Archive

Government Finalises Tertiary Pastoral Care Code

Posted 4:24pm Sunday 25th July 2021 by Alex Leckie-Zaharic

After a lengthy submission period, the Government has finally wrapped up their tertiary pastoral care code, called the Education (Pastoral Care of Tertiary and International Leaners) Code of Practice 2021. They now expect compliance from tertiary institutions throughout New Zealand. While there Read more...

Students Join Kate Bush Cult

Posted 4:14pm Sunday 25th July 2021 by Asia Martusia King

A Kate Bush flash mob, held in the Octagon on Saturday 17 July, was described as “euphoric” by student attendees. The Most Wuthering Heights Day Ever is an event held at locations around the world, where participants recreate the music video for musician Kate Bush's 1978 song Read more...

3000 Holy Sausages Distributed

Posted 4:11pm Sunday 25th July 2021 by Denzel Chung

You know what they say: Give a man a sausage, he eats for a day. Teach a man to grill, and he’ll love Jesus for life. A group of young people from Dunedin churches — mostly students — handed out an estimated 3,000 sausages and 1,000 hash browns, free-of-charge, over Re-O Read more...

Silverline Draws Criticism

Posted 4:01pm Sunday 25th July 2021 by Denzel Chung

A student who attended the Silverline Festival is accusing organisers of not providing enough mental health support for attendees, but Silverline say feedback from their event was overwhelmingly positive. Last week, Critic Te Arohi reported that the event cost $26,000. The student reached out Read more...

Fire in the Link Last Sunday

Posted 3:53pm Sunday 25th July 2021 by Runze Liu

New Zealand Police and Fire and Emergency New Zealand (FENZ) are investigating a fire that occurred in a rubbish bin in the Information Services Building at around 8pm last Sunday 18 July. According to FENZ, the bin in the female bathrooms on the Cumberland St side of the Link caught fire, Read more...

Students Angriest on Sunday, According to AskOtago Data

Posted 3:46pm Sunday 25th July 2021 by Erin Gourley

Data released to Critic under the Official Information Act shows that the smiley faces at AskOtago mostly receive dark green, very happy responses, but on Sundays the number of dark red, very angry responses skyrockets.  Critic requested the data from the AskOtago smiley kiosks for March Read more...

Farmers Really Wanted Students To Care About Their Protest

Posted 3:28pm Sunday 25th July 2021 by Denzel Chung

Nearly 700 tractors, utes and four-wheel drives passed through the heart of Studentville two weeks ago, participating in Aotearoa’s largest farmer-led protest — and those behind the wheels had many hot-takes to offer to a mostly oblivious student community.  Students accosted on Read more...

No Fines for Lawn Litter

Posted 3:23pm Sunday 25th July 2021 by Fox Meyer

A proposed change to the Code of Conduct would have made it possible for the Uni to fine you for having a littered front lawn. The University didn’t go through with that change after receiving negative feedback from students, releasing their response on 10 July. Ultimately, the University Read more...

No Backpay for Offshore PhD Students

Posted 3:19pm Sunday 25th July 2021 by Fox Meyer

Remote PhD students will not be receiving a stipend from the University, even with a scholarship. 89 students have commenced their PhD at Otago remotely since the pandemic began. 13 have managed to enter New Zealand, and only seven of those students will be receiving a monthly stipend, according Read more...

@OtagoUniStudAss: The OUSA Twitter Account that May or May Not Be Official

Posted 4:00pm Sunday 18th July 2021 by Erin Gourley

OUSA have an old Twitter account. Or do they? The handle is OtagoUniStudAss, a joke so bad that it seems like Critic came up with it. There are fifteen tweets in total. The profile picture is someone jumping on a roof at the Hyde Street Party. They posted a photo of a burning couch in Read more...

Catering Waste Thrown in Tips

Posted 3:07pm Sunday 18th July 2021 by Alex Leckie-Zaharic

Thanks to a tip-off from a student, Critic now knows what happens to extra food from University-catered events. A concerned student asked us to look into the apparent waste of food at University events. They reached out after they witnessed staff loading crates with uneaten food, apparently to be Read more...

OUSA Elections Coming Up Soon

Posted 3:05pm Sunday 18th July 2021 by Alex Leckie-Zaharic

Nominations will open on August 4 for the ten positions available on the OUSA Executive. The Exec brought the dates forward from their usual September date for elections in their Exec meeting last Monday, in order to have a larger overlap between the new Exec and the old Exec. The students Read more...

Queer Space Will Open On Friday

Posted 2:58pm Sunday 18th July 2021 by Elliot Weir

After almost three years of planning, delays, and bureaucratic hurdles, an official opening of the Campus Queer Space has been announced by OUSA for 23 of July at 10.30am.  The space, which is located near the terrace lounge (upstairs from the link), includes furniture, decorations, and Read more...

Chlöe Swarbrick Proves A Hit At Re-O Clubs Day

Posted 2:56pm Sunday 18th July 2021 by Alex Leckie-Zaharic

The Young Greens had the most success, of all the youth political parties, of recruiting people to join them at Clubs Day. It’s that time of year when clubs desperately attempt to get students to bolster their sometimes meagre ranks. The “young” branches of the political Read more...

Otago Students Apparently Doing Great

Posted 2:53pm Sunday 18th July 2021 by Fox Meyer

Otago Uni topped the charts in three of four “key indicators” of success at New Zealand universities, according to the annual ranking published by the Tertiary Education Commission. We had the best rates of qualification completion, first year retention, and progression.  People Read more...

Is Living in A Twin Room Hell?

Posted 2:47pm Sunday 18th July 2021 by Erin Gourley

Living in a twin room might seem like your worst nightmare, but you do save a lot of money compared with the usual price of living in one of Otago’s residential colleges.  “I can’t image paying full price,” said Carolina*, who lives in a twin room in Aquinas. She only Read more...

Otago Not Surprised At Auckland Abandoning NZUSA

Posted 2:44pm Sunday 18th July 2021 by Runze Liu

Otago Uni Students’ Association (OUSA) is unsurprised that Auckland Uni Students’ Association (AUSA) is giving 12 months’ notice to leave the New Zealand Union of Students’ Association (NZUSA). OUSA President Michaela Waite-Harvey stated this is “not a shocking turn Read more...

What’s (Still) Wrong with Freshers?

Posted 2:37pm Sunday 18th July 2021 by Fox Meyer

Six months ago, we asked O-Week freshers what the biggest problem in their life was. Most of them said that their biggest problems were making friends, missing family, or other social issues. Critic hit up the line outside Union Hall on 14 July to check back in, and see if anything had changed. One Read more...

Student Volunteers Prop Up Science Festival

Posted 2:29pm Sunday 18th July 2021 by Asia Martusia King

The vast majority of volunteers at the New Zealand International Science Festival were students. The festival, which took place from 8 to 18 of July, saw a total number of 92 volunteers. Volunteer Coordinator Hannah says that around 80% of these were studying at Otago University.  This is Read more...

No Arrests After Rugby

Posted 2:26pm Sunday 18th July 2021 by Fox Meyer

Nobody was arrested at the stadium following the All Blacks vs Fiji game on Saturday, 10 July. Great job, everyone. There were still some dickheads, though. A statement from the Police said that “several people” had to be removed from the stadium by staff or officers for “poor Read more...