Archive
Student Arrested in Campus Palestine Protest
Posted 11:46am Thursday 10th October 2024 by Nina Brown
The University of Otago’s stance of “institutional neutrality” on Israel’s actions in Palestine has continued to be fiercely criticised by its staff and students. On Wednesday, October 9th, the Otago Students for Justice in Palestine (OSJP) held a peaceful campus protest that Read more...
Yes, Someone Did Take Their Cat to Central
Posted 7:09pm Sunday 6th October 2024 by Gryffin Blockley
Three million views and 700,000 likes later, Serafina the cat has achieved stardom after rocking up to Central Library (if only it were that easy). A TikTok of the cat hiding in a handbag in Central Library was posted online, and has blown up with numbers Dunedin’s microinfluencer community Read more...
‘What I Was Wearing’ Exhibit Shatters Stigma & Empowers Survivors
Posted 8:11am Sunday 6th October 2024 by Jodie Evans
Student-led sexual harm prevention society, Thursdays in Black, broke down some damaging stereotypes in their powerful ‘What I Was Wearing’ exhibit on Thursday, September 26th. From 10am to 5pm in Union Hall, visitors were invited to read the stories of survivors of sexual harm, Read more...
Selwyn Gastro “Miraculously” Cured 72 Hours Before Ball
Posted 8:07am Sunday 6th October 2024 by Hugh Askerud
Selwyn College has found itself on the other side of a gastro epidemic after approximately 10-40 students contracted the virus over a two week period. The gastro outbreak got so bad that, according to residents, “you would hear people in the bathroom just chunnying their guts Read more...
Critic Trawls Through Exec’s Third Quarter Reports
Posted 8:05am Sunday 6th October 2024 by Hugh Askerud
Think the OUSA Exec is boring? By the time you read their quarterly reports you’ll probably be thinking, “Yep, it is.” Thankfully, you don’t have to! Instead, read these summaries for all you need to know about the great political machine that keeps the uni experience ticking Read more...
Landlords Sign Flats Under Current Tenants’ Noses
Posted 7:56am Sunday 6th October 2024 by Monica Holopainen
As flat-hunting season draws to a close, multiple reports have emerged of landlords signing their flats to new groups of students without the consent of current tenants. Continuing a sad trend of illegality, the repeated events have forced students who relied on keeping their flats for the new year Read more...
Golf Breathas Raise $5k for Men’s Mental Health
Posted 7:45am Sunday 6th October 2024 by Staff Writer
Six breathas have done some good in the world, raising $5,200 for charity by playing golf. The boys played 72 holes in one day (four full rounds of golf) for ‘Lads Without Labels’, a not-for-profit charity group aimed at improving the state of men’s mental health in New Zealand. Read more...
OUSA Exec Election Results Are In
Posted 7:43am Sunday 6th October 2024 by Hugh Askerud
Democracy has triumphed after a gruelling OUSA Exec election period which saw many candidates lose and many candidates win. Voting closed at 4pm last Thursday. To the usual crowd of current OUSA Exec, nominees, and a handful of Critic staff, returning officer Abby Bowman read out the results – Read more...
Initiative Encourages Students to Look on the Brightside
Posted 7:37am Sunday 6th October 2024 by Madeline O’Leary
An Otago-based research initiative called Brightside Aotearoa is looking to improve access to mental health resources for uni students across the motu. With the research confirming that, yes, Gen Z is pretty glum, they’re hoping to turn that frown upside down. Headed by Dr Charlene Rapsey, Read more...
Ōtepoti Cannabis Party “Shut Down” by Police
Posted 7:28am Sunday 6th October 2024 by Hanna Varrs
Eye witnesses have claimed that the Ōtepoti Cannabis Party were strong-armed into leaving the Link on Wednesday, September 25th, after conversations with the police. The Ōtepoti Cannabis Party had invited students with a flyer promising to “elevate [their] voting” and Read more...
