The Rivers State University (RSU) Port Harcourt was established in October, 1980 from the Rivers State College of Science and Technology which was itself established in 1972. It is located at Nkpolu-Oroworukwo in Port Harcourt, the capital of Rivers State, Nigeria.
Rivers State University is the first Technological University in Nigeria and the first state owned State University in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria. The motto of the University is “Excellence and Creativity”. The University has a staff strength of about 1,800 and a student population of over 28,000 . The language of instruction in the institution is English.
Produce scientific and technical manpower of various levels needed for essential development;
Produce technical and science teachers for developmental programmes;
Assist in the industrial and other developmental programmes through consultancy services, special project centres and related activities;
Encourage the advancement of learning to all persons without distinction or race, creed, sex or political conviction the opportunity of acquiring a higher and liberal education;
Provide courses of instruction and other facilities for the pursuit of learning in all the faculties and institutes, and to make facilities available on proper terms of such persons as are equipped to benefit from them;
Encourage and promote scholarship and conduct research in all fields of learning and human endeavour;
Relate its activities to the social, cultural and economic needs of the people of Nigeria; and
Undertake any other activities appropriate for a University of the highest standard.
The University has twelve faculties; Agriculture, Basic Medical Science, College of Medicine, Communication And Media Studies, Education, Engineering, Environmental Science, Humanities, Law, Management Science, Social Sciences, Science; and a Postgraduate School.
RSU has Six Institutes; Institute of Foundation Studies, Institute of Education, Pollution Studies, Education, RIART, Geosciences and Space Technology.
It has four Centers:
Centre for Continuing Education, Centre of Excellence in Marine and Offshore Engineering, Information and Communication Technology Centre, Entrepreneurship Development Centre
The University runs 37 programmes at the undergraduate level and 86 at the postgraduate level.
Relocation of RSU to Greater Port Harcourt City
The Rivers State Government has concluded plans for the development of a new City called Greater Port Harcourt City to decongest the already over crowded Port Harcourt. Its development has already commenced and with the new City would be established a new campus where the present Rivers State University would be relocated to. According to Government’s mission statement on this, “The new University will be a leading Centre of academic excellence in Africa and beyond; a world class University with world-class facilities, which will be manned by a team of committed administrators, academics and researcher of high caliber, who share the founding vision of the new University to be ranked among the best 1,000 Universities in the world by 2020. It is hoped that by the time this objective is realized, there is no doubt that RSU will be equal to none in Nigeria and indeed in Africa.