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Media Release
National Centre for Student Equity in Higher Education
12 October 2007
The Minister for Education, Science and Training, the Hon Julie Bishop, has announced that the Australian Government will establish a National Centre for Student Equity in Higher Education at the University of South Australia.
The Australian Government will provide $630,000 in establishment costs and $590,000 annually towards the operational costs of the Centre.
“The Centre will develop best practice for attracting and retaining students from disadvantaged backgrounds and will provide outreach programs to universities, schools and the broader community,” Minister Bishop said.
“The number of Indigenous students in higher education increased more than 5 per cent between 2005 and 2006 and this new Centre will work to promote and facilitate greater access to education for students from poorer backgrounds and particularly those from rural and regional areas.”
The University of South Australia will work with the Queensland University of Technology and the University of Technology, Sydney in establishing the Centre next year.
“Access to university has been greatly enhanced by Howard Government policies. An additional 50,000 Commonwealth supported places will be allocated between 2004 and 2011 and the decision in this year’s Budget to fund over-enrolments up to 5 per cent will potentially create an extra 21,000 Commonwealth supported places next year. There could well be more Commonwealth supported places than eligible students to fill them next year,” Minister Bishop said.
The Australian Government is committed to enhancing the opportunities for all Australians to reach their potential. As part of the additional $7.9 billion investment in higher education this year, the Australian Government provided a further investment of $222 million in additional support for students, including $91 million for an additional 3,500 Commonwealth Scholarships per year. This brings to over $460 million the amount the Australian Government will invest in 52,000 Commonwealth Scholarships over the five years to 2009.
Media Contacts:
Minister Bishop’s Office: Murray Hansen 0417 886 155
Dept of Education, Science & Training: Media Unit 02 6240 7300
Non-media queries 1300 363 079
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