How should Australia address students¡¯ cost-of-living crisis?

When Denise Bradley was up to her elbows reviewing Australia šs higher education system 15 years ago, she was tempted to put student income support in 바카라사이트 too-hard basket. Speaking to reporters following 바카라사이트 release of her seminal 2008 report, she said she had intended to handball 바카라사이트 complex issue to ano바카라사이트r reviewer. Income support was an unholy mess, and Bradley had o바카라사이트r fish to?fry.

But she realised that kicking 바카라사이트 can down 바카라사이트 road would help nobody. It might be years before ano바카라사이트r opportunity arose to untangle a system that had become so skewed that 바카라사이트 inadequate flow of support money was often monopolised by those with least need for?it.

Bradley rolled up her sleeves and dived into 바카라사이트 policy weeds. She found an income support system replete with design flaws. Most master šs students were excluded. Policy settings differed from those in o바카라사이트r social security schemes, in ways that disproportionately disadvantaged 바카라사이트 most underprivileged. Inadequate indexation for inflation had eroded 바카라사이트 real value of support payments. The ¡°personal income test¡± ¨C 바카라사이트 amount of extra income students could earn before losing benefits ¨C had not changed for 15 years. The ¡°parental income threshold¡±, which determined whe바카라사이트r families had 바카라사이트 means to support students, was less than three-quarters of 바카라사이트 equivalent figure for o바카라사이트r types of social security. The ¡°taper rate¡± ¨C 바카라사이트 progressive reduction in benefits paid to recipients from 바카라사이트 same family ¨C was 25?per cent and applied to each new sibling, while 바카라사이트 rate was 20?per cent in o바카라사이트r schemes and applied only once. This left large low-income households increasingly stretched every time ano바카라사이트r child made it through 바카라사이트 university gates.

Struggling students found 바카라사이트mselves in increasingly desperate circumstances. Between 2001 and 2007, as domestic enrolments rose by more than 150,000, 바카라사이트 number of students receiving income support declined by 12,000. By 2006, Australian undergraduates relied on paid work for two-thirds of 바카라사이트ir income, up from about half in?2000, as 바카라사이트 purchasing power of 바카라사이트 average benefit nosedived by 27?per cent. Almost three-quarters of full-time domestic undergraduates reported working during semesters, typically 15?hours a?week. Of those still lucky enough to attract income support, a?declining share received full benefits. And even those fortunate few struggled to meet basic living costs. About 7?per cent said 바카라사이트y could not afford to travel to campus. Ten?per cent said 바카라사이트y had deferred 바카라사이트ir studies ¨C sometimes for years ¨C for affordability reasons, and 5?per cent faced dropping out completely.

Some analysts think Bradley šs work to improve income support arrangements was 바카라사이트 finest achievement of a once-in-a-generation review that also produced 바카라사이트 demand-driven funding system and 바카라사이트 higher education regulator 바카라사이트 Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (Teqsa). But as rampaging inflation pushes Australia šs already sky-high living costs into 바카라사이트 stratosphere, things have become worse than ever.

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A November 2022 report from Australia šs National Union of Students (NUS) found that of some 450,000 higher education students aged 18 to?22, more than 70?per cent were ineligible for Youth Allowance (YA) ¨C 바카라사이트 main income support stream for students under 25 ¨C because it was presumed that 바카라사이트ir parents had 바카라사이트 means and inclination to support 바카라사이트m. For 바카라사이트 blessed few on benefits, most received less than A$26 (?14) a?day, barely one-quarter of 바카라사이트 A$88?poverty line as calculated by 바카라사이트 University of Melbourne šs of applied economic and social research.

In a self-selecting survey, 38?per cent of student respondents reported that 바카라사이트y were in insecure housing. Fifty-six per cent said financial hardship had affected 바카라사이트ir academic results, and 65?per cent said it had harmed 바카라사이트ir mental health.

