Are universities getting more or less diverse?
19 April 2008
Both the previous Commonwealth government and the current one, are in agreement that we must have a diverse set of universities in this country. Each university would be given more influence in how it defined its role, and it might then be funded for that distinctive role. The sector has always been diverse in reality, but now it must become demonstrably moreso. And I have a great deal of sympathy with that view, as I believe most people in universities have.
For USC, being different was a necessity from the outset. With our meagre initial resources, had we attempted to emulate other nearby universities with more history and money than us, we would have been on a track to fail in the competitive world of higher education.
Instead, we looked first and foremost at the Sunshine Coast region and carefully gauged how we could attract students who in some cases had previously not even considered university entry, whilst at the same time considering how we could address the advancement of the Coast economically, socially and environmentally.
In addressing those issues we have successfully unleashed much of the latent student talent, most of which now remains on the Coast on graduation. Gradually, more and more are finding good career jobs and that in no small part is due to our choice of courses and the way those courses are run with links to the real world of the Coast.
Even from the 1994 planning, it became obvious that ‘engagement’ with the regional community to influence the academic agenda was to be a high priority, as was the environmentally sensitively designed campus to promote sustainable architecture. With each year of growth ‘engagement’ and ‘sustainability’ have become more pervasive driving forces of the University’s position as one of the country’s fastest growing.
So many other universities are now becoming interested in these themes. Most recently, last week we learnt that our nearest sandstone competitor for high-performing students, is also going to pursue ‘engagement’ and ‘sustainability’ in how that university is configured and operated.
So it is going to be an interesting period ahead, where there will be expectations of a more diversified sector, but where some of the trends are suggesting convergence on major drivers.
Professor Paul Thomas AM is Vice-Chancellor at the University of the Sunshine Coast.