Archive

New Details on Uni Security Lapse

Posted 5:00pm Wednesday 12th October 2022 by Fox Meyer

Last Wednesday, a student tipped us off to the fact that a trove of private University files were accessible online because a security “door” had been left open. This door has since been closed, and we can share more details about exactly what went down.   In June, the Read more...

International Students Brag About Snow

Posted 6:29pm Sunday 9th October 2022 by The Critical Tribune

During last week’s snowfall, international students (mostly American) took to the streets to remind everyone how good they were at dealing with snow. “Kiwis here really can’t handle snow”, said one American, kitted out in jeans and jandals for a brisk walk down snowy George. Read more...

Local Man Warns of Rampant Scam

Posted 6:28pm Sunday 9th October 2022 by The Critical Tribune

Dave, local pisshead and student, contacted the news to report a scam. “Hey bro, I just realized the other day that I’m actually being scammed, and I need to tell other people about it”, he warned. It was very serious. “So, turns out, I’m being scammed by my Read more...

Stop Your Crying, It’s a Sign of the (Local Election) Times

Posted 6:27pm Sunday 9th October 2022 by Jamiema Lorimer

Many signs showed that local elections were in full swing over the last three weeks – including plenty outside student flats. What encourages people to turn their front yards into a massive election advertising space? Critic Te Ārohi talked to some of these flats to find out.  One Read more...

Cutlers Allegedly “Pressures” Tenants

Posted 6:26pm Sunday 9th October 2022 by Denzel Chung

A student has accused Cutlers Property Management of using “pressure tactics” to force them to re-sign their flat as early as June. This included advertising their flat for rent before they’d decided what they wanted to do next year, and preparing to hold flat viewings without Read more...

Lecturer Brings Protests, Podcasts into Classroom

Posted 6:24pm Sunday 9th October 2022 by Nina Brown

Computer science students in COSC203 have voiced concerns (and confusion) over a recent ethics lecture and assignment by lecturer Iain Hewson. Despite ostensibly being a web, databases, and networks paper, students Critic Te Ārohi spoke to claimed that neither the lecture nor the assignment Read more...

“Big Yikes”: Heaps of Uni Data Unprotected

Posted 5:03pm Thursday 6th October 2022 by Denzel Chung

Using an alarmingly simple exploit, pretty much anyone with an Otago email could access a trove of official University data until late on Wednesday night, October 5th. This included personal contact information, transcripts, academic misconduct warnings and even Otago Uni invoices - but it Read more...

$50k of Library Fines Charged in 2021, but Very Little Paid

Posted 2:39pm Sunday 2nd October 2022 by Denzel Chung

Otago Uni charged almost $50,000 in library fines over 2021. Despite this, only a tiny fraction of this amount was actually paid.  According to a publicly available Official Information Act request on FYI.org.nz, the Uni issued $49,941.42 worth of fines for late, overdue and damaged books in Read more...

Unipol Step Fit Legend Retires to Save Lives

Posted 2:37pm Sunday 2nd October 2022 by

Three years and 340 classes later, Unipol Step Fit legend Corben Brown has officially retired from his position as a group fitness instructor to take a job at the Dunedin Hospital as a junior doctor. So, fair enough, really. Critic Te Ārohi nabbed the local star for a chat after his last class Read more...

Fire Department Releases Report on Taj Mahal Fire

Posted 2:34pm Sunday 2nd October 2022 by Denzel Chung

Fire and Emergency New Zealand (FENZ)’s investigative report into the Taj Mahal fire was released last week. While the cause was officially unable to be determined, FENZ pointed to electrical devices under the counter as the likely cause of the conflagration.  The 31-page report, Read more...

20% of Drugs Were Not as Advertised

Posted 2:28pm Sunday 2nd October 2022 by Zak Rudin

The annual drug checking report published by KnowYourStuffNZ (KYS) just dropped. Critic Te Ārohi delved into the numbers to uncover the highs and lows of drug testing over the 2021-2022 season. KYS are a “community organisation of volunteers,” operating in partnership with the Read more...

Annual Awards Affair Airs Astounding Achievements

Posted 2:24pm Sunday 2nd October 2022 by Keegan Wells

The annual Blues and Golds awards night was held last Wednesday, with a veritable swag of student achievements (outside of the standard uni grind) being celebrated.  Awards were handed out for community service (Silver Service Awards), sporting achievements (Blue Awards) and arts Read more...

Ski Club “Coup” Nearly Sweeps Exec Elections

Posted 2:20pm Sunday 2nd October 2022 by Denzel Chung

Your student leaders for 2023 have been voted in. Less than 10% of the student population bothered to cast their ballot. Ski Club members, who had heard that many roles were uncontested, stacked the ballot with their club. They took home five positions, and ousted the returning Vice Read more...

Showtime For Capping Show

Posted 2:18pm Sunday 2nd October 2022 by Zak Rudin

Capping Show has hit Otago University for the 128th year running. This year’s theme: Campus Nine-Nine. Critic Te Ārohi sat down with Martha and Nina, two of the directors of the show, to get the lowdown. With well over a century of shenanigans, the Capping Show has certainly been Read more...

Pollinator Workshop at Te Oraka

Posted 1:41pm Saturday 24th September 2022 by Zak Rudin

Last Saturday, Animal Aquatic Plant Ecological Society (AAPES) and Slow Food Youth Otago (SFYO) joined forces to host a pollinator workshop at Te Oraka. The workshop had it all: “pollinator activities, groovy tunes and yummy snacks”. What even are “pollinator activities,” Read more...

(More) Student Food Outlets Closed

Posted 1:39pm Saturday 24th September 2022 by Nina Brown

The already emaciated student food scene has taken another blow with the closure of three more campus food outlets for the rest of the year. In their most recent communications email (the one you stopped reading mid-way through the pandemic), the Uni announced the closure of Hunter Cafe, Frankly Read more...

US Air Force Plane Spotted at Dunedin Airport

Posted 1:37pm Saturday 24th September 2022 by Fox Meyer

An international intelligence group is meeting in Queenstown, and it appears that an American Air Force plane hopped over to Dunedin for Monday night last week. Why would American spies take a break from their busy schedule to visit Dirty Duds? We can only speculate. The Five Eyes are an Read more...

Students “Giving Back” to Rescue Choppers, Blood Donations

Posted 1:36pm Saturday 24th September 2022 by Zak Rudin

Following a gnarly Mt Hutt crash, two Otago Uni students recently partnered with the New Zealand Blood Service (NZ Blood) and the Canterbury Westpac Rescue Helicopter to take blood and money from students. For a good cause, of course.  Last year, Isaac suffered a compound fracture to his Read more...

Otago Student Joins Highlanders Squad For 2023

Posted 1:33pm Saturday 24th September 2022 by Denzel Chung

It’s common for students to have a side hustle alongside their study commitments. It is, however, a bit rarer for that side hustle to be playing professional rugby in one of the world’s top competitions.  For business student James Arscott, however, playing top-level rugby has Read more...

Uni Staff Vote For Strike Motion

Posted 1:31pm Saturday 24th September 2022 by Zak Rudin

A nationwide strike of Tertiary Education Union (TEU) members, including some of your professors, could be on the cards.  On Tuesday 21st, around 150 Uni staff united in the Main Common Room as part of a nationwide TEU “stop work meeting” to vote on a motion to go on strike. The Read more...