World news

‘Opening the Doors of Opportunity’ bill passes with dozens of amendments and last-minute constitutional hitch

While consultant’s report suggests benefits will massively outweigh costs, staff have joined administrators in vowing to ‘vehemently fight’ the proposal

Merger of three public universities ‘would create cost, waste and loss of choice’ while ushering ‘complexity rather than competitiveness’

‘Painful’ times ahead as both sides of Australian politics look to slash international enrolments in ‘competition over a single number’

‘You don’t want two classes of employees on your campus,’ says former superannuation minister-turned-vice-chancellor

Universities warn political parties against policy bidding war as opposition proposes strict new visa curbs

Canberra accused of ‘policy whack-a-mole’ as it details latest rule changes to an industry already in ‘dire straits’

‘Ambitious’ treaty also sparks concern about potential for ‘security vetting’ of Fijian research

With record visa refusals and a metric-driven system, the rise in countries considered high risk was a foregone conclusion

Applicants to UK and Australian universities generally have a better time dealing with ChatGPT, ‘mystery shopper’ study finds

New arrangement not necessarily a conflict but it makes the advocacy job harder, says Australian governance expert

New report suggests Australians, particularly women, are educating themselves more than ever to avoid going backwards

The impact of Canberra’s latest rule changes on university enrolments might be muted by prior effect of student visa refusals

Decision could put institutions on a treadmill where they can only meet teaching needs by constantly employing more casuals, court victor warns

Landmark report also reveals slow progress in quest for workers to have degrees

State government would have firmer hand on universities’ operations under recommendations from latest inquiry into sector ‘crisis’

Australia’s shadow education minister bemoans loss of competition in sector, while committing to suite of policies well before next election

Legislation’s passage likely when parliament resumes in October

Visa rights canned for dependants of most students and temporary graduates, with transfers to inferior courses also banned

The first stand-alone Australian university base in Europe has flourished since opening 25 years ago today

Passage of legislation appears assured after Greens ‘secured’ government’s agreement to a dozen amendments

Lobbyists say constraints on the R&D Tax Incentive outweigh the benefits, despite unexpectedly favourable treatment of biomedical research

Sustainability issues too often framed as technical challenges, researchers say

Overseas admissions slashed by two-thirds in One Nation’s move to wrest back primacy in immigration debate

Vice-chancellor appointment follows contentious deputy v-c roles in Victoria

The National Student Ombudsman will also introduce penalties for late payment and ‘enforcement action’ on refuseniks, minister says

Opposition amendments would curtail ministerial powers and penalties for over-enrolment, while imposing controversial definition of antisemitism

Australian universities will struggle to provide the information policymakers need to replace the unpopular fee regime, conference hears

Proposal reflects trade-off between making benefits reasonably accessible and spreading them too thin

Institutions raise admission requirements, or consider doing so, amid jockeying to prepare for funding overhaul

New Zealand case ‘the tip of the iceberg’, and banning the technology will not solve the assessment problem, expert warns

Opposition calls on Labor to reconsider over-enrolment caps with bill facing rocky passage through Senate

Committee mulls amendment of threshold standards as new report highlights how ARC-funded researchers continue to collaborate with likes of Iran and Russia

After belatedly associating with the world’s biggest research funding scheme, authorities are keen to ensure success

Higher education dominates post-Covid recovery, as vocational enrolments remain suppressed

Even though defaulting debtors risk arrest at the airport, ‘campaigns’ to recover student loans net surprisingly meagre returns

Dependants and visa-hoppers reportedly in the frame of looming crackdown, as rejection rates remain at near-record levels

Intellectual disagreements, broader societal problems and ‘governance 101’ are being misconstrued as blunders, Carolyn Evans claims

Senate committee inquiry blocked and stakeholder objections ignored, as ‘wide-ranging’ powers become law

Democratic role needs protection from ‘creeping regulation’ and ‘populist backlashes’, says legal scholar

Threat highlights uncertainty for dual-sector universities, with twice as many masters holding the purse strings

Several Australian universities pause applications from Iran but say government unclear over whether students from sanctioned countries banned

Weaker earnings prompt stock sell-off, as survey by Navitas reveals ‘unintended consequences’ of policy changes

Government amendments as bill passes first stage ‘fix minor drafting errors identified by my department’, minister explains

Decisions ‘above my pay grade’, says Nobel laureate, as authorities quash joint research into pain relief and drug-resistant tuberculosis

University system already reliant on international students’ tuition fees now depends on visa fees as well

International students should be judged on their quality rather than their family ties, says immigration expert

Higher education still pays but the margin of advantage has ‘narrowed noticeably’, quarter of a century of Australian survey data suggests

Careful what you wish for, shadow minister warns universities, as crossbencher asks whether ‘the substance matches the slogan’

Amalgamation with struggling institute of technology would make both institutions ‘an even better proposition’, says university boss

Legislation to rejig allocation of international student places puts everything ‘under the thumb of the minister’, his opposite number warns

Australian universities most cashed up on foreign fees are not necessarily those most vulnerable to a downturn, analysis finds

Making the most of free offers deemed ‘extremely student behaviour’, as electricity usage guru chides precinct for ‘going nuts’

New reporting requirements coincide with raft of campus openings on the subcontinent

Lack of extra money and risk of more centralised control means new bill ‘does not do what it says on the cover’

Australian policies mired in outdated perceptions about why students decrease their study loads

More international higher education students are obtaining visas from within Australia, as government puts up the shutters to fresh entrants

Proposed penalties most disadvantageous to the universities already struggling with volatile enrolments, submissions say

Top university told it must clamp down on salaries and spending to manage ‘downside risks’ of government international education policies

Serial deficits plague universities that have failed to recover their pre-pandemic international revenue, analysis finds