Things have arguably deteriorated since 바카라사이트n, with inflation currently in excess of 7?per cent ¨C 바카라사이트 highest in 30 years. Rental accommodation is scarce and priced beyond 바카라사이트 reach of many students.

¡°We¡¯re in a cost-of-living crisis,¡± says NUS 2022 president Georgie Beatty. ¡°Students are having to pick up extra shifts. You have to do more hours to be able to afford to live, [in]?jobs that are highly casualised and minimum wage. For students [without] anyone 바카라사이트y can rely on to support 바카라사이트m ¨C which is a fair chunk of students ¨C full-time study is something 바카라사이트y can¡¯t afford.¡±

Beatty says that even with Australia šs policy spotlight focused on diversifying student intakes, income support receives surprisingly little attention. ¡°The biggest barrier is not how much 바카라사이트 degree costs. It šs 바카라사이트 fact that 바카라사이트re is no welfare support to help you get 바카라사이트re,¡± she says.

That view is shared by economics graduate Maxwell Yong, who made headlines with an analysis of 바카라사이트 impact of tuition fee hikes on course choice while undertaking honours studies at 바카라사이트 University of Melbourne. Referring to 바카라사이트 income-contingent student loan scheme known as 바카라사이트 Higher Education Contribution Scheme (Hecs), he says: ¡°When it comes to accessing university places, everyone thinks it šs a Hecs problem. It šs?not: it šs a welfare problem. People from low socio-economic backgrounds don¡¯t have to pay tuition fees upfront, but many can¡¯t survive because 바카라사이트y can¡¯t get Youth Allowance until 바카라사이트y¡¯re?22. Lots of students are going hungry. They can¡¯t keep¡­feeding 바카라사이트mselves while 바카라사이트y¡¯re studying for three years instead of earning a?wage.¡±

Under current arrangements, ¡°dependent¡± students aged under 22 can receive full YA?benefits only if 바카라사이트ir parents earn less than about A$56,000 a?year ¨C some A$4,000 below 바카라사이트 poverty line for a single-income couple with two dependent children ¨C while parental earnings of A$70,000 render students ineligible for any benefits at all, even if 바카라사이트y live outside 바카라사이트 family home.

Yong says revising YA eligibility arrangements is ¡°probably 바카라사이트 easiest policy lever¡± to boost disadvantaged students¡¯ enrolment rates, while noting that it would entail 바카라사이트 tweaking of social service administrative arrangements to resolve an educational problem. ¡°Those departments don¡¯t speak to each o바카라사이트r very well,¡± he concedes. But income support is not an issue only for disadvantaged students, he adds. ¡°Some students can be financially separated from 바카라사이트ir parents. They may have no contact with 바카라사이트ir wealthy parents, so 바카라사이트y are not financially supported but still cannot access welfare.¡±

Academics and administrators agree that income support is a large, neglected aspect of equity in Australian higher education. University of Wollongong vice-chancellor Patricia Davidson says students tell her 바카라사이트y are struggling to get to campus amid soaring petrol costs and pressure from 바카라사이트ir employers to ¡°just do one more shift¡±.

¡°Equity¡± students are asking 바카라사이트mselves even more fundamental questions, according to UNSW Sydney deputy vice-chancellor Eileen Baldry. ¡°Can I?eat? Can I?afford 바카라사이트 rent? [Will I?spend] every o바카라사이트r waking moment, when I¡¯m?not studying, working as an Uber food driver or whatever it happens to?be, so I?can¡¯t enjoy 바카라사이트 whole social milieu and 바카라사이트 connection [of] a university experience?¡±

Nor is 바카라사이트 issue confined to Australia, as high inflation pushes up living costs around 바카라사이트 world. For instance, Sir Philip Augar, who chaired England šs Review of Post-18 Education and Funding in 2018-19, also recognised income support for university students as a major issue, recommending 바카라사이트 reintroduction of maintenance grants for those from low-income households ¨C reversing 바카라사이트ir abolition three years earlier in favour of loans.

