The Age | 22 October 2012 The Victorian state government is facing a backlash from tertiary students and staff over plans to strip them of their right to guaranteed seats on the governing bodies of TAFEs and universities. At present university councils and TAFE boards must include staff and student representatives, but a spokesman for Higher Education Minister Peter Hall confirmed the government would amend this legislation. He said students and staff would need to prove they had the "necessary skills" before they could be appointed to their institute's governing body. While staff and students may have such skills sets, it is inappropriate to mandate that such groups be … [Read more...]
NSW VET market – smart & skilled?
25/10/2012 By
The Australian | 24 October 2012 Under the NSW state government’s long awaited response to last year’s ‘Smart and skilled’ discussion paper, NSW TAFEs will compete with private Registered Training Organisations (RTOs) for the right to offer courses up to certificate III level. Their revenue will depend on their ability to attract students, who will be able to take their business to any state government-approved provider under the ‘training entitlement’ model signed off by the Council of Australian Governments in April. NSW has been at pains to differentiate its model from Victoria’s open training market, where snowballing enrolments at private colleges … [Read more...]
Research cut stirs university divisions
25/10/2012 By
The Australian | 24 October 2012 The Commonwealth government's $500 million cut in research funds has driven a wedge into the sector, pitting the student access and expansion agenda against the research funding that drives global rankings for elite research universities. Group of Eight chairman and University of NSW vice-chancellor Fred Hilmer has slammed the delay in new money for indirect research costs, blaming the blowout in the cost of the government's "ill conceived" uncapping of student places. But he immediately put offside those universities that have aggressively expanded places. Greg Craven, vice-chancellor of the fast-growing Australian Catholic University, … [Read more...]
Making PhD degrees relevant for the ‘real world’
25/10/2012 By
Monash News | 22 October 2012 Around the globe, the future of the PhD degree and the changes it needs to respond to today’s employment challenges are being debated. While there is no doubt that research excellence and high quality supervision should be the cornerstone of all doctoral degrees, today’s PhD graduates need to be better equipped for the range of career pathways available to them. Compared to many other countries, Australia is in danger of falling behind when it comes to producing well-rounded PhD graduates. Monash is one of the first Australian universities to respond to this challenge with the new ‘Monash PhD’ to be rolled out in 2013, according to … [Read more...]
TEQSA “hindering online growth”
25/10/2012 By
This post has been removed at the request of Campus Review … [Read more...]
Cuts “undermine economic credibility”
25/10/2012 By
The Australian | 25 October 2012 Mini-budget cuts to higher education, research and skills have undermined the government's economic credibility, according to opposition policy heavyweight and shadow finance minister Andrew Robb. Robb, a former Vocational and Further Education Minister, says the cuts make a mockery of the government’s concerns about sagging productivity levels. At a time when we need to broaden our economic base and reduce our reliance on mining and resources, the government severely undermines the very things that will drive innovation, sustainable growth and improvement in productivity. Training and skills, including re-skilling, are fundamental to … [Read more...]
The graduate premium – less for women
25/10/2012 By
NATSEM | 24 October 2012 Australians with postgraduate degrees will earn almost double, or $3.2 million, over their working lives compared to people with Year 11 or less qualification, who can expect to earn only $1.7 million, according to the latest AMP-NATSEM Income and Wealth Report: Smart Australians. But women still face earnings inequality with the report finding that a 25 year old woman with a postgraduate degree can expect to earn just two thirds of her male counterpart’s lifetime earnings, $2.5 million compared to $3.2 million. According to the report, there has been a massive generational shift in educational attainment in Australia with 77% of students now … [Read more...]
The Scan Main Edition 25 October 2012
25/10/2012 By
Main Edition | 25 October 2012 | Issue no. 96 _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ United they stand...perhaps Universities Australia chairman Glyn Davis says it will reach a unified policy position well ahead of the next federal election. And it is likely likely have some surprises in it. This is UA’s first attempt to formulate a joint policy position. But its attempts had been met with scepticism after bitter wrangling on a unified position on student fees - which has not yet been released. [Continue reading]... Research cuts stir divisions The Commonwealth government's $500 million cut in research … [Read more...]