The University of Sydney Opens, Beginning a New Chapter in Australian Higher Education

On October 11, 1852, the University of Sydney celebrated its formal inauguration and enrolled its first students. As Australia’s oldest university, it marked an important development in higher education: students could now pursue a university degree locally rather than undertake a long and expensive journey overseas.

Founded in 1850, Opened in 1852

The university’s legal foundation preceded its opening ceremony. Legislation establishing the institution received the governor’s assent on October 1, 1850. The following two years were devoted to organising its administration, appointing professors, and preparing for students.

Its supporters, including William Charles Wentworth, envisaged a publicly supported institution where admission would depend on academic ability rather than religious affiliation. This made Sydney an early example of a secular university within the British Empire.

The First Students and Professors

The inauguration took place in the former Sydney College building on College Street, now associated with Sydney Grammar School. It was a modest beginning compared with the extensive campus that would develop later.

Following an entrance examination held a week earlier, 24 students enrolled at the ceremony. Three foundation professors shaped the new institution: John Woolley taught classics and served as principal, Morris Birkbeck Pell taught mathematics, and John Smith taught chemistry and experimental philosophy.

Building an Academic Community

The early curriculum combined classical learning with mathematics, science, and modern subjects. The university awarded its first degrees in 1856, turning the ambitions of its founders into recognised academic achievement.

Its familiar sandstone buildings belonged to the next stage of development. Architect Edmund Blacket designed the Main Building and Great Hall for the new site at Grose Farm. These buildings helped give the university a permanent home and an architectural identity that became closely associated with it.

An Institution That Continued to Grow

Access expanded over time. In 1881, the university agreed to admit women on the same academic footing as men. The first women began their studies the following year, and Mary Brown and Isola Thompson graduated in 1885.

The opening of 1852 began with a small group of students and three professors. Its significance lay in establishing a lasting local institution for advanced learning, laying foundations for the growth of university education in Australia.