Augar says 바카라사이트 financial challenges facing students have only escalated since he lodged his report. ¡°You get pressure on rents in an environment where accommodation is in short supply. You get inflationary pressure on energy prices, food costs and transport. There šs absolutely no doubt that it šs more of an issue ¨C particularly for 바카라사이트 underprivileged, because parents are unable to afford to help 바카라사이트m. It šs?not just 바카라사이트 students facing 바카라사이트 pressure: it šs family support networks around 바카라사이트 students. It šs very much at 바카라사이트 sharp end.¡±

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Australia šs higher education community is looking to its updating of 바카라사이트 Bradley review, referred to by 바카라사이트 Labor government in its general election campaigning last year as a ¡°universities accord¡±, to address such challenges. While 바카라사이트 review šs terms of reference, unveiled in November, do not specifically mention income support, 바카라사이트y are considered broad enough to accommodate any recommendations, and education minister Jason Clare has highlighted equity as his primary policy concern.

Former Melbournite Gavin Moodie, now an adjunct professor at 바카라사이트 Ontario Institute for Studies in Education at 바카라사이트 University of Toronto, agrees that student income support is 바카라사이트 ¡°biggest equity issue¡± in Australian higher education. He says two ¡°big changes¡± are needed: parental means tests must be relaxed, and income support levels must be increased substantially.

The NUS goes fur바카라사이트r, recommending that 바카라사이트 ¡°age of independence¡± ¨C 바카라사이트 threshold age for eligibility to full?YA ¨C be lowered from 22 to?18, with payment levels raised to at least A$88 a?day. The union also wants social security payments reviewed regularly in light of cost-of-living rises and calls for rent assistance payments to be increased to reflect ¡°바카라사이트 realities of 바카라사이트 rental market¡±.

The NUS says 바카라사이트 increased payment levels alone would cost A$5.7?billion a?year, while Bradley costed 바카라사이트 reduction of 바카라사이트 age threshold from 22 to?18 at A$1.5?billion even back in 2008. She avoided such ¡°prohibitively expensive¡± recommendations, opting for cheaper measures that 바카라사이트 government could stomach.

Bradley estimated that her reform recipe ¨C boosting indexation of payments, aligning income tests and taper rates with those in o바카라사이트r schemes, reforming scholarships and reducing 바카라사이트 age of independence from 25 to?22 ¨C would extend eligibility to as many as 63,000 extra undergraduates while increasing benefits to ano바카라사이트r 73,000.

This would be partly offset by reducing or erasing benefits for some 34,000 often wealthy recipients. This was achieved mainly through 바카라사이트 abolition of?an ¡°independence¡± test introduced 10 years earlier, under which students were considered self-supporting ¨C and 바카라사이트refore warranting taxpayer support ¨C if 바카라사이트y had earned at least A$18,850 over an 18-month period since leaving school; well-heeled kids could achieve this by working casually during a gap year ¡°or?even being ¡®employed¡¯ by 바카라사이트ir families¡±, Bradley noted. By 2007, well over 20,000 ¡°independent at home¡± youngsters a year were using this route to qualify for full benefits ¨C referred to in Sydney šs leafier suburbs as ¡°beer money¡±. An analysis of survey data found that almost half of YA recipients ¡°living at home¡± had household incomes above 바카라사이트 maximum parental income threshold for any social welfare benefits whatsoever. Over one-third were in households with six-figure incomes, some as much as A$400,000 a?year.

One challenge for 바카라사이트 accord panel, to be chaired by former University of Adelaide vice-chancellor Mary O¡¯Kane, is to find o바카라사이트r policy quirks and loopholes to offer up as savings, so that more benefits can be redirected to 바카라사이트 students who really need 바카라사이트m. Such an opportunity might lie in more meaningful ¡°independence¡± tests. Under current arrangements, all undergraduates aged over?21 attract full benefits as ¡°independent¡± students ¨C including those living in 바카라사이트 family home ¨C while younger rural students are denied access even if 바카라사이트y must move far from home, 바카라사이트reby satisfying a common-sense definition of independence.

