Bachelor of Arts in Maori Language and Te Reo Maori

at The University of Waikato - Hamilton Campus New Zealand

Studying the BHealth with a specified program in Poutu-manuhau Population Health will enable you to contribute to a more equitable health system in Aotearoa New Zealand as part of a workforce that can enact hauora in practice, and advocate for broader understandings of what constitutes health in our communities. With an approach that spans Te Ao Maori, biomedical-principles, the history of the health system, legal aspects, population studies, social policy, psychology, health funding, systems, management and communication, you will be well placed to action change for the heath and wellbeing of our communities.

In a program of study where Maori, Pasifika, Western and other indigenous traditions are examined, we endeavour to respect the collective essence of health and wellbeing as represented by the diverse groups in our community. This includes drawing on the concept of hauora as a holistic approach that values the interconnection between the physical and meta-physical in ways that nourish and sustain the vitality of people and their communities. In doing so, recognition is attributed to past generations, historical contexts, and connections to the land.

Communication Design is concerned with visually communicating messages and ideas across multiple media platforms. as a communication designer, you will be responsible for arranging typography, form and image on a myriad of communication platforms, and in various types of media. You will be recognised for the quality of your contribution to our visual culture.

Communication designers work in areas such as branding, environmental graphics, wayfinding systems, editorial design (newspapers, magazines, books), catalogues, museum displays and every aspect of our visual landscape where there is a communication need.  You will find communication designers working in digital mediums too, and the Communication Design major offers opportunities for you to learn web design and motion graphic design as well.

Environmental Planning at Waikato develops your knowledge of how human actions affects the environment. We'll inspire you to understand how social, economic and cultural aspects, and the physical environment contribute to problems and provide solutions.

During your Environmental Planning studies, we'll involve you in a variety of other academic pursuits that enable you to understand the interdisciplinary nature of environmental issues. You'll take papers in the social and natural sciences and make direct connections between human actions, politics and the natural environment.

Learning isn't all in the classroom, either. We take frequent field trips to explore first-hand the impact humans have on the local environment. You'll do practical group research projects such as investigate urban regeneration of the Central Business District and study policy options to manage human impact on coastal systems.

Language is a tool we all use instinctively, without necessarily understanding its precise structure. By studying Linguistics, you'll gain an inner working knowledge of language design and organisation. You'll learn about different sounds, words and clause structures, and how they work in world languages. You'll explore different cultures and societies to see how linguistic behaviour changes by location, as well as in various situations.

Your Linguistics studies will also give you a commanding understanding of the English language which can lead to careers in journalism, free-lance writing or academia.

Computer Science is rapidly changing the world we live in. Studying Computer Science at the University of Waikato, you'll learn about software systems and how people and computers interact. You’ll also learn how to create new software, and ensure it's easy for people to use.

Ongoing progress in computer technology means that there is a steady need for more qualified computer professionals. The University of Waikato is recognised among the world’s best in computer science, and offers the largest range of advanced computer science courses in New Zealand.

A major in Computer Science is flexible, allowing you to focus on a particular area, or to complete a more generalist major. The papers available are carefully designed to ensure you have a good mastery of a particular area of Computer Science and will equip you with the skills you need to succeed in your chosen career.

Students have the opportunity to work alongside internationally-respected academics on a wide range of exciting and innovative research projects in areas such as:

• Broadband communication
• Data compression
• Digital libraries
• Formal methods
• Human-computer interaction
• Machine learning
• Software engineering
• Cyber security.

Computer Science is rapidly changing the world we live in. Studying Computer Science at the University of Waikato, you'll learn about software systems and how people and computers interact. You’ll also learn how to create new software, and ensure it's easy for people to use.

Ongoing progress in computer technology means that there is a steady need for more qualified computer professionals. The University of Waikato is recognised among the world’s best in computer science, and offers the largest range of advanced computer science courses in New Zealand.

A major in Computer Science is flexible, allowing you to focus on a particular area, or to complete a more generalist major. The papers available are carefully designed to ensure you have a good mastery of a particular area of Computer Science and will equip you with the skills you need to succeed in your chosen career.

