New University of Canberra (UC) vice-chancellor Bill Shorten has scolded the higher education sector for not keeping up with students’ demands in a piece he penned for The Australian on Thursday.
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Universities Australia (UA) has again called on the Albanese government to invest in research fund Horizon Europe amid growing uncertainty from the United States.
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Chief information officer of Arizona State University Lev Gonick outlines the part technology has played in the 20-year of transformation of his university.
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In the heart of Broken Hill, 22-year-old Hannah Maalste is pursuing a Bachelor of Health and Medical Science, a path that once seemed out of reach due to her remote location and lack of an ATAR.
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Melinda Cilento is the chief executive of the Committee for Economic Development of Australia and Skills and Workforce Ministerial Council Chair.
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As the face of education continues to undergo a rapid evolution, some institutions in the United States are pioneering innovative approaches to meet the diverse needs of their learners. What sets these institutions apart is their strong ties to established universities in Latin America and Spain, with international accreditations and faculty from around the world.
These institutions are not only providing world-class education but also addressing unique market needs through distinctive programs and methodologies. This is happening in a big way in Florida – and it’s time to pay attention.
The Hispanic power in Florida: business, economy, entrepreneurship, and education
According to the Florida State Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, there are over 604,000 Hispanic-owned businesses in Florida that contribute USD $90 billion to the state’s economy each year. Florida has been ranked the number one US state for entrepreneurship. Combine that with the fact that Florida is the gateway to Latin America and the Caribbean, and you’ve got yourself a state with a promising entrepreneurial spirit.
Here are the universities that are leading the charge. They’re doing all the right things and it’s time to closely observe
Miami-Dade County alone is home to over 1,200 multinational companies to have set up their Latin American headquarters in the area. Some 30% of all businesses in the county are run by people of Hispanic descent. This is a massive industry that’s growing at a rapid pace and demands highly educated professionals who can keep up with it all. This is a dynamic, entrepreneurial and young Hispanic community.
So, what are Florida’s institutions doing differently? They are agile, forward-thinking, and constantly evolving – meeting the needs of Hispanic students in Florida and beyond who want to study at their own pace and in a way that fits their lives.
Here are the universities that are leading the charge. They’re doing all the right things and it’s time to closely observe.
1. MIU City University: affordable, flexible, and global
MIU City University has been around since 2019. Founded by Grupo ProEduca and UNIR in Spain, MIU City University offers online and hybrid programs that cater to busy professionals.
With programs in cybersecurity, computer science, digital marketing, business intelligence, educational innovation, and others, MIU City University offers affordable certificates and degrees with a proven online model recognised by global rankings. Its global reach with students from over 90 countries makes it the perfect institution for those who want to connect with a worldwide network of professionals.
What sets MIU City University apart is its focus on practicality. Students are learning the exact skills that today’s employers are looking for, whether it’s in business, tech, or marketing. And with remote work on the rise, these programs make it easier than ever to combine work, study, and life.
2. CUC University: flexible programs for remote workers who need to study
CUC University, founded in 2021 by Universidad de la Costa in Colombia, is another institution breaking the mould. They offer online programs designed for students who are working alongside their studies. CUC has designed its courses to be flexible so students can study on their own time with faculty from around the world.
A good example of its offering are programs in international business administration, marketing, mass media communication, media technology, and entrepreneurship. These programs are designed for working professionals who need to level up. With over 53 years of academic excellence, CUC is the perfect mix of legacy and innovation.
Its partnerships with private and public organisations help students connect with the right people who are looking for professionals ready to compete in the global marketplace or start their own venture.
3. Panamerican University: a global business experience
And then there is Panamerican University, founded in 2022 by Panamerican Business School from Guatemala, already flexing its global muscle. With 25 years of experience and partnerships with over 700 companies across 20 countries, 800 faculty from over the world, it’s offering programs designed to today’s economy.
It offers programs in business administration, digital marketing, and international and sustainable business, among others. Its students can obtain global certificates in dynamic and multicultural cities like Dubai, Stockholm, Singapore, Madrid, Tokio, and Miami.
And let’s not forget it’s got over 350,000 alumni who are spread out all over the world, which connects its students with an international network of professionals.
Why these universities are changing the game
These institutions have identified gaps and the needs of the non-traditional Hispanic students in Florida; working professionals who are trying to balance career and family, people who need a degree, professional development, continuous learning, and upskilling to keep up in a rapidly changing world.