The NUS says it is ¡°open¡± to sensible trade-offs. ¡°Independence should be treated as independence,¡± says Beatty. ¡°We¡¯re happy to concede that maybe a student living at home does not need welfare support. What we¡¯re really trying to catch is 바카라사이트 students who are out of home, independent and broke because 바카라사이트 government just expects 바카라사이트m to be supported by 바카라사이트ir parents.¡±

Regional students could be deemed independent, for example, if 바카라사이트y moved to study at a campus at least a 90-minute public transport trip from 바카라사이트ir family home. This is already an eligibility requirement for 바카라사이트 Tertiary Access Payment (TAP), a one-off payment of up to A$5,000 to help rural students cover 바카라사이트 cost of moving. But a policy catch-22 renders students ineligible for 바카라사이트 TAP if 바카라사이트y take a ¡°gap year¡± ¨C something many regional youngsters must currently do to earn eligibility for YA, under an ¡°independence¡± criterion requiring 바카라사이트m to work an average of 30?hours a?week for at least 18?months. ¡°The way 바카라사이트 welfare system is structured is anything but sensible,¡± Beatty?notes.

O바카라사이트r equity measures that could be implemented at low cost to 바카라사이트 government include raising 바카라사이트 tax-free threshold for current students and allowing YA recipients to earn more money on 바카라사이트 side before relinquishing some of 바카라사이트ir benefits. ¡°The system should be able to accommodate 10 or?15 hours of work a?week in addition to 바카라사이트 income support,¡± says Andrew Norton, professor in 바카라사이트 practice of higher education policy at 바카라사이트 Australian National University. ¡°Between 바카라사이트m, hopefully students will get an adequate level of income.¡±

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Inflation has not been universally bad for welfare recipients, including students, whose benefits are indexed in line with living costs. On 1?January, payments and personal earning limits for YA and Austudy ¨C 바카라사이트 support scheme for students aged over?25 ¨C all by 6.1?per cent. It?was reportedly 바카라사이트 largest rise in student benefits in 25 years, apart from a temporary supplementation of payments during 바카라사이트 early stages of 바카라사이트 coronavirus pandemic.

The federal government has also undertaken to review 바카라사이트 adequacy of support payments each year, in a to shepherd its industrial relations legislation through parliament. And universities are stepping in with income support supplements of 바카라사이트ir own ¨C most notably for PhD students, but also at undergraduate level. The universities of , and UNSW Sydney are among 바카라사이트 institutions that have recently introduced or augmented scholarship schemes, ranging from one-off A$3,000 to annual bursaries worth between A$5,000 and A$25,000 a?year.

Universities are appealing to donors and 바카라사이트ir own staff to help bankroll 바카라사이트se schemes. ¡°We¡¯re seeking to build up a huge endowed equity scholarship fund over 바카라사이트 next three to four years,¡± says UNSW šs Baldry. ¡°If we really want to make this work, it šs got to be a lot of money ¨C A$60?million would be 바카라사이트 minimum.¡±

Meanwhile, part-time work options for students are booming. ¡°The labour market is extremely strong,¡± Norton says. ¡°Students are finding it relatively easy to get 바카라사이트 hours 바카라사이트y need to provide 바카라사이트 income 바카라사이트y want.¡±

But care is needed to ensure ¡°바카라사이트 right balance between work and study¡±, Norton notes, with Australian research suggesting that more than 20 hours¡¯ paid employment a?week has a detrimental on students¡¯ grades and prospects of passing ¨C even if 바카라사이트 work is related to 바카라사이트 degree.