Waikato is well-recognised internationally for our computer science research, and have especially enjoyed success with open source software development.

Students have the opportunity to work alongside internationally-respected academics on a wide range of exciting and innovative research projects in areas such as:

• Broadband communication
• Data compression
• Digital libraries
• Formal methods
• Human-computer interaction
• Machine learning
• Software engineering
• Cyber security.

Psychology is about understanding the behaviour and cognitive processes of people and animals in their physical, social and organisational environment. As a behavioural science, it examines the way behaviour is learned and can be changed. As a social science, it focuses on individuals within the context of families, organisations and other groups, communities, cultures and societies. As a biological science, it studies the senses (hearing, vision, touch) and how the brain and physiological systems relate to behaviour. As a cognitive science it studies perception, attention, memory, thinking and language understanding. The study of development, personality, learning and motivation are also part of Psychology.

From analysing the reasons for anger to considering the best way to train dogs, the study of Psychology allows insight into countless intriguing facets of cognitive function.

As a social science, Psychology focuses on individuals within the context of families, organisations and other groups, communities, cultures and societies. As a biological science, Psychology studies the senses (hearing, vision, touch) and how the brain and physiological systems relate to behaviour. As a cognitive science, Psychology studies perception, attention, memory, thinking and language understanding. The study of development, personality, learning and motivation are also part of Psychology at Waikato, as is animal behaviour and welfare.

Population issues are among the most serious challenges that humanity faces in the 21st century. Population Studies and Demography at Waikato addresses contrasting issues among developed and developing countries, how governments are handling slowing population growth, and how others are dealing with legal and illegal migration and skill shortages. You'll explore how such issues impact on a country's environmental, economic and social patterns.

You'll explore the importance of population research and the need for attention to population trends, their causes and their implications on the environment, employment, work and family, health, population distribution, urbanisation, migration patterns, old age security and refugee movements.

This subject is of relevance to students from a wide range of backgrounds, such as sociology, economics, geography, political science and public policy, and provides opportunities to engage in individual directed studies and research for a masters or higher degree on a population-related subject.

Whether you enjoy solving problems in a laboratory or working outdoors, our Biological Sciences program will provide you with the ultimate learning environment. Surrounded by lakes, rivers, intriguing ecosystems, and many important biological industries, the University of Waikato is uniquely placed in the heart of New Zealand’s North Island.

Waikato University’s Biological Sciences research is highly regarded internationally. Our projects are supported by multi-million dollar investments from government and industry, many of which have significant iwi and other community involvement. These include lakes management, freshwater ecology, horticultural and agricultural research, coastal marine science and aquaculture, urban restoration, animal behaviour and physiology, medical microbiology and Antarctic ecosystems. This funding supports many student and collaborative projects, together with scholarship and postgraduate opportunities.

Build a successful career
Careers in Biological Sciences come in many shapes and sizes, with many offering opportunities for travel. From managing the Savannah animals at Hamilton Zoo, to working with embryos at a London fertility clinic, our graduates find jobs in exciting and challenging industries in New Zealand and overseas. You could find a career as an ecologist managing the restoration of natural ecosystems, a physiologist aiming to understand how organisms function, or a geneticist using DNA as the key to identifying diseases or organisms.

This subject explores the knowledge, language, culture, politics, methods and theory of Pacific and Indigenous Studies, while teaching students how to interpret new ways of understanding the world.

Pacific and Indigenous Studies focuses on the diverse Pacific region – which covers a third of the earth’s surface and is home to over 1200 languages – as well as on the histories, experiences and perspectives of Pacific people in New Zealand.

Students of Pacific and Indigenous Studies bring a wide range of background knowledge to their studies: from Pacific students who will find their own perspectives are valued and expanded through academic study in this area, all the way through to students who might have little knowledge about the region but bring a desire to learn about where we are.

All students of Pacific and Indigenous Studies learn a lot about the region and where we are, and also practice and develop skills of critical thinking, communication, and analysis of diverse perspectives.