The Independent Higher Education Association has a precisely-targeted election ask. It wants the next government to reduce duplicate regulation for providers in both VET and HE – by excluding ASQA and leaving everything to TEQSA. Imagine that – a lobby asking for more TEQSA attention!
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With just a week and a bit until election day, the Council for the Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences finally got around to issuing its election-ask on Tuesday. “There is a wide sense that the sector’s subtle but substantial contribution to sovereign capability remains underestimated therefore under-resourced,” is the pitch.
CHASS wants the end of discriminatory high costs for arts students, “a more consistent approach” to international student numbers, and money for the galleries, libraries, archives and museums sector.
Plus “support for curiosity driven research,” because, “commercialisation is different to impact.”
“Where utilitarian purposes might not be easily identifiable, excellence will nonetheless produce understanding and skills that contribute to Australians’ ability to take their place as knowledgeable and well-informed citizens.” Does not quite have the ring of the medical research lobby’s “looking to cure childhood cancer,” message.
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Western Sydney U projects a $79m deficit for ’26 up $70m on what was expected. VC George Williams attributes it to caps on international student numbers, increased competition on its patch and a drop in demand for courses, “no doubt due in many cases to cost-of-living pressures.” And so, he warns, up to 400 positions have to go, presumably starting with the 120 empty ones. Perhaps things would not be so grim if the university had not increased staff costs by 10% or so in both 2022 and 2023. Still, it could be worse – while 2024 financials are not released, $70m in the red is way better than the $142m loss on continuing operations in ’22, followed by $143m in ‘23m. And Professor Williams is keen to show that the savings start at the top, announcing a “25% cut” to the senior executive – from eight to six.
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Election give-away of the week: Labor promises a 20 med-student a year intake at Uni Tasmania’s Launceston campus; meaning they will be able to do their entire degree there. The promise is funded the same way as QUT’s med-school-to-be, also announced during the campaign. U Tas will convert existing Commonwealth Supported Places into medical ones, “ensuring this does not impact other national priority or skill shortage areas such as health and teaching.” Launceston is in the seat of Bass, held for the Liberal Party in 2022 by Bridgett Arthur with 51% of the two party preferred vote.
In 2023, the Labor Government created 20 medical student places a year at U Tasmania Burnie, now held by the Liberals with an 8% 2PP margin.
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A large research project into higher degree candidate-supervisor relationships finds 70.9% of the former and 84.9% of the latter were either satisfied or very satisfied. The three things that made candidates most cross were; supervisors not providing “timely and constructive feedback,” not “clearly communicating expectations” and ignoring candidates. Supervisors were most annoyed by candidates not communicating progress, “rebuffing or ignoring” feedback and misrepresenting their research background or capacity.
“Very few” candidates and “a small number” of supervisors formally reported or complained about “impactful behaviours.” The UNSW report covers in great detail the causes and consequences of “unsatisfying” relationships.
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Uni Newcastle wants a dental school, with a 30-student intake in the first year and a 5.5 year program. The university’s pitch includes a 50-chair community clinic.
It does not say where, but the university already teaches oral health at its Central Coast Ourimbah campus, although it has a flash new clinical medicine school coming at regional capital, Gosford.
The university mentions in passing that the feds would have to fund the student places, which makes half-way through an election campaign not great timing for the announcement. Unless, of course, there is an announcement imminent. Labor holds the local electorates of Dobell (just) and Robertson.
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The blue @ ANU I
There is a new front in the bitter conflict at ANU over VC Genevieve Bell’s plan to cut $250m from its cost base including $100m from staff. The National Tertiary Education Union has campaigned hard against the proposal, including a member no-confidence vote against Professor Bell and Chancellor Julie Bishop. Rumour-mongering about both has also run in friendly media and in union-friendly Canberra this has had a big impact. But so far, the University Council is standing firm. Just before Easter, Provost Rebekha Brown and COO Jonathan Churchill released a carefully drafted statement of “change principles” to govern specific restructure operating proposals, apparently worded to stand up against a union challenge in the Fair Work Commission. Which looks like it will happen, with the union appearing set to claim the proposal for restructures breaches ANU’s enterprise agreement.
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UNSW is preparing to end its tri-semester academic year and return to the traditional two 12 week semesters, with six week courses available in the winter and summer breaks. But not until 2028.
So why ditch it? “When we introduced our 3+ calendar, the university experience was centred around physical campus space limitations and aligning with the northern hemisphere for in-person international learning. As the education sector evolves, so do student needs, learning preferences, and the role of universities to support lifelong learning,” is management’s line.
Yes, but really, why ditch it? Students hated it when introduced in 2019 and it isn’t much more popular now. “The decision was made after a long and involved process of consultation, development and evaluation with the UNSW community – over 6,000 students and staff contributed,” the university states.. Management could have saved itself time and grief and listened to students and staff when the 3+ plan was floated in 2017. “There has been no pedagogical argument provided as to how the changes will improve the quality of education delivery at UNSW. Instead there will be reduced timeframes for assignment turn around, reduced study breaks to prepare for exams, and a likely reduction in assessment,” the campus National Tertiary Education Union warned.
The SRC agreed, “students hold strong concerns that trimesters will result in … overworked staff who have to place content within shorter teaching periods.”
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The blue @ ANU II
There’s a staff-elected vacancy on ANU Council and the campus branch of the National Tertiary Education Union is running a primary for members to choose a candidate for the politbureau to endorse.
So far, there are five candidates; all academics, and none happy with management. They include economics professor Rohan Pitchford who has had a quizzical look at the finances, which are the reason given by management for the deeply unpopular proposed savings. He concludes ANU is financially stable, contingent on the feds sending the National Contingent Grant – which the Commonwealth provides “for facilitating key activities that are of national significance.”
Last year it was $237m, half of total national government funding. The 2024 annual report will not be out until tabled in Parliament, but in 2023, ANU had an operating deficit of $132m. Which surely makes a case for savings, if only to be on the safe side if the Coalition wins. Liberal education spokesperson Sarah Henderson does not think much of ANU’s leadership, if her questions in Senate committee hearings are an indication. As to where cuts could come from, Professor Pitchford points to spending at the University Centre level that “significantly exceeds” that at the university’s academic colleges.
