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Midlands State University crest

Midlands State University

Gweru, Zimbabwe • Founded 1999

Updated May 2026 · Source: ww5.msu.ac.zw

Overview

English Name: Midlands State University
Acronyms: MSU
Founded: 1999
Institution Type: University
Control Type: Public
Entity Type: Non-profit
Rankings:
SCImago 2026 #4349
Motto: Our Hands, Our Minds, Our Destiny
Inside Midlands State University
1 / 5

Established in 2000, the Midlands State University is a non-profit public higher education institution located in the urban setting of the small city of Gweru (population range of 50,000-249,999 inhabitants), Midlands.

Officially recognized by the Ministry of Higher and Tertiary Education, Innovation, Science and Technology Development of Zimbabwe, Midlands State University (MSU) is a large-sized coeducational Zimbabwean higher education institution. Midlands State University (MSU) offers courses and programs leading to officially recognized higher education degrees such as bachelor's degrees and master's degrees in several areas of study.

This 24-year-old Zimbabwean higher-education institution has a selective admission policy based on students' past academic records and grades. International applicants are eligible to apply for enrollment.

MSU also provides several academic and non-academic facilities and services to students including a library, financial aids and/or scholarships, as well as administrative services.

Location & Contact

Address, contact details, and online presence for Midlands State University are summarised below.

Address: Post Bag 9055
Other Sites: Also Zvishavane and Harare Campuses
Phone: +263 (54) 260404
Fax: +263 (54) 260388
Email: info@mco.msu.ac.zw
Social Media:

Academic Details

A snapshot of Midlands State University's academic profile — enrolment, staffing, and recognition.

Academic Year: March to December
Recognition: Ministry of Higher and Tertiary Education, Innovation, Science and Technology Development of Zimbabwe
Accrediting Agency: Zimbabwe Council for Higher Education (ZIMCHE)
Admission Requirements: 2 Advanced Level passes for undergraduate programmes and a good first degree for Master's programmes
Total Students: 22,000
Campus Setting: Urban
Memberships & Networks
Association of Commonwealth Universities (ACU) Association of African Universities (AAU) Southern African Regional Universities Association (SARUA)

Academic Structures

Midlands State University's faculties, schools, institutes, and constituent units are listed below.

Unit 6 items
  • Faculty of Arts
  • Faculty of Commerce
  • Faculty of Education
  • Faculty of Natural Resources Management and Agriculture
  • Faculty of Science and Technology
  • Faculty of Social Sciences

Degrees

Also MBA; Executive MBA; Dual Degrees

Bachelor's 72 programs
  • Accountancy
  • African Languages
  • African Studies
  • Agricultural Economics
  • Agronomy
  • Anthropology
  • Archaeology
  • Art Education
  • Art Management
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Arts and Humanities
  • Business Administration
  • Business Education
  • Business and Commerce
  • Chemistry
  • Communication Arts
  • Communication Studies
  • Crop Production
  • Cultural Studies
  • Demography and Population
  • Development Studies
  • Education
  • Electrical and Electronic Engineering
  • Energy Engineering
  • Film
  • Finance
  • Food Science
  • Food Technology
  • Foreign Languages Education
  • French
  • Geology
  • Geophysics
  • Government
  • Graphic Design
  • Heritage Preservation
  • Horticulture
  • Hotel and Restaurant
  • Human Resources
  • Humanities and Social Science Education
  • Information Technology
  • Journalism
  • Law
  • Leadership
  • Management
  • Marketing
  • Materials Engineering
  • Mathematics and Computer Science
  • Mechanical Engineering
  • Media Studies
  • Medicine
  • Metallurgical Engineering
  • Mining Engineering
  • Multimedia
  • Museum Studies
  • Natural Sciences
  • Nutrition
  • Peace and Disarmament
  • Plant and Crop Protection
  • Political Sciences
  • Preschool Education
  • Primary Education
  • Psychology
  • Public Administration
  • Radio and Television Broadcasting
  • Religious Education
  • Social Policy
  • Social Work
  • Sociology
  • Surgery
  • Surveying and Mapping
  • Theatre
  • Tourism
Master's 55 programs
  • Accountancy
  • African Languages
  • African Studies
  • Agronomy
  • Anthropology
  • Archaeology
  • Arts and Humanities
  • Business Administration
  • Business and Commerce
  • Chemistry
  • Commercial Law
  • Communication Studies
  • Constitutional Law
  • Crop Production
  • Cultural Studies
  • Demography and Population
  • Development Studies
  • Education
  • Educational Psychology
  • Film
  • Finance
  • Food Science
  • Food Technology
  • Foreign Languages Education
  • Gender Studies
  • Government
  • Heritage Preservation
  • Horticulture
  • Hotel and Restaurant
  • Human Rights
  • Humanities and Social Science Education
  • Information Technology
  • International Relations and Diplomacy
  • Journalism
  • Leadership
  • Management
  • Mathematics and Computer Science
  • Media Studies
  • Museum Studies
  • Music
  • Musicology
  • Natural Sciences
  • Nutrition
  • Peace and Disarmament
  • Plant and Crop Protection
  • Protective Services
  • Public Administration
  • Radio and Television Broadcasting
  • Social Policy
  • Social Sciences
  • Social Work
  • Sociology
  • Theatre
  • Tourism
  • Welfare and Protective Services
Doctoral 18 programs
  • Agriculture
  • Agronomy
  • Archaeology
  • Arts and Humanities
  • Business Administration
  • Chemistry
  • Cultural Studies
  • Development Studies
  • Government
  • Heritage Preservation
  • Hotel and Restaurant
  • International Relations and Diplomacy
  • Leadership
  • Management
  • Museum Studies
  • Public Administration
  • Social Work
  • Tourism
Diploma & Certificate 2 programs
  • Law
  • Social Work

