"The University of KwaZulu-Natal was formed on 1 January 2004 as a result of the merger between the University of Durban-Westville and the University of Natal. The new university brings together the rich histories of both the former Universities. Founded in 1910 as the Natal University College in Pietermaritzburg, the University of Natal was granted independent University status in 1949 owing to its rapid growth in numbers, its wide range of courses and its achievements in and opportunities for research. By that time, the NUC was already a multi-campus institution, having been extended to Durban after World War 1. The distinctive Howard College building was opened in 1931, following a donation by Mr T B Davis, whose son Howard Davis was killed during the Battle of Somme in World War I. In 1946, the government approved a Faculty of Agriculture in Pietermaritzburg and, in 1947, a Medical School for African, Indian and Coloured students in Durban. "

The university is organised around four Colleges consisting of clustered Faculties (eight in total), each headed by a Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Head of College, as follows:

"Faculties are constituted by single University-wide Schools (54 in total) consisting of either a single discipline or a set of cognate disciplines, operating across campuses where appropriate. This structure is premised on the principle that academic governance structures should not be duplicated and that single university-wide Faculties and Schools should operate across delivery sites. It is designed to facilitate co-ordination between strategy and operations; exploit synergies across faculties; and provide the critical mass necessary to compete in the national and international arena. The academic structure is supported by a full range of administrative and service Divisions that fall within the portfolios of various Deputy Vice-Chancellors and Executive Directors within the Executive Management team."

[all information courtesy of UKZN]