University College Colombo
Regina Walauwa, later renamed College House
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| Type | Public |
|---|---|
| Active | 24 January 1921–1 July 1942 |
| Location |
Colombo, Western Province, Ceylon 06°53′59.90″N 79°51′31.80″E / 6.8999722°N 79.8588333°ECoordinates: 06°53′59.90″N 79°51′31.80″E / 6.8999722°N 79.8588333°E |
| Campus | Urban campus |
| Affiliations | University of London |
Ceylon University College was a public university college in Ceylon. Established in 1921, it was Ceylon's first attempt at university education. The college didn't award degrees under its own name but prepared students to sit the University of London's external examination. The college was based in Colombo. The college was merged with Ceylon Medical College in 1942 to form the University of Ceylon. The college was also known as University College, Ceylon; University College, Colombo; and Colombo University College. Its buildings and grounds are now occupied by the University of Colombo which is considered its successor.
In the nineteenth century the only institutions to offer higher education in Ceylon were the Ceylon Medical College, Ceylon Law College and a small number of schools which offered undergraduate courses followed by external examinations for Indian or British universities. The country's elite would send their children to be educated at British universities. Demand started growing for the establishment of a university in Ceylon. The Ceylon University Association was formed in 1906 by a group of the country's elite including Ponnambalam Arunachalam, James Peiris and Marcus Fernando. In June 1911 Governor Henry McCallum appointed a ten-member sub-committee of the Legislative Council of Ceylon to look into education in Ceylon. The Macleod Committee finished its work in 1912 and amongst its recommendations were that a university college be established to centralise the country's fragmented higher education system. McCallum accepted the committee's recommendations and submitted the proposals to the Secretary of State for the Colonies and the Board of Education. The proposals were sent back with questions which were in turn answered by Robert Chalmers, McCallum's successor. The college would be called Ceylon University College and would be based in the buildings of Royal College, Colombo. It would be affiliated to an English university, preferably the University of Oxford, and would offer general higher education including courses in arts and sciences for trainee teachers and preliminary courses in chemistry, physics and biology for medical students. The college was to be residential and hostels would be provided by the government. The college was to be open to women. The college would in due course be converted into a degree-granting university. The proposals were accepted by the Secretary of State.World War I and the resulting increases in prices put a halt to the project.
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