Faculties & Divisions

All faculties operate under Ministry of Higher and Tertiary Education, Innovation, Science and Technology Development of Zimbabwe.

Agriculture, Environment and Natural Resources Management (Faculty) 9 subjects offered

Specialisations & Subjects

  • Agricultural Economics
  • Agriculture
  • Agronomy
  • Animal Husbandry
  • Horticulture
  • Natural Resources
  • Soil Management
  • Water Management
  • Wildlife
Arts and Humanities (Faculty) 13 subjects offered

Specialisations & Subjects

  • African Languages
  • African Studies
  • Archaeology
  • Communication Studies
  • Cultural Studies
  • Development Studies
  • English
  • Film
  • Heritage Preservation
  • History
  • Museum Studies
  • Religious Studies
  • Theatre
Business Sciences (Faculty) 12 subjects offered

Specialisations & Subjects

  • Accountancy
  • Business Administration
  • Economics
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Hotel and Restaurant
  • Information Sciences
  • Insurance
  • Leisure Studies
  • Logistics Management
  • Management
  • Marketing
  • Tourism
Education (Faculty) 11 subjects offered

Specialisations & Subjects

  • Art Education
  • Business Education
  • Education
  • Educational Administration
  • Educational Sciences
  • Educational Technology
  • Humanities and Social Science Education
  • Pedagogy
  • Primary Education
  • Science Education
  • Technology Education
Engineering and Geosciences (Faculty) 6 subjects offered

Specialisations & Subjects

  • Energy Engineering
  • Geology
  • Materials Engineering
  • Mechanical Engineering
  • Metallurgical Engineering
  • Mining Engineering
Law (Faculty) 3 subjects offered

Specialisations & Subjects

  • Law
  • Private Law
  • Public Law
Medicine and Health Sciences (Faculty) 6 subjects offered

Specialisations & Subjects

  • Anatomy
  • Biochemistry
  • Medicine
  • Physiology
  • Psychiatry and Mental Health
  • Surgery
Science and Technology (Faculty) 11 subjects offered

Specialisations & Subjects

  • Applied Mathematics
  • Applied Physics
  • Biological and Life Sciences
  • Biotechnology
  • Chemistry
  • Computer Science
  • Food Science
  • Nutrition
  • Statistics
  • Surveying and Mapping
  • Telecommunications Engineering
Social Sciences (Faculty) 15 subjects offered

Specialisations & Subjects

  • Environmental Studies
  • Geography (Human)
  • Government
  • Human Resources
  • Music
  • Musicology
  • Peace and Disarmament
  • Protective Services
  • Psychology
  • Public Administration
  • Social and Community Services
  • Social Sciences
  • Social Studies
  • Social Work
  • Sustainable Development
Business Leadership (Graduate School) 1 subject offered

Specialisations & Subjects

  • Business Administration

Programs Offered

Every programme Midlands State University currently runs, grouped by degree level and searchable.

