Higher Education Report for the 2002 to 2004 Triennium

Contents > Appendices > Appendix B

Appendix B

Student enrolments by institution and level of course

Total students

Undergraduate students

Postgraduate coursework students

Higher degree research students

Student enrolments by institution and level of course

Total students

Almost all universities experienced increases in both commencing and all enrolments during the period 1993 to 2001. The largest increases in enrolments were for the Australian Maritime College (commencements up 400 per cent and all up 163 per cent), Central Queensland University (commencements up 181 per cent and all up 108 per cent) and Charles Sturt University (commencements up 130 per cent and all up 94 per cent). The largest decreases in enrolments were for Avondale College (all enrolments down 10%), the University of Canberra (all enrolments down 6 per cent) and the Australian National University (all enrolments down 6 per cent).

The eight largest universities in 1993 were Monash University, the University of Sydney, the University of Melbourne, the University of New South Wales, the University of Queensland, Queensland University of Technology, Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology and Deakin University. These universities accounted for 38 per cent of all enrolments in 1993 (220 000 students). The first seven of these universities were also in the top eight for enrolments in 2001, with Charles Sturt University replacing Deakin University in eighth place. There was little change in the percentage of total enrolments accounted for by these eight universities in 2001, when they accounted for 38 per cent of all enrolments (273 000 students).

Table B1: Total student enrolments by institution, 1993 and 2001^(a)

Institution	1993		2001		% Change 1993–2001
Institution	Commencing enrolments	All enrolments	Commencing enrolments	All enrolments	Commencing enrolments	All enrolments
New South Wales
Australian Film, Television and Radio School	97	97	93	94	–4.1	–3.1
Avondale College	351	729	258	652	–26.5	–10.6
Charles Sturt University	5 828	15 240	13 424	29 584	130.3	94.1
Macquarie University	5 902	15 549	8 941	21 789	51.5	40.1
National Institute of Dramatic Art	59	132	65	158	10.2	19.7
Southern Cross University(b)	–	–	3 910	9 184	–	–
The University of New England^(b)	8 124	20 321	5 864	14 841	–	–
The University of New South Wales	8 858	26 073	14 234	33 847	60.7	29.8
The University of Newcastle	5 304	14 593	8 389	18 827	58.2	29.0
The University of Sydney	10 139	30 343	13 026	35 625	28.5	17.4
University of Technology, Sydney	7 749	20 518	9 857	24 610	27.2	19.9
University of Western Sydney	8 023	19 676	11 610	28 688	44.7	45.8
University of Wollongong	4 342	11 056	6 148	13 662	41.6	23.6
Victoria
Deakin University	9 364	24 403	11 117	28 332	18.7	16.1
La Trobe University	7 787	21 434	8 663	21 352	11.2	–0.4
Marcus Oldham College	38	116	33	96	–13.2	–17.2
Melbourne College of Divinity	0	0	77	342	–	–
Monash University	13 511	36 466	18 560	43 635	37.4	19.7
Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology	8 298	23 748	13 421	32 044	61.7	34.9
Swinburne University of Technology	3 316	8 831	4 869	12 414	46.8	40.6
The University of Melbourne	10 817	30 182	12 812	34 382	18.4	13.9
University of Ballarat	1 598	4 080	2 122	4 670	32.8	14.5
Victoria University of Technology	5 483	12 731	7 295	16 800	33.0	32.0
Queensland
Bond University	0	0	7	20	–	–
Central Queensland University	2 895	7 622	8 128	15 8855	180.8	108.4
Griffith University	7 469	16 436	10 983	25 367	47.0	54.3
James Cook University	2 935	8 004	4 676	10 927	59.3	36.5
Queensland University of Technology^(c)	9 950	24 695	13 310	31 671	33.8	28.2
The University of Queensland	8 706	24 680	12 703	31 766	45.9	28.7
University of Southern Queensland	5 194	12 518	8 050	17 085	55.0	36.5
University of the Sunshine Coast^(c)	0	0	1 396	2 958	–	–
Western Australia
Curtin University of Technology	6 983	18 739	9 321	22 649	33.5	20.9
Edith Cowan University	6 531	17 040	7 721	19 092	18.2	12.0
Murdoch University	2 599	7 454	4 187	10 736	61.1	44.0
The University of Western Australia	4 020	12 227	4 853	13 768	20.7	12.6
University of Notre Dame Australia^(d)	0	0	233	388	–	–
South Australia
The Flinders University of South Australia	3 451	10 257	4 513	11 684	30.8	13.9
The University of Adelaide	4 512	12 821	5 426	13 603	20.3	6.1
University of South Australia	8 621	21 367	10 639	25 581	23.4	19.7
Tasmania
Australian Maritime College	191	474	955	1 247	400.0	163.1
University of Tasmania	4 375	11 600	4 314	11 954	–1.4	3.1
Northern Territory
Batchelor Institute of Indigenous Tertiary Education	199	389	468	605	135.2	55.5
Northern Territory University	1 693	3 790	2 090	4 087	23.4	7.8
Australian Capital Territory
Australian Defence Force Academy	526	1 300	779	1 624	48.1	24.9
The Australian National University	3 824	10 225	3 678	9 636	–3.8	–5.8
University of Canberra	3 522	9 198	3 740	8 675	6.2	–5.7
Multi-state
Australian Catholic University	4 271	8 462	4 310	9 782	0.9	15.6
Total	217 455	575 616	301 270	726 418	38.5	26.2

(a) Includes all institutions receiving Commonwealth, operating and/or research funding.

(b) Southern Cross University (SCU) was part of the University of New England (UNE) Network in 1993. SCU began operating as a separate institution in 1994. As the 1993 data cannot be disaggregated no percentage change is shown for UNE.

