The Matariki Network of Universities (MNU) is an international group of universities created in 2010, which focuses on strong links between research and undergraduate teaching. It claims that each member is leading international best practice in research and education based on long academic traditions. The MNU has been established to enable the universities to enhance diversity, to share ideas and expertise, and to learn international best practice from each other, recognising the shared commitment to an ethos of excellence in research, scholarship and rounded education.

Name and research activities

“Matariki” is the Māori name for the group of stars known as the Pleiades

Pleiades (star cluster)

In astronomy, the Pleiades, or Seven Sisters , is an open star cluster containing middle-aged hot B-type stars located in the constellation of Taurus. It is among the nearest star clusters to Earth and is the cluster most obvious to the naked eye in the night sky...

 star cluster, and also known as the Seven Sisters

Seven Sisters

-Astronomy and mythology:*Pleiades , seven sisters who are companions of Artemis in Greek mythology*Pleiades , a star cluster named for the mythological characters...

. It reflects seven founding member universities in the MNU.

Potential activities for the newly formed network include:

• enhanced student exchange
• joint postgraduate programmes
• social responsibility projects
• research collaboration
• conferences and workshops on topics of mutual interest
• visiting fellowships
• faculty and staff exchange and secondments
• benchmarking and sharing of best practice
• cultural and sporting activities

Universities

As of September 2010 the founding members of the Matariki Network of Universities are:

Members	Country	Year Established	World Rank by THE-WUR Times Higher Education World University Rankings The Times Higher Education World University Rankings is an international ranking of universities published by the British magazine Times Higher Education in partnership with Thomson Reuters, which provided citation database information... , 2011	World Rank by ARWU Academic Ranking of World Universities The Academic Ranking of World Universities , commonly known as the Shanghai ranking, is a publication that was founded and compiled by the Shanghai Jiaotong University to rank universities globally. The rankings have been conducted since 2003 and updated annually... , 2011	World Rank by QS QS World University Rankings The QS World University Rankings is a ranking of the world’s top 500 universities by Quacquarelli Symonds using a method that has published annually since 2004.... , 2011
Dartmouth College Dartmouth College Dartmouth College is a private, Ivy League university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. The institution comprises a liberal arts college, Dartmouth Medical School, Thayer School of Engineering, and the Tuck School of Business, as well as 19 graduate programs in the arts and sciences...	USA	1769	90th	151–200th	99th
Durham University Durham University The University of Durham, commonly known as Durham University, is a university in Durham, England. It was founded by Act of Parliament in 1832 and granted a Royal Charter in 1837...	UK	1832	83rd	201–300th	95th
Queen’s University	Canada	1841	173rd	201–300th	144th
University of Otago University of Otago The University of Otago in Dunedin is New Zealand's oldest university with over 22,000 students enrolled during 2010.The university has New Zealand's highest average research quality and in New Zealand is second only to the University of Auckland in the number of A rated academic researchers it...	New Zealand	1869	201–225th	201–300th	130th
University of Tübingen	Germany	1477	187th	102–150th	152nd
University of Western Australia University of Western Australia The University of Western Australia was established by an Act of the Western Australian Parliament in February 1911, and began teaching students for the first time in 1913. It is the oldest university in the state of Western Australia and the only university in the state to be a member of the...	Australia	1911	189th	102–150th	73rd
Uppsala University Uppsala University Uppsala University is a research university in Uppsala, Sweden, and is the oldest university in Scandinavia, founded in 1477. It consistently ranks among the best universities in Northern Europe in international rankings and is generally considered one of the most prestigious institutions of...	Sweden	1477	87th	67th	83rd

External links

• Official website