255 programmes on record. Each level below shows a sample. Compare these on the programs page All programs in Zimbabwe

Bachelor's Degree 135 programmes

Bachelor's Degree in Accounting
Accounting

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Bachelor's Degree in Actuarial Sciences
Natural Sciences

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Bachelor's Degree in Adult Education
Education & Teaching

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Bachelor's Degree in Agricultural Economics and Development
Agriculture

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Bachelor's Degree in Agricultural Value Chain and Marketing
Marketing

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Bachelor's Degree in Agricultural Water Management
Agriculture

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Bachelor's Degree in Agronomy
Agriculture

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Bachelor's Degree in Animal and Wildlife Sciences
Animal Science

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Bachelor's Degree in Animal Products Processing Technology
Law

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Bachelor's Degree in Anthropology
Social & Cultural Studies

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Showing 10 of 135.

Master's Degree 101 programmes

Master's Degree in Accounting
Accounting

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Master's Degree in Adult Education
Education & Teaching

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Master's Degree in African and Diasporan Literature
Literature

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Master's Degree in African History
History

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Master's Degree in African Languages and Culture
Linguistics & Language Studies

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Master's Degree in Agricultural Informatics and Data Analytics
Agriculture

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Master's Degree in Agriculture and Environmental Science
Agriculture

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Master's Degree in Agronomy
Agriculture

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Master's Degree in Analytical Chemistry
Chemistry

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Master's Degree in Animal Breeding and Biotechnology
Biotechnology

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Showing 10 of 101.

Doctorate 2 programmes

Doctorate in Business Leadership
Business & Management

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Certificate 1 programme

Certificate in Social Work
Social Work

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Diploma 16 programmes

Diploma in Adult and Continuing Education
Education & Teaching

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Diploma in Development Studies
Politics & International Relations

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Diploma in Disability Studies

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Diploma in Human Resource Management
Human Resource Management

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Diploma in Humanitarian Emergency and Disaster Risk Management
Emergency & Disaster Management

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Diploma in International Relations
Politics & International Relations

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Diploma in Local Government Management
Public Administration

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Diploma in Media and Society Studies
Media Studies & Mass Media

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Diploma in Paralegal Studies
Law

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Diploma in Peacekeeping and Conflict Resolution
Development Studies

Programme website (opens in a new tab)

Showing 10 of 16.

How to apply to Midlands State University

A short guide to applying to Midlands State University — five steps.

  1. 1
    Research programmes at Midlands State University

    Begin by reviewing the programmes section above. Midlands State University offers 255 programmes grouped by qualification level. Decide on a target tier (bachelor's, master's, or doctoral) before narrowing by subject.

  2. 2
    Review admissions criteria

    Each programme at Midlands State University has its own entry requirements — academic minimums, language proficiency, supporting documents, and sometimes interviews or portfolios. Check the programme-specific page or contact admissions to confirm eligibility.

  3. 3
    Gather supporting documents

    Most applications require certified academic records, identification documents, language test certificates (IELTS, TOEFL, or equivalent for English-medium programmes), CV/résumé, and a statement of purpose. Allow extra time for document authentication.

  4. 4
    Lodge your application

    Apply directly via Midlands State University's online portal at ww5.msu.ac.zw. Complete the application form, upload supporting documents, and pay any application fee. Confirmation emails typically arrive within a few business days.

  5. 5
    Confirm receipt and track progress

    After submitting, confirm receipt with the admissions office and track your application status through the portal. You can reach the institution by email at info@mco.msu.ac.zw or by phone at +263 (54) 260404. Set reminders for any interview requests, additional document submissions, or admission decision deadlines.

Frequently Asked Questions about Midlands State University

Concise answers to common questions about Midlands State University.

When was Midlands State University founded?

Midlands State University was established in 1999 (approximately 27 years ago).

Where can I find Midlands State University?

The institution is located in Gweru, Zimbabwe.

Is Midlands State University a public or private institution?

Midlands State University operates as a public institution.

How many students does Midlands State University have?

The institution has a student body of 22,000.

What programmes are available at Midlands State University?

Programmes at Midlands State University cover bachelor's, master's and doctoral programmes.

How many faculties does Midlands State University have?

The institution comprises 6 academic units.

Is Midlands State University accredited?

Midlands State University is accredited by Zimbabwe Council for Higher Education (ZIMCHE).

Where can I learn more about Midlands State University?

The institution's website is ww5.msu.ac.zw.

Members of Association of African Universities (AAU)

These universities are also members of Association of African Universities (AAU).

Where Else to Study Business & Management

Other institutions in Zimbabwe teaching Business & Management are listed below for comparison with Midlands State University.

Universities Compared with Midlands State University

The institutions below are of a similar academic scale to Midlands State University.

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