They’ve filled those gaps with flexible and practical offers. They’re serving a growing Hispanic student population – both domestic and those from their international biosphere – a segment that is hungry for opportunities to grow. They are partnering with companies, international organisations, governments, providing real-world skills, a worldwide network, and the flexibility to study from anywhere.
I am impressed by these innovative institutions and their rapid pace of growth. I have just shown three examples, but there are more institutions doing great things that have been here for a while. Some of them are opening new campuses and branches, with in-person, online and hybrid models: Ana G. Méndez University- Puerto Rico, Nexus University; Universidad Mayor Chile, Westfield Business School; Prisma Education Group Colombia, Broward International University; San Ignacio University; USIL Peru, Albizu University; Puerto Rico, GAIA University, Guatemala, to name just a few.
These institutions offer flexibility, affordability, global exposure, and a focus on practical skills for today’s workforce. They’re not just educating students; they’re connecting them to a global ecosystem of professionals, alumni, and companies that are ready to hire.
It’s time to pay attention to what these universities are doing. They’re a novel example that education can be tailored to the needs of the students and the world they’re entering. The future of higher education is here, and it’s fast, flexible, and ready to break all the rules. And it’s so exciting that this is happening here in the Sunshine State.
The Coalition would scrap Australian Tertiary Education Commission (ATEC) and have an independent tribunal decide vice-chancellor pay, opposition education spokeswoman Senator Sarah Henderson told universities on Wednesday.
Reinstating the 50 per cent pass rate rule and significantly capping overseas students to inner-city Sydney and Melbourne unis are also top of the list.
The senator outlined her party’s priorities for the first time at the Universities Australia Solutions Summit, a meeting of university leaders, which also facilitated discussion within the sector about current issues.
The Coalition is adamant that “Australian students must come first” in every decision universities make, but that direction would come from vice-chancellors and a regulator, not government policy, she said.
“To put students first, universities must be governed by strong and principled leaders who run their institutions efficiently, transparently and with integrity,” she said.
“Universities must be able to operate with certainty and plan for the long term, free from day-to-day government intervention and policy chaos; overseen by a tough and feared regulator, which enforces the highest standards when required.”
An LNP government will cancel the establishment of ATEC, and instead the Tertiary Education Quality Standards Agency (TEQSA) would be the responsible regulator.
“This is another layer of education bureaucracy and a significant cost which will not take our universities forward. It certainly does not add value to students,” she said.
Senator Henderson said things like scholarships and student support funds, which ATEC has been tasked with reviewing, is work for government and ministers.
“The ATEC tells us this government doesn’t know what to do. There’s no proper understanding of its role, no legislation. And yet it is set to commence in three months time,” she said.
“The hard work you would expect a government to undertake is being sent to the Commission.“
Her party would assess changes to funds such as the Higher Education Partnerships and Participation Program and the Indigenous Students Support Fund by asking the following questions: “Do they support quality of teaching and learning? Labour market needs? Equity access so all Australians can aspire to university education? Student completion rates and employment outcomes?”
The LNP previously announced it would increase the number of Commonwealth-supported places for medial students by 100 in 2026 and 2027, and by 150 from 2028, an Accord-recommended policy.
The party has not changed its position on Job-Ready Graduates, she said, but it will review the funding arrangement.
Although the senator welcomed the Universities Accord final report’s recommendations, she said the Albanese government has unfairly placed the burden of reform onto individuals and universities.
She said Education Minister Jason Clare has “outsourced much of the heavy lifting” to Accord chair Professor Mary O’Kane and her panel.
She also said universities should not bear the burden of means-testing students, in other words, evaluating whether a student is eligible for government support regarding the Commonwealth prac payment.
“Consider, for instance, the prac payments: discretionary grant programs where you are being asked to means-test students. Universities are not Centrelink offices,” she said.
“We understand that universities are big and complex organizations, but they have not enjoyed a strong track record always in supporting students. Too many times students have been left high and dry.”
She also said TEQSA has not done enough to protect women from sexual violence on campus or Jewish students and staff from anti-Semitism.
“A Dutton government would adopt zero-tolerance of anti-Semitism on university campuses. We will not wait for universities to act in their own time,” she said.
“We expect all universities to fully cooperate with the new dedicated anti-Semitism Task Force, led by the Australian Federal Police and other agencies.”
