Basser College, University of New South Wales

History

Basser College was founded in 1959, ten years after the opening of the University of New South Wales (UNSW), making it the oldest residential college at the University. It was built to accommodate students from rural areas, enabling them access to the same education as local, metropolitan students. The College is named after Sir Adolph Basser (1887–1965), a Polish entrepreneur and philanthropist who contributed significantly to the cost of the College's construction.
The College's foundational structure was designed around two central courtyards: Girls' Quad and Boys' Quad. The names echo the separate living arrangements in the College after female residents were first admitted in the 1960s; a practice which has since been discontinued. The majority of the rooms were divided into alcoves of four, with two front rooms and two back rooms. Typically, the back rooms were larger and allocated to returning residents or 'seniors', whilst the front rooms were allocated to first-year residents or 'freshers'. These alcoves were thus affectionately dubbed 'alcove families', with two males and two females constituting each group.
Basser College's original building was the only college on Kensington Campus for which every room had the convenience of a wash basin. Residents generally stayed in Basser for two or three years before ending their college tenure. A student had to remain at College for two and a half years, to be named Honorary College Valedictorian.
Basser College celebrated its 50th anniversary with a 'Back to Basser' day at the College in August 2009. The original building was last used in the 2011 Academic year and was handed over to a construction company in December 2011 to be demolished and replaced as part of UNSW's major student accommodation redevelopment.

Redevelopment

The redeveloped Basser College opened in Semester 1, 2014. It accommodates 160 students in a mixture of rooms with either en suite or shared bathroom facilities. Basser has expansive common and study areas as well as a roof top garden. The College will share landscaped garden spaces with Philip Baxter, Goldstein College and the newly established residences Fig Tree Hall and Colombo House.