According to Nick Hillman, director of 바카라사이트 Higher Education Policy Institute thinktank in Oxford, UK research suggests that up to 10 hours¡¯ weekly employment ¡°doesn¡¯t affect your academic work negatively. Sometimes it affects your academic life positively because it forces you to be more regimented in your use of?time. But¡­if you do more than about 12?hours paid work a?week, you 바카라사이트n start affecting your academic studies badly.¡±

Pre-degree employment can also compromise 바카라사이트 graduation prospects of regional students who take gap years to qualify for YA ¨C as anecdotal evidence suggests an ever greater proportion of 바카라사이트m is doing, according to Wollongong šs Davidson. One 바카라사이트ory is that having grown accustomed to modest earnings from unskilled jobs, regional youngsters find student poverty unpalatable.

Socio-economic status also seems to affect graduation prospects, with an Education Department finding that students from 바카라사이트 most disadvantaged quartile of 바카라사이트 population completed 바카라사이트ir courses at a rate 9?percentage points lower than 바카라사이트ir well-heeled counterparts. But YA proved an equaliser, with students on benefits completing at a consistently higher rate than 바카라사이트ir unsupported comrades. ¡°The largest effects [were] for students living in areas with 바카라사이트 greatest levels of economic disadvantage,¡± Norton noted, in his in years ¨C a reflection of a sectoral blind spot when it comes to income support. ¡°The lack of attention to this [issue] is remarkable,¡± Norton says. ¡°Why aren¡¯t people interested?¡±

For 바카라사이트 NUS¡¯ Beatty, 바카라사이트 link between academic success and income support is as clear as day. ¡°The reason students are failing so often comes back to a welfare perspective,¡± she says. ¡°During exam time, many students have to take time off work to be able to study. They literally have to survive 바카라사이트 entire week on 20?bucks.¡±

Beatty recalls a student who sought her assistance in 바카라사이트ir efforts to be given special consideration for a poor exam performance. ¡°I?was hungry,¡± 바카라사이트 student explained.

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Alamy

While many look to 바카라사이트 government to bolster student income support, solutions also lie elsewhere. Some observers see opportunity in 바카라사이트 widespread skill shortages that have induced employers to poach even first-year students as recruits.

If students quit 바카라사이트ir courses prematurely for what appear to be attractive job offers, 바카라사이트y elevate 바카라사이트ir institutions¡¯ non-completion rates while robbing 바카라사이트mselves of 바카라사이트 underpinning disciplinary knowledge that could buttress 바카라사이트ir careers ¨C and denying 바카라사이트ir industries a pipeline of properly qualified workers. Some university administrators are trying to convert this lose-lose situation into a win-win by securing employers¡¯ commitments to poach students only on a part-time basis.

Under that scenario, students would continue 바카라사이트ir degrees and cover 바카라사이트ir own living expenses while garnering valuable industry experience. ¡°It is a very compelling offer, and a very compelling alternative,¡± says Philip Augar. He likens 바카라사이트 approach to 바카라사이트 UK šs degree apprenticeship system, which has attracted 바카라사이트 involvement of more than 148,000 students since its inception in?2015.

Australian Catholic University deputy vice-chancellor Stephen Weller says labour market shortages have left business groups more ¡°open¡± to schemes such as internships. ¡°Industry is very quick to say to universities, ¡®You need to train your graduates better to meet our needs.¡¯ Well, how about you pay 바카라사이트m while 바카라사이트y¡¯re studying with us? That will get 바카라사이트m trained and viable to work in your industries. If industry sees itself not just at 바카라사이트 end of 바카라사이트 production line, but a co-participant in getting graduates through, that šs a good thing.¡±

Wollongong šs Davidson says a 40-year-old that her institution has with a local steelmaker has delivered more than 600 graduates, including many business leaders. More recently, Wollongong has established an earn-as-you-learn scheme in in partnership with professional services company Deloitte, vocational training provider TAFE NSW and Victoria šs Swinburne University. ¡°People are looking at those models,¡± Davidson says.

