Overhaul recomended for Australian universities
Updated
Australia's Universities could be in for a dramatic shake up.
The Bradley Review into Australia's teritiary sector has recommended a radical overhaul, with a focus on de-regulation, greater competition, and more funding for poorer pupils. The review also suggests the government set new ambitious targets to give more Australians a tertiary education.
Presenter: Sabra Lane
Speaker: Professor Denise Bradley, Chairwoman of the Higher Education Review
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SABRA LANE: The Bradley review says the nation's facing a major shortage of tertiary-educated students.
DENISE BRADLEY: It's not time to fiddle with the system, it's the time for significant change.
SABRA LANE: Professor Denise Bradley, the former vice-chancellor of the University of South Australia headed the nine-month review into the higher education sector.
The panel makes 46 recommendations, aimed at achieving three objectives.
DENISE BRADLEY: The first is to open the system up and make it possible for many more people to study. We think it's time to stop rationing numbers and in fact the time has come to encourage more people to enter.
But we need to do that as we open it up, we need to bring in a different kind of quality assurance system, and we need to pay a lot more attention to getting groups of people who've not found it easy to get into higher education, in, and participating and being successful.
SABRA LANE: Research commissioned for the review says from 2010, the supply of people with undergraduate qualifications won't keep up with demand.
To boost numbers, the review says student learning entitlements, or vouchers, should be introduced allowing students greater opportunities to decide what and where they'll study. Universities would also have the power to set their own entry levels, and enrol as many students as they like.
The professor says the changes would lead to greater competition. It might even lead to mergers between the country's 38 universities.
DENISE BRADLEY: It keeps you on your toes; if you know that every year you've got to go out there and prove that what you're offering is competitive with the offerings of other providers.
SABRA LANE: Professor Bradley says universities have to lift their game, to encourage the 28 per cent of student drop-outs to stay and finish their courses.
The review recommends a major boost in assistance to poor students, who, on average, receive about $100 a week.
DENISE BRADLEY: The income support system is in really quite, need for quite major change.
SABRA LANE: The review recommends the Government set targets, that by 2020 at least 40 per cent of 25 to 30-year-olds should have a bachelor-level qualification. Currently the level's 29 per cent.
And that 20 per cent of undergraduates should be students from poor backgrounds.
It's a radical overhaul, with a corresponding cost.
DENISE BRADLEY: The sum of money that we're talking about in broad terms, over four years, is about $6.5-billion.
