwa (Ava) Hall
- Inya Hall (women's)
- Marla Hall (women's)
- Nawaday Hall
- Pinya Hall
- Pyay Hall (women's)
- Sagaing Hall
- Shwebo Hall
- Taungoo Hall
- Tagaung Hall (women's)
- Thahton Hall
- Thiri Hall (women's)
- Yadana Hall (women's)
[edit] Other important buildings
- Arts Building
- Convocation Hall
- Recreation Centre
- Science Building
- University Dhamma Hall
- University Sanatorium
- University Diamond Jubilee Hall
[edit] Programs
Yangon University offers undergraduate and postgraduate degree programs. The undergraduate programs are subdivided into three categories: Arts (B.A.), Sciences (B.Sc.), and Law. The choice of different fields of learning takes place in upper secondary school where students choose particular subjects directed towards their tertiary education. Postgraduate degrees are separated into three groups: Doctorates, Master's, and diplomas. Since the uprising of 1996, YU no longer offers any full-time undergraduate programs. In addition, the authorities no longer allow undergraduate students on campus.
| Program | Bachelor's | Master's | Doctorate |
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| Burmese | MA | PhD | |
| English | MA | ||
| Geography | MA | PhD | |
| History | MA | PhD | |
| Philosophy | MA | PhD | |
| Psychology | MA | PhD | |
| Law | LLB | ||
| Botany | MSc | PhD | |
| Chemistry | MSc | PhD | |
| Mathematics | MSc | PhD | |
| Physics | MSc | PhD | |
| Zoology | MSc | PhD |
[edit] Notable alumni
- Aung San: National independence hero, revolutionary and founder of the modern Burmese military
- Ba Gale: Cartoonist
- Ba Maw: Prime Minister of Burma from 1937–1939 and 1943-1945 (period under Japanese Occupation)
- Ba Swe: Prime Minister of Burma 1956-1957
- Hso Khan Pha: His Royal Highness Prince of Yawnghwe, FIASR. He is son of Sao Shwe Thaik Saopha (Ruler) of Yawnghwe.
- Khin Myo Chit: Writer and journalist
- Khin Nyunt: Prime Minister of Burma from 2003–2004 (did not complete B.Sc. degree)
- Kyi Maung: Former army commander and leader of the National League for Democracy
- Ludu Daw Amar: One of the leaders of the Rangoon University students strike of 1936, writer and journalist
- Dr Maung Maung: President of Burma Aug-Sep 1988, former journalist and lawyer
- Sir Maung Khin: Chief High Court Judge
- Min Thu Wun: Mon-Burmese scholar and poet
- Nai Shwe Kyin: Mon civil rights leader and revolutionary
- Ne Win: Dictator of Burma from 1962–1988 (did not complete pre-med. degree)
- U Nu: Prime Minister of Burma from 1948–1956
- U Razak: Minister of Education assassinated along with Aung San in July 1947
- Dr Than Tun: Historian
- U Thant: UN Secretary-General from 1961–1971
- Thein Pe Myint: Writer, journalist and politician
[edit] References
- ^ a b James, Helen (2005). Governance And Civil Society In Myanmar: Education, Health, and Environment. Routledge. ISBN 0-4153-5558-3.
- ^ a b c d Khin Maung Kyi (2000). Economic Development of Burma: a Vision and a Strategy. SUP. p. 150. ISBN 9-1888-3616-9.
- ^ Ko Yin Aung (1999-12-23). "Prospects of education in Myanmar". The New Light of Myanmar. http://www.burmalibrary.org/reg.burma/archives/199912/msg00769.html.
- ^ Rothenberg, Daniel (Fall 2002). "Towards a New Modern Developed Nation". The Journal of the International Institute. http://www.umich.edu/~iinet/journal/vol10no1/rothenberg.htm. Retrieved on 22 May 2006.
- ^ "Myanmar Philately". Tharaphi. http://tharaphi.webs.com/mm052.html.
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Coordinates: 16°49′47.95″N 96°8′7.61″E / 16.8299861°N 96.1354472°E
