This article identifies sources of HIV/AIDS information used by residential students on the Pietermaritzburg campus of the
former University of Natal (now the University of KwaZulu-Natal). A questionnaire targeted at residential students on the
Pietermaritzburg campus was used to determine which sources of HIV/AIDS information they used.
The study upon which the article is based found that HIV/AIDS has become an everyday reality in the university system.
There was a need for a clearer, more forceful definition of roles and responsibilities amongst all the partners in response to
the epidemic. Residential students were generally satisfied with the existing sources of HIV/AIDS information but they did
encounter problems in accessing some sources.
The authors argue that it is time for the university sector and its partners to take stock of a situation that might quickly
outpace the institution. Provision of relevant information in an appropriate format needs to be an integral part of the
University’s response to HIV/AIDS. Sources that were used most frequently should be utilised by university information
stakeholders to disseminate information among students.