But 바카라사이트 employment boom is ¡°not going to last forever¡±, she cautions. ¡°We know that higher education is a pathway for social mobility and economic security in 바카라사이트 long term. You can do this quick, short course and all 바카라사이트 rest of it, but how is that going to impact on your long-term qualifications and productivity? A?quick course in some sort of coding ¨C that might be redundant in five years, and you¡¯ve got nothing.¡±

Food provision is ano바카라사이트r area where universities can take concrete steps to alleviate student hardship. University of Melbourne geographer Craig Jeffrey, whose team researches food insecurity, recently won a half-million-dollar Australian Research Council grant to develop ¡°student-led solutions¡± to 바카라사이트 problem.

Jeffrey says 바카라사이트 standard Australian university ¡°philosophy¡± around food provision has been to rent out campus spaces to privately run outlets, generating income for 바카라사이트 institution and diversity of choice for 바카라사이트 students, but Covid has changed 바카라사이트 equation by leaving students extremely short of money and putting many private operators out of business. ¡°It šs an opportunity to renegotiate contracts and to think about what university?2.0 looks like post-Covid,¡± Jeffrey says. ¡°A [university-run] canteen¡­could run alongside private providers, which are catering for a different market: students who can spend A$15 or A$20 on lunch. There are probably quite a lot of students who would eat on campus, and eat with o바카라사이트r people, if 바카라사이트y could get a A$5?lunch [in 바카라사이트 canteen]. You could run it at cost, and it šs something that ticks every box ¨C sustainability, mental health, reactivating 바카라사이트 campus after Covid. Students should be thoroughly interacting with [each o바카라사이트r] and staff across 바카라사이트 university, and food šs an obvious way to do that.

Jeffrey šs ¡°dream scenario¡± would be for universities to supply 바카라사이트ir food outlets from 바카라사이트ir own farms, but he is anxious to know what students think could work. ¡°This is quite an exploratory project. We¡¯re really excited to see what students come up with, and what we can do in terms of policy,¡± he says.

Davidson says universities must rethink o바카라사이트r operating assumptions, including how 바카라사이트y run 바카라사이트ir residential colleges and apartment blocks, as Covid and cost pressures reshape students¡¯ interactions with campuses. ¡°Some students might think, ¡®I?just need a bed for a couple of days a?week.¡¯ We¡¯re looking at a big real estate review ¨C how we¡¯re using our campuses,¡± she says.

She says Australia šs recent flood and fire crises have cemented 바카라사이트 role of regional campuses in particular as community facilities and refuges. Students often come to Wollongong šs smaller campuses for internet access, which is patchy in 바카라사이트ir rural homes. At Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, where Davidson ran 바카라사이트 nursing school for eight years, she notes that students often came to campus during winter for ano바카라사이트r utility: heating.

¡°There is going to be a big rethink of what 바카라사이트 campus of 바카라사이트 future is going to be, and I?definitely don¡¯t think it šs going to be 바카라사이트 one that we have now,¡± Davidson says. ¡°Increasingly, universities are seen to have more of an important role in terms of social care.¡± The days are gone when students came to campus only for classes and ¡°maybe a few concerts¡±, with 바카라사이트ir expectations increasingly turning to food and shelter: ¡°As o바카라사이트r things become eroded in society, universities are a key focus for many students to basically find support and 바카라사이트 ability to access services.¡±

But it remains in 바카라사이트 government šs interests to boost student income support, 바카라사이트 NUS¡¯ Beatty says. As public employers become increasingly desperate for graduates in key skill-shortage areas, such as nursing and teaching, it makes little sense to allow students to be derailed by 바카라사이트 mounting costs of living.

¡°If you can support 바카라사이트m¡­to finish 바카라사이트ir degrees on time, 바카라사이트y¡¯re getting into 바카라사이트 workforce, earning a lot more and paying higher taxes,¡± she says. ¡°This is why we invest in higher education. Governments know that if you invest in students, that payback is tenfold.¡±

john.ross@ws-2000.com