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National | Education

Māori student numbers increasing at Otago Uni

The number of Māori students enrolled at the University of Otago is at an all-time high, after enrolment figures show a 10 percent increase in Māori students in the past year.

Spokesperson Matiu Workman says most Māori students are enrolled in health sciences, studying dentistry and medicine.  Other popular areas of study include physical education and law.

Workman says the reason for the increase could be due to the “awesome support” for Māori students at the university. Or he says it could be because of the new fees-free policy started by the government in January, which is motivating Māori students to study.

As part of the fees-free policy, all New Zealand students who finished school in 2017 qualify for a year of free provider-based tertiary education or industry training.  Adults who have previously studied for less than half full-time year of tertiary education or industry training also qualify.

Māori Development kaiwhakahaere Tuari Potiki says the university is proud of another increase in Māori numbers.

“Our students are the most successful tauira Māori in the country, and word is getting out that Otago is the go-to for Māori students,” says Potiki.

Māori students have already achieved population parity for admissions into medicine, the university’s most competitive undergraduate programme.

However, Vice Chancellor Harlene Hayne says the goal of overall population parity is their next target.

“A milestone is only a marker point on a journey, not the end of a journey. We have some more ground to cover yet,” he says.