St Mary's College is a medium sized residential college

Residential college

A residential college is an organisational pattern for a division of a university that places academic activity in a community setting of students and faculty, usually at a residence and with shared meals, the college having a degree of autonomy and a federated relationship with the overall...

 affiliated with the University of Melbourne

University of Melbourne

The University of Melbourne is a public university located in Melbourne, Victoria. Founded in 1853, it is the second oldest university in Australia and the oldest in Victoria...

 and is located on the Melbourne University College Crescent. It was founded on and still practices the Catholic tradition. St Mary's is home to around 160 students, the majority of whom attend the University of Melbourne. A small percentage attend other institutions such as Australian Catholic University

Australian Catholic University

Australian Catholic University is a national public university. It has six campuses and offers programs in five faculties throughout Australia.-History:...

 and RMIT University

RMIT University

RMIT University is an Australian public university located in Melbourne, Victoria. It has two branches, referred to as RMIT University in Australia and RMIT International University in Vietnam....

.

The vast majority of students at St Mary's are from rural and regional Victoria. St Mary's has a very strong sporting tradition, particularly in the disciplines of Australian rules football and netball. The official colours of St Mary's are navy blue and red, with the football jumper design a solid red V on a navy background.

History

St Mary's College was originally established in 1918 as St Mary's Hall, catering to women mainly from the country. Formerly on The Avenue in Parkville, it moved to its present position on the corner of Tin Alley and Swanston Street in 1966. It was in that year that it became a college, the female affiliate of the Catholic male Newman College

Newman College (University of Melbourne)

Newman College is a Roman Catholic, co-educational residential college affiliated with the University of Melbourne. During the university year it houses about 235 undergraduate students and about 55 postgraduate students and tutors...

.

In 1977 St Mary's became co-residential. It now exists strongly independent to Newman. Since its inception, St Mary's College has been administered by the Sisters of Loreto

Sisters of Loreto

The Institute of the Blessed Virgin Mary, more commonly known as the Loreto Sisters , is a women's Catholic religious order founded by an Englishwoman, Mary Ward, in 1609 at Saint-Omer in northern France...

.

In 2004, The Academic Centre, a joint facility shared between St Mary’s and Newman Colleges, was opened. It was designed by Maggie Edmond

Maggie Edmond

Maggie Leonie Edmond is one half of the Melbourne-based architectural firm she runs with her husband Peter Corrigan, Edmond and Corrigan. She has been described by Neil Clerehan as "probably the nation's foremost female architect"....

 and Peter Corrigan

Peter Corrigan

Peter Russell Corrigan was born in 1941, Australia. As an Australian architect and has been involved in the completion of works in stage and set design.-Early Life and Life Achievements:...

to reflect the overall academic vision of both Colleges to enhance the educational facilities and opportunities available to the students of the Colleges.

The Centre contains a library, tutorial rooms, music practice rooms, student lounges and information technology facilities.

External links

• St Mary's College website