Some commentators are rejoicing that the rivalry between the University of Sydney and UNSW is thriving, with the release of the latest QS university rankings. Last year both institutions tied at 19th in the world. This year Sydney has inched ahead, securing the 18th spot, while UNSW stands firm at 19th.
Both institutions have been regarded as close competitors for years. When QS data was first used in 2004, UNSW sat at 36 and Sydney was at 40. Gradually Sydney inched ahead until it drew equal with UNSW last year.
But while superficially this looks like a competition, any academic at either institution will know that the universities collaborate non-stop.
Which university in the world is the leading collaborator of UNSW? It is the University of Sydney.
More than 15% of UNSW’s academic publications contain an author from Sydney. A similar proportion of papers by researchers at Sydney, contain a UNSW co-author. In my own publication record, you’ll also see that I have collaborated more across the city than with any other institution.
Similarly, Melbourne’s main collaborator is Monash. UNSW and Sydney also collaborate effectively with Melbourne and Monash (about 7% of publications), than we co-publish with other world leading universities, like Oxford and Harvard (about 2% or 1 in 50 of our papers). And onward it goes, across the globe.
Many people I’ve met, including politicians and senior leaders in Australia, have told me that if only Australian universities would collaborate more, and compete less, then we’d be much more productive. Whenever new initiatives are launched we are urged to get together, and work together so that the outcomes can be maximized. What I’ve found is that we always do, and we do it readily because we are so used to collaborating.
But for some reason this is not widely known.
People keep emphasising and encouraging more collaboration, but there is so much already, that I warn the up-and-coming researchers that I mentor not to collaborate too much initially. I urge them to develop their own interests, expertise, and ideas, so that when the time comes, they will be able to bring something unique to the collaboration, and make a meaningful contribution.
So, where does the perception that universities compete so very fiercely, that it is to their own and to everyone’s detriment, come from?
Academia is a competitive career. There are always more ideas than there are resources to pursue them, there are always more aspiring research students, lecturers, and professors, than there are jobs available. Publish or perish is real, and there are not always prizes for second place. But as in many, or most, aspects of human society, academics who can collaborate fairly, in addition to leading their own research programs, usually end up best placed.
At the leadership level, Vice-Chancellors have a responsibility to bring in and manage the resources needed to enable their students and staff to thrive. They have to make sure that the institution gets the right proportion of research funding, students and student fees, and goes after appropriate opportunities provided by governments and other stakeholders for new initiatives, such as new buildings or new teaching or research programs. Again, there are always more universities keen to grow than there are opportunities for growth available, so there are regular instances of competition.
But it is not competition day in, day out. If you attend any of the Universities Australia events – be it the plenaries with the Vice-Chancellors, the meetings of the Deputy Vice-Chancellors Research, or Academic, or sector wide meetings of Deans, you will witness lifelong friendships being formed between people with similar interests and values.
This isn’t like in football, where players compete on the field, but are friends off the field. This is different. Here people representing different institutions are friends on the field too. They may not compete at all, or only every now and then, but they share knowledge at every opportunity – that’s what academics do.
I have mixed views about league tables. Like star ratings for films, or lists of ‘books you should read before you die,’ they provide some information on the comparative strengths of institutions, and about who is improving. But the tables are too prominent. They give the illusion that we are in a football competition. And as fun as football can be, we are a million miles from that.
Professor Merlin Crossley isDeputy Vice-Chancellor Academic Quality at UNSW
