Joint media release with Deputy Prime Minister Julia Gillard
Minister for Education, Julia Gillard, and Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research, Senator Kim Carr, today advised the Parliament of the Rudd Government’s progress in Higher Education, just over one year on from the receipt of the Bradley Review into Higher Education and the Cutler Review of the National Innovation System.
The Government has committed $5.7 billion over four years to higher education and innovation reform. This massive injection of funds will help achieve the Government’s aim of increasing by 40 per cent the number of 25-34 year olds to hold a Bachelor-level qualification or above by 2025.
The key accomplishments include:
• Already the number of publicly available places has been lifted by 7.5 per cent, and by 2012 there will be no cap on the number of places funded by the Government that universities can offer students. Early estimates show that this year there will be a potential increase of 45,000 full-time equivalent students since 2008.
• State Governments have agreed to the establishment of the new Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (TEQSA) which will ensure that university courses are of the highest quality.
• The Government will more than double the number of Australian Postgraduate Award scholarships by 2010 and has increased their value by 10 per cent, ensuring vital postgraduate research can be undertaken by students.
• Drastically increasing the payments made to universities for enrolling students from low social-economic status backgrounds, including funding to encourage links between universities and schools worth $433 million over four years.
• The establishment of Excellence in Research Australia, which will tell us exactly how well we are doing compared to the world’s best. ERA was trialled successfully in 2009 and comes into operation this year.
• The creation of 100 Super Science Fellowships for young researchers and 1,000 Future Fellowships for mid-career researchers. These fellowships will encourage more gifted young Australian and international scholars to do their research in this country, where it will benefit Australia most.
• The Government has committed $510 million over four years to the Sustainable Research Excellence in Universities Scheme, which will provide significantly increased funding for the indirect costs of research. All forty-one eligible universities have signed up to the scheme.
• A better Student Income Support system, if the Coalition removed their block, would see 150,000 new student scholarships and new relocation scholarships for those students who need to move home to study.
• A new indexation factor for sector funding which will result in better funding teaching and learning and research.
• From 2011, each university will negotiate a funding compact with the Government defining its unique mission and describing how it will fulfil that mission and meet the Australian Government’s broader policy goals. Universities will be encouraged to focus on areas in which they have particular strengths and can make a distinctive contribution.
This is all in addition to the massive $2.9 billion investment already delivered in higher education infrastructure including:
• $580 million for eleven Education Investment Fund (EIF) Round 1 projects in university teaching, learning and research
• $500 million for the Teaching and Learning Capital Fund – Higher Education
• $934 million for EIF Round 2 projects in university teaching, learning and research and in VET
• $989 million for infrastructure to support astronomy, marine and climate science, and emerging technologies through the Super Science Initiative – all of it accessible to university researchers.
The outcome of EIF Round 3 and the Sustainability Round will be announced this year.
The Rudd Government is committed to a revolution in higher education after years of neglect by the former Coalition Government.
Overall, this Government will be investing $36 billion in university teaching and learning and $9.6 billion in research from 2008-09 to 2011-12, compared with $27.9 billion for teaching and learning and around $5.8 billion for research over the same period.
Higher education spending will jump from 0.82 percent of GDP in 2007-08 to 1 percent in 2010-11.
The joint statement on higher education can be viewed here.
Media contacts: Russell Mahoney 0407 930 687 (Minister Gillard)
Patrick Pantano 0417 181 936 (Minister Carr)