Sutherland University

The Sutherland University, despite its name, is not a single university, but an intermicronational scheme of association for universities. Universities that participate in the Sutherland University scheme usually include "Sutherland University" at the beginning of their name (such as the Sutherland University of Pristinia) or append "– A Sutherland University" to it (such as the University of Francisville – A Sutherland University). In the latter case, this suffix is not actually part of the name but an identifier or subtitle and is thus often omitted from the name.

Legally, Sutherland University is a not-for-profit association with two Co-Chairmen elected by a Board of Regents (made up of the directorial staff of each constituent university). In Pristinia, it legally exists as the "GUV Sutherland University" (where GUV represents a Pristinian legal entity form called Gemeinnützige Unabhängige Vereinigung, meaning "independent not-for-profit association").

Structure

Sutherland University is currently made up of two constituent universities:

Sutherland University of Pristinia
- Centaurean College
  - von Puchow School (School of Languages)
  - Mejakhansk School (School of Performing Arts)
  - Reinhardt School (School of Digital Arts and Media)
- Heisenberg College Arborea
  - Tierney School (School of Astronomy, Physics and Chemistry)
- Grand Studium
  - Chevron College
    - Department of Politics
    - Department of Governmental Education
    - Redkirk Law School
  - Escurus Colloquium
    - Redkirk Business School
    - Philosopharium
    - Culture School
- Monseyside Secular and Scholastic Priory
  - School of Religious Studies
  - School of Religions
- New Chambria Service Academy
University of Francisville

Sutherland University Library

The Sutherland University Library is to date the largest micronational collection of data, as it is, much like the Sutherland University itself, subdivided into several constituent libraries:

Republican and University Library – This library doubles as the Sutherland University of Pristinia library and the national library of Pristinia. It currently houses a total of approximately 42 GB of digital data and another approximately 8 GB worth of print data (including books, other publications and images.
- Lindenian Library – This facility houses purely digital data. Making up for roughly a half of the total digital collection, this collection contains works on medicine, natural sciences, computing, languages, language learning and a small amount of fictional literature. There is a mixture of English and German-language works, with English however clearly dominating.
- Bishop Library – The Bishop Library makes up the remainder of the digital collection. It makes up for the other half of the digital collection, containing works mainly on religion, philosophy, history and anthropology. This contains only an insignificant amount of German works and a very few in other languages, with the majority of items in English.
- Hugh Monsey Memorial Library – This houses the entire physical collection. It contains works on almost all topics. As opposed to the other two constituent libraries, this is made up mainly of works in German, with some English and Ripuarian works present.
Francillian National Library – Information to be added.

Sutherland University Press

The Sutherland University Press is the publishing house owned by Sutherland University. It publishes the Sutherland University Journal, an online publication that peer-reviews and publishes academic papers on any topic. It also plans to publish physical books in the not too distant future.

Academia

Administration

Each constituent Sutherland university must have a Dean, Principal, Vice Principal, Rector and Provost, though they regulate for themselves how these positions are selected for and what responsibilities or stipulations come with the office (such as not being able to hold another academic office). The offices are collectively referred to as directorial staff. Constituent universities also choose for themselves how to subdivide themselves and may decide what (if any) administrative positions to create for said subdivisions. For example, the Sutherland University of Pristinia merely grants their primary level subdivisions Honourary Patrons, which serve only a representative function.

Degrees

The Sutherland universities have a common degree scheme:

Doctor
Master
Bachelor
Associate OR Licentiate (aka Diploma)

The difference between Associates and Licentiates is that Licentiates are awarded for more practical/vocational courses like Rocketry, Applied Engineering or Business Management.

Doctoral titles awarded by Sutherland Universities are abbreviated as is customary in German-speaking countries: Rather than adding a postnominal like "PhD" or "ScD" after the bearer's name, the title precedes the name in a form similar to "Dr. phil." or "Dr. sci." Therefore, rather than a Doctor of Law named John Smith being "John Smith JD", they would be "Dr. jur. John Smith".

Courses and Exchange

The Sutherland universities aim to minimise the number of duplicate courses among each other, though some are intentionally kept, especially when they are taught in a significantly different way at both schools. For example, while the Sutherland University of Pristinia and University of Francisville both offer courses in Politics, only the University of Francisville offers a course on Mathematics and only the Sutherland University of Pristinia offers a course on German. Therefore, if a student wished to take a double degree in German and Mathematics, they would study German in Pristinia and Mathematics in Francisville. This is also possible due to the Sutherland University Unified Scale of Academic Achievement (SUUSAA), which standardises both admissions and credit value between the constituent Sutherland universities.

University applications

Currently, the Sutherland University Association will not accept any university's request to join, as the scheme is not fully fleshed out yet. However, Chairman Sebastian Linden has expressed his hope that Tor Pendente State University and Bourke University may, at some point after applications have been opened, join the Sutherland University scheme.