Memorial University of Newfoundland - History

History

Memorial University of Newfoundland is a non-denominational university in St John's, Newfoundland. Memorial University began as Memorial University College (MUC), which opened in September 1925 at a campus on Parade Street in St. John's.

The first president was J. L. Paton. It offered the first two years of university studies. MUC's initial enrollment was 57 students, rising to a peak of over 400 in the 1940s. In 1933 it merged with the adjacent Normal School and took responsibility for teacher training. During the College's early years it received considerable support from the Carnegie Corporation of New York.

The college was established as a memorial to the Newfoundlanders who had lost their lives on active service during the First World War. It was later rededicated to also encompass the province's war dead of the Second World War. Alan Beddoe designed the coats of arms for the Memorial University of Newfoundland. The post-Confederation government elevated the status of Memorial University College to full university status in August 1949, renaming the institution to Memorial University of Newfoundland. Memorial University was established by the Memorial University Act.

The enrollment in MUN's first year was 307 students. In 1961, enrollment having increased to 1400, MUN moved from Parade Street to its present location on Elizabeth Avenue (Main Campus).

On 8 March 1965, the government of Newfoundland announced free tuition for first year students enrolled at Memorial University in St. John's. The Faculty of Medicine of Memorial University of Newfoundland was established in 1967, and the first students were admitted in 1969. It admits approximately 60 students into the M.D. program each year, and also offers M.Sc. and Ph.D. programs.

MUN maintains a campus in Harlow, England which opened to students in 1969. This campus has been a popular location for internships in Education, and now offers credit courses, work terms, and internships in a number of areas. The campus accommodates approximately 50 students.

Memorial established the Institut Frecker in St. Pierre in 1973, to offer one-semester French immersion programs. It was housed in a building provided by the archdiocese of St. Pierre until 2000. Now known as the Programme Frecker, it is currently run from the FrancoForum, a language teaching facility owned by the government of St. Pierre. The program is partly supported by the governments of Canada and Newfoundland and Labrador.

In September 1975 a campus was opened in Corner Brook; it was first renamed Sir Wilfred Grenfell College in 1979 and renamed again in 2010 as Grenfell Campus, Memorial University of Newfoundland. Currently 1300 students attend Grenfell, which offers full degree programs in several disciplines, including Fine Arts, and partial programs, which can be completed at the main campus, in many other subjects.

In 1977, the Memorial University of Newfoundland Educational Television Centre implemented the Telemedicine project.

In 1992, the Institute of Fisheries and Marine Technology in St. John's became affiliated with MUN as the Fisheries and Marine Institute of Memorial University of Newfoundland. Today it is named the Marine Institute of Memorial University of Newfoundland. It offers both degree and non-degree programs.