Setup of a nuclear unit at an academic institution

The paper is a practical guide for setting up a 2 nd degree nuclear unit at a higher education institution, in accordance with teaching requirements and the current radiation protection standards. General considerations are given alongside guidelines that are specific with an academic institution. The ending section provides concrete calculation of some quantities such as the thickness of irradiation chamber walls for different materials, external exposure dose, protection screens, as well as instructions on how to select container types for various sources (e.g. 24 Na, 60 Co, of 100 n Ci activity etc.) of wide-spread use in such facilities. (Author)