All Australian vice-chancellors agreed on a definition of anti-Semitism on Wednesday. While the senator said she appreciated the vice-chancellors agreement, the Coalition would require unis to adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s definition, which is a more robust framework and definition, she said.
The Coalition would implement a national higher education code to prevent and respond to anti-Semitism and establish a judicial inquiry into anti-Semitism at Australian universities, she announced.
“We will leave no stone unturned, including amending the Fair Work Act if necessary.”
Another LNP priority is to reinstate the 50 per cent pass rate rule, she said.
“We don’t believe there are enough safeguards to protect struggling students from leaving university with no qualification and a large student debt,” she said.
The Accord final report recommended removing the rule as a “priority action”. The rule says students who failed over half of their studies weren’t eligible for a HECS-HELP loan and had to pay upfront.
Theoretically, the rule was supposed to protect young people from acquiring debt with no qualifications, aimed at students who are possibly ill-placed to be at university.
Practically, the Accord panel found the rule disproportionately affected students from First Nations, low socioeconomic and other underrepresented or educationally disadvantaged backgrounds, who are more likely to fall behind in university due to external circumstances.
The rule was removed and replaced with the ‘support for students policy‘ in July 2023.
Later on Wednesday in his National Press Club address, UA chief executive Luke Sheehy said bringing back the rule would be detrimental to students in equity cohorts, which the Accord and the Labor government have been trying to help become qualified for economic reasons.
“It would be devastating. Our universities were very displeased and upset with the 50 per cent rule when it came in because it undermines the autonomy of our world class teachers and educators at our universities to support students in their own universities,” he said.
“I always worry about mandated policies from one central point in Canberra, made without proper consultation. It’s such a blunt rule. And we will be asking again for the Coalition to reconsider that.”
Vice-chancellor salaries would be set by the Remuneration Tribunal, not university boards, under a Dutton government.
“In this cost-of-living crisis, the current situation, frankly, does not meet the pub test,” she told the audience.
The senator would also back an “Australian universities performance index”, a website accessible to the public that provides measurements of an institution’s completion rates, student satisfaction, course quality and cost.
“As a parent, I can attest to the complexity of navigating the university system for school leavers or those seeking to reskill or upgrade their qualifications,” she said.
“Just working out to which course to apply [for] is a challenge. So rather than judge universities on the research dollars they generate, which drives international students and global rankings, let’s focus on home-grown performance.
Related stories: Universities Australia’s pitch to governments | Mary O’Kane to lead ATEC from July | Ombudsman: What universities can start doing now to support students
“This reform will drive up competition, lift teaching standards and ensure students make informed choices about their education.”
While both major parties plan to bring down the number of international students studying in Australia, the Coalition’s cap would be harsher than a Labor government’s, and would focus on getting overseas students out of cities, where two-thirds of them reside, and into the regions.
She echoed a speech delivered by veteran businesswoman and University of Technology Sydney chancellor Catherine Livingstone on Tuesday: universities haven’t been listening to community concerns about the “perceived impact of immigration on housing availability and affordability.’’
“We persist with offering opaque and inflated claims about [universities’] direct impact,” Senator Henderson said.
“[The current number of international students] is not good for our country or for the education outcomes of Australian students. We need to get the balance right. Every country has a responsibility to run its migration program in the national interest.”
She said more information about a Coalition overseas student policy will be announced in the next few weeks.
The LNP is disheartened about the lack of commercialisation of research, the senator said, which will be “put back on the agenda,” fostering more collaboration between universities and industry to boost student experience and job-readiness.
It will also reinstate ministerial discretion to all Australian Research Council grant programs, in contrast to the current government which has control of only some research grants,.
By doing so, the government has “absolved itself of its responsibility to safeguard precious taxpayer funds in the interest of all Australians.”
“Under our Westminster system of government, the buck stops with the government of the day, and not an unelected board,” she continued.
“Universities matter. But universities that are run in the best interests of students really matter.
“If I am given the honor of being the next Minister for Education, I look forward to working closely with you with certainty, not ambiguity, to share in this crucial mission.“
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Josh Burns MP led the parliamentary inquiry into campus anti-Semitism. Picture: Martin Ollman
A high-security “safe room” has been set up for Jewish students at a top Sydney university after some reported feeling at risk due to anti-Semitism on campus, prompting Jewish leaders to say it should “shock us all” when young people “feel they need a sanctuary to escape” from hate.
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As we head towards the federal election, both sides of politics are making a point of criticising universities and questioning their role in the community.
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