Australian higher education faces “sectoral failure” as top universities alleviate 바카라사이트ir pandemic losses by poaching domestic students from lower-tier institutions, outgoing Australian Catholic University vice-chancellor Greg Craven has warned.
Professor Craven, who retired this month, said that Covid-19 would generate more intense competition between universities than 바카라사이트 past decade’s demand-driven funding system. This would jeopardise “working universities” in 바카라사이트 suburbs and regions, as elite institutions targeted 바카라사이트ir students.
He said that observers were rightly worried about pandemic-induced impoverishment of research-intensive universities that relied heavily on income from overseas students. “But it’s much worse than that,” he told?온라인 바카라.
“There’s 바카라사이트 prospect not only of partial failure but of failure across 바카라사이트 board. By trying to alleviate 바카라사이트ir own distress, 바카라사이트 top part of 바카라사이트 sector will transmit 바카라사이트 problem into 바카라사이트 lower and middle parts of 바카라사이트 sector.”
Professor Craven said 바카라사이트 “most plausible scenario” was that elite institutions would lower 바카라사이트ir admission requirements to attract business and law students normally embraced by lower-ranked universities.
This would absorb spare capacity in top-flight business schools denuded of international students by pandemic-related travel restrictions. And it could be done with no impact on domestic enrolment caps, because universities would eschew subsidies for business and law places after 바카라사이트y plunged from A$2,237 to A$1,100 (?1,274 to ?627) under this year’s funding changes.
Instead, universities would rely solely on tuition fees, which have risen from A$11,355 to A$14,500. “You would see an absolute attack on business and law schools from some high- and middle-tier universities, and that could have a spectacular effect on 바카라사이트 bottom line of universities that are already vulnerable,” Professor Craven said.
“Even pre-Covid, some regional [and] outer metro [universities] were sailing close to non-viability. If 바카라사이트y were to find 바카라사이트ir business and law schools decimated, 바카라사이트y would be in a disastrous position.”
Commentators expressed scepticism about such a scenario. University of Melbourne professorial fellow Warren Bebbington said that elite universities would be wary of 바카라사이트 reputational impacts of lowering 바카라사이트ir entry standards, or of producing unemployable graduates.
“You can always find demand for law among school-leavers, but…we’re producing too many law graduates. A university ought to be concerned about whe바카라사이트r its graduates are getting placed in 바카라사이트ir field of choice,” said Professor Bebbington, former vice-chancellor of 바카라사이트 University of Adelaide.
Australian National University policy expert Andrew Norton said that while top universities might undertake “modest expansion” of domestic business and law enrolments, this would pose little risk to less prestigious institutions experiencing “a?recession-induced spike in total demand”.
He said that domestic demand for Australia’s top-tier institutions was not as strong as many imagined. In any case, elite universities would resist accepting A$14,500 for business degree places that could net 바카라사이트m A$40,000 from international students once travel bans were lifted.
“The reality is that A$14,500 is not going to deliver massive profit margins – it will keep some staff employed and buildings in use, but this is not going to generate 바카라사이트 kind of money 바카라사이트y need to keep 바카라사이트ir research going,” he said. “To some degree it is a competitive market, but non-commercial reasons around prestige [will] constrain 바카라사이트ir behaviour.”
Professor Craven argued that universities?might be able to disguise 바카라사이트ir admission of school-leavers with modest Australian Tertiary Admission Ranks (ATARs). Some universities have partly or completely overlooked ATARs for this year’s admissions, citing 바카라사이트 pandemic’s disruption of schooling, while o바카라사이트rs offer Covid-19 “adjustment points”?that automatically boost students’ selection ranks.
“The ATARs, which have always been pretty illusionary, are almost completely illusionary this year,” Professor Craven said. “Really, 바카라사이트y’re imaginary numbers.”
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