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University

Yesterday

Officials say scrutiny of the financial management of universities is legitimate, but a witch-hunt on vice chancellor pay or staff underpayments is unwarranted.

Universities warn against ‘witch-hunt’ governance inquiry

The Labor-dominated committee will focus on financial management, but officials are worried about knee-jerk responses to tension about vice-chancellors’ pay and wage theft.

  • Paul Karp, Euan Black and Patrick Durkin

This Month

Hannah Forsyth, is an historian who has written a book on the history of the modern australian university.

Is a university degree still worth it?

The pay premium for graduates is on the decline, while the sector is a mess and academics are asking whether we have reached “peak university”.

  • Julie Hare
Labor Senator Tony Sheldon has described universities as becoming “lawless”.

Uni leaders on notice as MP says they run a ‘lawless sector’

A new parliamentary committee will grill university leadership after a spate of management and governance failures.

  • Julie Hare
Pathify is a SaaS student portal used by universities, colleges and higher education institutions.

Edtech Pathify clinches $180m valuation after ruling off funding round

Bombora-backed Pathify has raised $US25 million through primary funding and a secondary share sale.

  • Sarah Thompson, Kanika Sood and Emma Rapaport
Imogen Lucas is about to head to Sydney University to study commerce.

Gen Z know what they want to study, and it’s usually medicine

As school-leavers prepare to head to university, they are particularly keen on becoming doctors. But the good old arts degree is still popular.

  • Julie Hare
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Outgoing NDIS Minister Bill Shorten will start a new role as the vice chancellor of Canberra University in February.

Bill Shorten was a last-minute applicant to lead Canberra Uni

Bill Shorten applied for the job as vice chancellor of the University of Canberra just two days before he and five others were interviewed for the role.

  • Julie Hare
Sarah Henderson says education minister Jason Clare is dodging his responsibilities over university governance.

Go harder on double-dipping uni bosses: Henderson

The opposition says Education Minister Jason Clare is missing in action as vice chancellors collect payments from outside sources on top of their university salaries.

  • Julie Hare

Crackdown coming for double-dipping uni bosses

Australian vice chancellors are among the highest paid in the world, but a handful also have paid gigs on the side, raising questions about potential conflicts.

  • Julie Hare

December 2024

A range of Labor’s cost-of-living relief measures will come into effect on January 1, meaning some voters will have a bit more cash each week ahead of polling day.

January 1 brings cash boost for some ahead of election

A range of Labor’s cost-of-living relief measures will come into effect on New Year’s Day, meaning some voters will have a bit more cash each week before polling day.

  • Lucy Slade
ANU alumni have asked chancellor Julie Bishop to investigate why its vice chancellor could hold a second job.

ANU alumni call on Julie Bishop to stand vice chancellor aside

A leadership crisis at Australian National University isn’t going away after a group of concerned alumni have called for an investigation and audit.

  • Julie Hare
The pro-Palestine encampment at the University of Sydney.

Racism and antisemitism ‘pervasive’ at universities: report

The Australian Human Rights Commission says Jewish students believe universities are incapable or unwilling to address their safety concerns.

  • Tom McIlroy
Jane Hansen and her husband Paul Little donated $40 million to the University of Melbourne before she became its chancellor.

Call to ban big uni donors becoming chancellors

Amid a governance crisis in Australian universities, the academics union says big donors should not be named chancellors.

  • Julie Hare
Campus Living Villages group managing director John Schroder.

Dexus lobs bid for big super’s Aussie student apartment portfolio

Of note, Canadian giant Brookfield also participated in the first round but ultimately decided the asset wasn’t for it.

  • Sarah Thompson, Kanika Sood and Emma Rapaport
ANU staff say they have lost confidence in vice chancellor Genevieve Bell.

ANU leaders berate staff over leaks, voice support for Bell

Senior executives at ANU have berated staff for leaking confidential information and say revelations have painted a false picture of the university’s culture.

  • Julie Hare
Amid a major restructure at ANU, senior staff say there is a culture of fear.

I will ‘hunt you down’: ANU staff rebel at its culture of fear

University staff say they feel demoralised by Genevieve Bell’s leadership, calling her proposed overhaul “a corporate-style raid of a national institution”.

  • Updated
  • Julie Hare
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Bruce Chapman says HECS debt should not affect graduates’ ability to buy a house.

HECS architect wants student debt ignored when assessing home loans

Bruce Chapman, who created the income-contingent loan system for students, has hit out at the political fiddling the system has faced.

  • Julie Hare
Rod Jones founder of Navitas.

BGH Capital’s education biz Navitas secures $150m equity injection

The deal also saw Melbourne buyout firm BGH Capital, which struck a buyout deal with Navitas in 2019, tip in just under $50 million. 

  • Sarah Thompson, Kanika Sood and Emma Rapaport
Stacey Toskas with 2nd year Joinery apprentice Rebecca Daley, at NICCO Timber Windows and Doors in Kingsgrove,

Why we got it wrong on education and skill shortages

After 15 years of policies encouraging people to go to university, Australia’s skills tsar says it is now time for a reset if we are to address chronic skill shortages.

  • Julie Hare

November 2024

University of Sydney vice-chancellor Mark Scott said his position was still “tenable”.

Sydney Uni head again forced to defend why he should not resign

During a second parliamentary inquiry into antisemitism on university campuses, Mark Scott was asked whether his position was “still tenable”.

  • Julie Hare
Duncan Maskell, outgoing vice chancellor of Melbourne University.

‘I’m not going to say no to a nice salary’: outgoing Melbourne Uni boss

Duncan Maskell rejects criticism of million-dollar pay packets for vice chancellors, hits back at claims there are too many overseas students, and insists a university education should be free.

  • Julie Hare

Original URL: https://www.afr.com/topic/university-63k