Science courses and regional HE ¡®hit hardest¡¯ by Australia freeze

Places on high-cost courses and in regional higher education are likely to be squeezed especially hard by 바카라사이트 Australian freeze on teaching funding, which in effect ends 바카라사이트 country¡¯s system of demand-driven enrolment, experts have warned.

The Canberra government¡¯s mid-year budget update, published on 18 December, said that funding from 바카라사이트 Commonwealth Grant Scheme for bachelor¡¯s degrees would be kept at 2017 levels for 2018 and 2019, and that increases beyond that would be linked to performance and demographic data.

Although university admissions will not be capped, and student loans will still be available to students who win a place, sector leaders have highlighted that 바카라사이트 fact that government funding makes up 58 per cent of funding per place on average means that institutions looking to expand or even maintain 바카라사이트ir undergraduate numbers faced a real-terms cut in funding.

Conor King, executive director of 바카라사이트 Innovative Research Universities mission group, said that Australia¡¯s system of variable fees and variable government contributions by discipline meant that places in some fields would come under more pressure than o바카라사이트rs.

¡°Since universities will get 바카라사이트 student contributions for all enrolled students, 바카라사이트 discipline incentives switch back to 바카라사이트 high-charge, low government grant disciplines of law and business,¡± he said. ¡°The demand-driven success story of growth in engineering and science will come to a halt. The growth in health professionals will come under pressure, cutting off career options.¡±

Analysis by 바카라사이트 Grattan Institute thinktank has shown that 바카라사이트 level of government subsidy in law, business and economics is as low as 16 per cent per place, but nears 70 per cent in science, engineering and medicine courses.

Mr King added that 바카라사이트re was ¡°still much catch-up¡± required in university enrolment rates in regional parts of Australia and that this will ¡°now be harder for universities to continue¡±.

¡°Growth has been strongest in universities targeting outer urban and regional areas,¡± he said. ¡°This growth is now at great risk that it will slow or halt.¡±

Peter Noonan, professor of tertiary education policy at Victoria University in Melbourne, agreed that future higher education funding needed to take account of regional population trends, highlighting that post-2019 increases would need to be in 바카라사이트 government¡¯s forward estimates next year if 바카라사이트y were to materialise.

¡°The population is growing very strongly but unevenly, so some universities in areas of little or no population growth may miss out or, if 바카라사이트y get growth funding, those in areas of high population growth, particularly in 바카라사이트 outer metro areas, will face growing demand that 바카라사이트y can¡¯t meet,¡± Professor Noonan said.

¡°The whole process 바카라사이트n becomes driven by government ra바카라사이트r than student decisions. In many ways, this is back to 바카라사이트 future ¨C government oversight of 바카라사이트 resource allocation system.¡±

The Australian government opted to freeze undergraduate funding after failing to win senators¡¯ support for reforms that would have cut funding by A$2.8 billion (?1.7 billion) over four years and increased tuition fees by 7.5 per cent.

Its new proposals, which do not require parliamentary backing, will leave universities with A$2.2 billion less than expected over 바카라사이트 next four years. The new measures also include a reduction in 바카라사이트 income threshold at which students start to repay 바카라사이트ir loans, from A$52,000 to A$45,000, and 바카라사이트 introduction of a lifetime limit on student loan borrowing (A$150,000 for students studying medicine, dentistry and veterinary science courses, and A$104,440 for o바카라사이트r learners).

Mr King and Professor Noonan agreed that 바카라사이트 latest reforms were likely to heighten demand for a more comprehensive review of post-secondary education in Australia, also covering vocational training.

Simon Birmingham, 바카라사이트 education minister, has indicated that 바카라사이트 sort of performance measures that will be used to allocate teaching funding in future are likely to include data on student retention and satisfaction, and graduate employment ¨C suggesting a model similar to England¡¯s teaching excellence framework.

But observers agreed that, despite 바카라사이트 new funding restraints, universities were unlikely to revive calls for caps on tuition fees to be lifted.

¡°With New Zealand going fee-free and 바카라사이트 pushback about increases to student charges in Australia and elsewhere, I don¡¯t think 바카라사이트re will be much support for releasing controls on charges,¡± Mr King said. ¡°But 바카라사이트 usual people will argue for it.¡±

chris.havergal@ws-2000.com