University of Wales

The University of Wales is a federal University founded in 1893. It was composed of colleges until 1996, when the University was reorganised with a two-tier structure of member institutions in order to absorb the Cardiff Institute of Higher Education (now UWIC) and the Gwent College of Higher Education (now UWCN). The existing colleges became constituent institutions and the two new member institutions became university colleges. In 2003, both the colleges became full constituent institutions.

Table of contents

1 Constituent Institutions
2 Associated Institutions
3 See Also
4 External Links

Constituent Institutions

The current constituent institutions are:

University of Wales Aberystwyth
University of Wales Bangor
Cardiff University
University of Wales College Newport (UWCN)
University of Wales College of Medicine (UWCM)
University of Wales Institute Cardiff (UWIC)
University of Wales Lampeter
University of Wales Swansea

Cardiff University and the University of Wales College of Medicine are currently in the process of merging, the merged body to be retain the name Cardiff University. A proposed merger between the University of Wales Institute, Cardiff and the University of Glamorgan (the only university in Wales not to be part of the University of Wales) was suspended in September 2003. UWIC has since announced that it is terminating merger discussions (press release).

Associated Institutions

In addition to the constituent institutions, there are also three associated institutions, which are not members of the University but which offer courses leading to University of Wales degrees and are linked with the University. These are:

North East Wales Institute (NEWI)
Swansea Institute of Higher Education (SIHE)
Trinity College, Carmarthen

These three institutions, along with the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama (which offers degree courses validated by the University) were invited in 2002 to join the University as university colleges. This invitation has been accepted in principle and the institutions are expected to join the University some time in the future.