About | University of Guyana

All About

Turkeyen Campus

The University of Guyana (UG) was established on October 1, 1963 following assent being given to the University of Guyana Ordinance on April 18, 1963, by Governor, Sir Ralph Grey.

When it opened its doors on October 2, 1963, UG functioned as an evening institution with only 164 students enrolled for classes in three Faculties – Arts, Natural Sciences and Social Sciences. Classes were held between 17:30 h and 21:30 h at the Government Technical Institute and Queen‟s College where laboratory facilities could be shared.

Turkeyen Campus

The University of Guyana is Guyana’s sole national higher education institution. It was established in April 1963 with the following Mission: “To discover, generate, disseminate, and apply knowledge of the highest standard for the service of the community, the nation, and of all mankind within an atmosphere of academic freedom that allows for free and critical enquiry.” It began its operations on October 1 of the same year at Queens College compound, the nation’s premier secondary school, before moving to the Turkeyen Campus in 1970.

At first, programmes were confined to the Arts, Natural Sciences, and Social Sciences. A Faculty of Education was created in 1967, and this was followed by the Faculty of Technology in 1969 (now Faculty of Engineering and Technology), the Faculty of Agriculture (1977) and Health Sciences (1981), the latter as an outgrowth of Natural Sciences. The Institute for Adult and Continuing Education began as an extra-mural arm, in 1976. In 1996 the Institute was renamed the Institute of Distance and Continuing Education (IDCE).

A Forestry Unit was established in 1987 and it subsequently became part of the Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry, and in 2003 the Faculties of Arts and Education merged to become the School of Education and Humanities (now Faculty of Education and Humanities). Additionally, the turn of the Millennium saw the formation of the School of Earth and Environmental Sciences (SEES), born of the merger of the Geography Department and the Environmental Studies Unit. Also created were the Biodiversity Centre, which is pertinent to the activities pursued by SEES and the Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry, and a Centre for Information Technology (CIT), which serves the entire university. The University of Guyana expanded in 2000 with the addition of the Berbice Campus at Tain, Corentyne. In October 2016, as part of a broader reorganisation, SEES was transformed into the Faculty of Earth and Environmental Sciences (FEES). And in 2017 the School of Entrepreneurship and Business Innovation was created.

The University offers certificate, diploma, associate degree, undergraduate degree, graduate (post-graduate) degree, and professional degree programmes. These programmes are delivered through seven Faculties and one School, each of which is headed by a Dean: Agriculture and Forestry; Earth and Environmental Studies; Education and Humanities; Engineering and Technology, Entrepreneurship and Business Innovation, Health Sciences, Natural Sciences; and Social Sciences.

More than 116 under-graduate and post-graduate programmes are available, including Computer Science, Engineering, Entrepreneurship, Environmental Studies, Forestry, Urban Planning and Management, Tourism Studies, Education, Creative Arts, Economics, Law, Medicine, Optometry, Supply Chain Management and Nursing.

Extra-mural classes are available at four locations through the Institute of Distance and Continuing Education (IDCE) - in the city of Georgetown Region #4, and the towns of Anna Regina, Essequibo, Region #2; Linden, Upper Demerara, Region #10; and New Amsterdam, Berbice, Region # 6. Several online programmes are also available.

The UG also offers the opportunity for student engagement in debating, sports, and cultural, religious and professional activities.

The institution had a 2017 enrolment of some 8,000 students, and it has graduated more than 20,000 students, who have gone on to successful careers locally, regionally and internationally in all professional fields of endeavour. The University is a major contributor to the public and private sectors and to the national economy.

Tain Campus

One of the university’s most significant undertakings was the formation of the Berbice campus. This relatively new campus, which became operational in 2000, was established with the intention of making university education more accessible to Berbicans, who previously endured the inconvenience of traveling to the Turkeyen Campus to pursue university studies.

In its early stages, the University of Guyana Berbice Campus (UGBC) offered two-year undergraduate Certificate programs in Education (various options) and Diploma programs in Accountancy, English, History, Marketing, Public Management, and Social Work. Degree programs were subsequently offered: the Degree in Agriculture and the Associate Degree in General Science (various options) were offered in the 2001-2002 academic year, and Degrees in Public management and Education as well as the Post-Graduate Diploma in Education were offered in the 2002-2003 academic year. Recently, in the academic year 2012-2013 the Bachelor's Degree in Social Work was offered and in 2013-2014 the Bachelor's Degree in Biology. The first graduation ceremony was held in November 2002 with a batch of ninety-three students.

In terms of faculties and educational resources, the Berbice campus has shown significant developments. The Computer Laboratory and the UGBC library, constructed in 2000, have both undergone structural expansion to accommodate more resources (computers and books) for the growing number of students. The teaching block, erected in April 2002 and comprising fourteen classrooms was also designed to facilitate the increasing student population. Another noteworthy addition to the Berbice campus was the Johns Science Centre, opened in 2006 and located at the Johnsville Site.

In keeping with the spirit of development, lecturers have been instrumental in forming clubs that would promote students’ participation in extra-curricular activities.

These clubs include the Sports Club, the Environmental Club, and the UGBC Cultural Club. A hard court was completed in October 2008 to facilitate students’ involvement in sports.

The University of Guyana – Berbice Campus has played an elemental role in qualifying both Guyanese and foreign students, and with the assistance from the Turkeyen Campus, government and private organizations, alumni groups, and the Guyanese community, UGBC will continue to fulfill its obligation to produce intellectually competent men and women who will be of service to “the community, the nation, and all mankind.”