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2005 is Shaping up as a Great Year for the University
3 July 2004
Next year is shaping up to be one of the most exciting years to
date. We are now gearing up for an overdue major phase of
development.
In recent years our growth has been modest and achieved mainly
through activities like internationalisation, rather than the
expansion of our core offerings. In what has been generally a tough
decade for all Australian universities, we have nevertheless
achieved a remarkable growth trajectory, exceeding all initial
predictions, some of which were 'doom and gloom'.
A new Commonwealth funding formula will benefit the University
and contribute to the expansion of our range of disciplines, and
also enable us to embark on our next major stage of building to
increase our 'institutional capacity' in a physical sense.
Our recent inability to expand significantly our range of
disciplines or fields of study has been our greatest impediment. I
receive countless complaints from disgruntled prospective students
that we do not offer their preferred area of study and they have to
go to Brisbane or elsewhere. Most have no idea that the University
has to adhere to Commonwealth quotas and we are only funded for
those quotas.
Running private courses with up-front full fees would not be a
popular alternative for many students at present.
Now, we can begin to expand our range of offerings and meet the
needs of more students.
The scope of this expansion will be influenced by the pending
announcement from Dr Nelson in the next few weeks. If we receive
the 500 new places we have requested it will be a major boost for
this growing area and its students. It will help alleviate the
pressure and frustration that is building up, that only a
university of increased scale can ameliorate.
A new building will be required for 2006 and as soon as we know
the number of growth places we are allocated, we will need to gauge
the scale and cost of what will be Stage VI for which preliminary
planning has already been accomplished.
The other dimensions of growth next year will be in relation to
increased international activity, especially students undertaking
full degree courses, paying full up-front fees, and not displacing
domestic HECS students.
The plans for the incubator in the Innovation Centre and the
technology precinct at Sippy Downs are receiving support from
private developers and from all levels of government. It is a
critical period for the new Sippy Downs urban village and its
importance for the region and in its links with the University in
generating high-level employment opportunities. It will be
important that Council approvals for development are consistent
with the themes that have permeated official documents since 1994,
and that the Centre is not degraded by inappropriate low-cost
profiteering projects. It is time for the Sippy Downs vision to
become a reality, and the intensity and positive nature of most
current discussions suggest that 2005 will see significant
advances.
To administer the many facets of growth, and to exploit the
range of opportunities is becoming an increasingly complex task. In
preparation for 2005 there was always going to be a need to
restructure the University's administration. These discussions will
continue over the next month or so, in parallel with the
consideration of funding, strategic redirectioning, and various
consultancies that are ongoing at the moment.
It is an exciting time, and another period when positive people
can make a quantum improvement to the University. Thankfully, we
have never been short of positive, entrepreneurial staff who have
been dedicated to the long-term success of the University. We are
entering another period when such people will again, I am sure,
take us to the next level where we will be even more competitive,
attractive, and influential.
Professor Paul Thomas is Vice-Chancellor of University of
the Sunshine Coast