Town & Gown Unite in Fight for Dunedin Hospital
Posted 11:10am Saturday 5th October 2024 by Hugh Askerud
35,000 Dunedinites marched from the Dental School to the Octagon on Saturday, September 28th in a protest to end all protests. The DCC campaign ‘They Save, We Pay’ promised to be a “rally cry” against critical cuts to the new Dunedin Hospital. The protest came just a Read more...
Te Rito Nominations Are Open
Posted 5:10pm Saturday 28th September 2024 by Nina Brown
The annual Te Rōpū Māori elections have just opened up for tauira to fill the positions of Te Rito for 2025. Te Rōpū Māori is the Māori Students' Association at Ōtākou Whakaihu Waka. Similarly to OUSA, the association is governed by the student Read more...
Student Volunteer Army Rounds Off Stellar Year
Posted 5:07pm Saturday 28th September 2024 by Gryffin Blockley
A couple weeks ago marked the last event for the Student Volunteer Army’s (SVA) Otago University branch. Now in its fourth year, the Canterbury Uni-born initiative has taken off quicker than your Christchurch mates can ask each other what school they went to. A 50-strong cohort of students Read more...
‘The Rock’ Rocks Campus
Posted 5:03pm Saturday 28th September 2024 by Adam Stitely
Why the hell is there a life-sized cardboard cutout of ‘The Rock’ in Central Library? Donning our Sherlock Holmes hats (apparently they’re called deerstalkers), Critic Te Ārohi investigated. The cardboard cutout of everyone’s favourite ‘cousin’ and Read more...
Veteran Liaison Officer Bids Otago Farewell
Posted 5:01pm Saturday 28th September 2024 by Molly Smith-Soppet
After thirteen years of welcoming students through the gates of Otago University, student liaison officer Prajesh Chhanabhai is leaving campus (sobs). Critic Te Ārohi linked up with Prajesh via Zoom to reminisce about his time at Otago and find out what the future holds for the man who has Read more...
OSJP Interrupt Grant’s Peace Speech
Posted 4:57pm Saturday 28th September 2024 by Monica Holopainen
New Vice Chancellor Grant Robertson had his patience tested during his ‘Making Peace with Our Past and Our Future’ lecture on September 19th. The speech, given to a half-full Castle 1 Lecture Theatre, was continuously interrupted by the Otago Students for Justice in Palestine (OSJP), Read more...
Finance & Strategy Officer Falls for $1k Scam
Posted 4:54pm Saturday 28th September 2024 by Hugh Askerud
Daniel Leamy, the OUSA Finance and Strategy Officer, has given away $1,000 worth of iTunes vouchers after falling for a scam designed by president77091@gmail.com. In a series of emails constructed on a dusty Friday morning, Daniel sent hundreds of dollars of his own money to someone Read more...
Hockey Dominates OUSA Blues and Golds Awards
Posted 4:50pm Saturday 28th September 2024 by Hugh Askerud
The annual Blues and Golds Awards were held at the Business School last Wednesday, September 25th. The event, jointly hosted by Otago Uni and OUSA, has been going since 1908 and celebrates sporting and cultural successes at the Uni. Grant Robertson spoke and presented nine awards, five Silver Read more...
Bin Wars Strike Studentville
Posted 4:46pm Saturday 28th September 2024 by Staff Writer
Bins are going walkabouts in North D. Turf wars have broken out over bins following the new Dunedin City Council (DCC) bins being thrown into the rotation. What goes around comes around, and it seems that as bins disappear from back porches, it’s triggered a domino-effect of Read more...
“Rallying Cry” March for New Hospital
Posted 10:19am Wednesday 25th September 2024 by Hanna Varrs
A protest march against clinical cuts to the new Dunedin Hospital will be held this Saturday, October 28th, from the Dental School at 12pm. The march is spearheaded by the Dunedin City Council (DCC) who are calling it “one of the largest public protest movements in recent Read more...


