By Paul Clifton. Students are important stakeholders in their education, not simply consuming but contribut-ing towards their university. Yet when the activity of a university is reviewed this contribution is often overlooked or undervalued. More...

By Paul Clifton. Last month, New Zealand’s tertiary education minister Steven Joyce announced that, from 2017, all universities, polytechnics w?nanga, and funded private training establishments that meet certain thresholds will be required to publish information about the employment status and earnings of their graduates broken down by specific degrees and diplomas. This is a dangerous path. More...

By Paul Clifton. NTEU University of Newcastle (UON) Branch is calling on University management to find a way to lawfully terminate its outsourcing contract with Transfield Services. More...

By Jen T. Kwok. It is widely accepted that the secrecy under which the TPP was negotiated has set a terrible anti-democratic precedent for the Commonwealth's future dealings around treaties and trade deals, though the major parties continue to skirt and avoid this key point. More...

By Paul Clifton. Australian universities are increasingly resorting to the use of journal metrics such as impact factors and ranking lists in appraisal and promotion processes, and are starting to set quantitative ‘performance expectations’ which make use of such journal-based metrics. The widespread use and misuse of research metrics is leading to increased concern in scientific and broader academic communities worldwide. More...

By Paul Clifton. Few will be surprised that the tenor of legislative changes foreshadowed by the Western Australian Government for WA University Acts is to replace elected staff representatives on governing bodies with appointed ones, and to allow universities to act increasingly as profit-driven commercial corporations. But as well as these dangers, change presents an opportunity to broaden the debate and strengthen the role and characteristics of universities. More...