List of universities in Sri Lanka

This is a list of higher education institutions in Sri Lanka.

History

The first institution of modern higher education in the island was established in 1921 as the University College Ceylon; even thought there several institutions of vocational education before that. In 1942 the first university was established as the University of Ceylon with several campuses island wide, Colombo (established 1942), Peradeniya (established 1949), Vidyodaya (established 1959), Vidyalankara (established 1959) and Katubedda (established 1972). It was dissolved in 1972 to establish the University of Sri Lanka. Jaffna campus was added to the university in 1974. With the promulgation of the Universities Act. No 16 of 1978, state university status was restored to the 6 separate campuses. University Grants Commission (UGC) was also created to plan and coordinate the state university education. After that, a number of state universities have been created. All these state universities are registered under the University Grants Commission, but a few come under the auspices of ministries other than the Ministry of Higher Education, in which the UGC is a part of.

Most of the state universities depend on funds given by the University Grants Commission, as it is their primary and sometimes only source of funding. Therefore the UGC has a direct control over these universities and administer the undergraduate intake. The UGC is subordinate to the Ministry of Higher Education.

A few other public and private institutes exist which function interdependently. Government has a stake in some of these institutions. The most prominent, is the Sri Lanka Institute of Information Technology (SLIIT), which formally came under the Ministry of Science & Technology. The General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University was a similar institute but has since been classed as a state university, however under the control of the Ministry of Defense.

Current situation

In Sri Lanka, the university education is strictly controlled by the government until recently. All the degree-granting universities and most degree-granting institutes in are still government-owned or -funded. However autonomous in theory, only a very few institutes are truly autonomous.

These higher education institutions can be classified under 4 categories. They are:

• Public institutes contorted by the University Grants Commission
• Public institutes that are not contorted by the UGC
• Private non profit institutes
• Private institutes

Public UGC institutes

15 state universities and 3 campuses come directly under the authority of University Grants Commission. They are:

• University of Colombo (Western Province)
  • Sri Palee Campus
  • Institute of Indigenous Medicine
• University of Peradeniya (Central Province)
• University of Sri Jayewardenepura (Western Province)
• University of Kelaniya (Western Province)
• Open University of Sri Lanka
  • Gampaha Wickramarachchi Ayurveda Institute
• University of Moratuwa (Western Province)
• University of Jaffna (Northern Province)
  • Vavuniya Campus
• University of Ruhuna (Southern Province)
• Eastern University, Sri Lanka (Eastern Province)
  • Trincomalee Campus
• South Eastern University of Sri Lanka, Oluvil (Eastern Province)
• Rajarata University (North Central Province)
• Sabaragamuwa University of Sri Lanka (Sabaragamuwa Province)
• Wayamba University of Sri Lanka, Kuliyapitiya and Makandura (North Western Province)
• University of the Visual & Performing Arts (Western Province)
• Uva Wellassa University (Uva Province)
• Swamy Vipulananda Institute of Aesthetic Studies (Western Province)

Public non UGC institutes

Ministry of Education

• Buddhist and Pali University of Sri Lanka, Homagama (Western Province)
• Buddhasravaka Bhiksu University, Anuradhapura (North Central Province)

Ministry of Defence

• General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University, Ratmalana (Western Province)

Ministry of Vocational and Technical Training

• University of Vocational Technology, Ratmalana (Western Province)
• Institute of Engineering Technology, Katunayake (Western Province)

Independent

• Ocean University of Sri Lanka (Established under the Act No. 36 of 1999)
• Sri Lanka Institute of Development Administration, Colombo
• National Institute of Education
• National Institute of Social Development (Established under the NISD Act, No. 41 of 1992)
• National Institute of Business Management (Established under the NIBM Act, No. 23 of 1976)
• Institute of Surveying and Mapping (Established under the Act No. 21 of 1969)
• Institute of Human Resource Advancement (University of Colombo)
• Institute for Agro-Technology and Rural Sciences, Hambantota (University of Colombo)

Private non-profit institutions

Operating as non-profit institutions, these award their own degrees with consent of the UGC.

• Sri Lanka Institute of Information Technology (2 campuses and 3 centres)
• Aquinas University College, Colombo (Registered with the Tertiary and Vocational Education Commission of Sri Lanka in 1954)

Private institutes

These institutes are affiliates of foreign institutes, granting degrees from these institutes.

• Institute of Technological Studies (Incorporated under the Companies Act)
• South Asian Institute of Technology and Medicine, Malabe (Established under the Companies Act No. 07 of 2007)
• Royal Institute of Colombo
• International College of Business & Technology (7 campuses)
• Australian College of Business and Technology (2 campuses)
• British College of Applied Studies
• Asia Pacific Institute of Information Technology
• Imperial Institute of Higher Education
• American College Of Higher Education
• Victoria Higher Education Campus (VHEC) in collaboration with the University of Greenwich, UK

Research institutes

• Northshore College of Business & Technology

See also

• Education in Sri Lanka
• List of colleges and universities by country
• List of colleges and universities

References

• Human Capital Research Program