(c) The University of the Sunshine Coast opened in 1996 as the Sunshine Coast University College affiliated to the Queensland University of Technology (QUT). It became an independent university on 1 January 1999 with a corresponding transfer of enrolments from QUT. The percentage change for QUT should be read in this context.

(d) Enrolments for the University of Notre Dame are Commonwealth-funded enrolments only. Fee-paying enrolments are not included.

Source: Higher Education Statistics Collection.

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Undergraduate students

Most universities experienced increases in undergraduate enrolments during the period 1993 to 2001 (see table B2). The largest increases in undergraduate enrolments were for the Australian Maritime College (commencements up 585 per cent and all up 209 per cent) and Central Queensland University (commencements up 148 per cent and all up 100 per cent). Three universities experienced a decline in commencing and/or all undergraduate enrolments. Avondale College recorded a decline of 40 per cent in commencements and 22 per cent in all undergraduate enrolments. The Australian National University recorded a decline in both categories of enrolments, with all undergraduate enrolments down by 12 per cent and commencements down by 17 per cent. The Australian Catholic University (commencements down by 17 per cent but all undergraduate enrolments up by 7 per cent) also recorded a decline.

Table B2: Undergraduate award course enrolments by institution, 1993 and 2001^(a)

Institution	1993		2001		% Change 1993–2001
Institution	Commencing enrolments	All enrolments	Commencing enrolments	All enrolments	Commencing enrolments	All enrolments
New South Wales
Australian Film, Television and Radio School	55	55	0	0	–100	–100
Avondale College	344	720	208	564	–39.5	–21.7
Charles Sturt University	4 163	12 394	8 931	22 379	114.5	80.6
Macquarie University	3 291	11 014	4 653	14 543	41.4	32.0
National Institute of Dramatic Art	52	125	59	152	13.5	21.6
Southern Cross University^(b)	0	0	3 130	7 723	–	–
The University of New England^(b)	5 253	15018	4 377	11 512	–	–
The University of New South Wales	4 958	18 669	7 519	21 805	51.7	16.8
The University of Newcastle	4 234	12 606	5 137	14 363	21.3	13.9
The University of Sydney	6 622	23 007	9 341	27 990	41.1	21.7
University of Technology, Sydney	4 420	15 120	5 585	16 993	26.4	12.4
University of Western Sydney	6 297	16 989	9 099	24 079	44.5	41.7
University of Wollongong	2 960	8 553	3 708	9 931	25.3	16.1
Victoria
Deakin University	6 375	18 629	7 554	20 732	18.5	11.3
La Trobe University	5 748	16 992	6 355	16 993	10.6	0.0
Marcus Oldham College	38	116	33	96	–13.2	–17.2
Monash University	9 136	27 870	12 840	33 183	40.5	19.1
Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology	6 101	19335	9 039	24 094	48.2	24.6
Swinburne University of Technology	2 278	7 029	2 721	8 739	19.4	24.3
The University of Melbourne	6 481	21 730	8 060	25 160	24.4	15.8
University of Ballarat	1 339	3 671	1 580	3 871	18.0	5.4
Victoria University of Technology	4 055	10 623	5 277	13 365	30.1	25.8
Queensland
Central Queensland University	2 284	6 310	5 669	12 631	148.2	100.2
Griffith University	6 282	14 454	8 092	20 556	28.8	42.2
James Cook University	2 207	6 590	4 095	9 669	85.5	46.7
Queensland University of Technology^(c)	7 090	19 884	9 837	25 647	38.7	29.0
The University of Queensland	6 209	19 281	9 250	24 630	49.0	27.7
University of Southern Queensland	3 477	9 961	4 778	11 863	37.4	19.1
University of the Sunshine Coast^(c)	0	0	1 151	2 630	–	–
Western Australia
Curtin University of Technology	5 073	15 058	6 798	18 052	34.0	19.9
Edith Cowan University	5 131	14 653	5 902	15 830	15.0	8.0
Murdoch University	2 025	6 168	3 237	8 797	59.9	42.6
The University of Western Australia	3 001	9 795	3 806	11 192	26.8	14.3
University of Notre Dame Australia^(d)	0	0	208	341	–	–
South Australia
The Flinders University of South Australia	2 562	8 317	3 403	9 333	32.8	12.2
The University of Adelaide	3 301	10 219	3 982	10 822	20.6	5.9
University of South Australia	6 094	17 057	7 551	20 322	23.9	19.1
Tasmania
Australian Maritime College	127	356	870	1 101	585.0	209.3
University of Tasmania	3 230	9 583	3 790	10 452	17.3	9.1
Northern Territory
Batchelor Institute of Indigenous Tertiary Education	84	201	249	377	196.4	87.6
Northern Territory University	1 231	3 018	1 413	3 036	14.8	0.6
Australian Capital Territory
Australian Defence Force Academy	348	947	294	856	–15.5	-9.6
The Australian National University	2 504	7 820	2 069	6 909	–17.4	–11.6
University of Canberra	2 430	7398	2 497	6 762	2.8	-8.6
Multi-state
Australian Catholic University	3 223	6 591	2 687	7 075	–16.6	7.3
Total	152 113	453 926	206 834	557 150	36.0	22.7

(a) Includes all institutions receiving Commonwealth, operating and/or research funding.

(d) Enrolments for the University of Notre Dame are Commonwealth-funded enrolments only. Fee-paying enrolments are not included.

Source: Higher Education Statistics Collection.

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Postgraduate coursework students

The increase in postgraduate coursework enrolments has not been uniform across the sector, with some universities recording large increases while others reported large decreases (see table B3). The largest percentage increases in all enrolments were for the University of Southern Queensland (commencements up 180 per cent and all up 179 per cent), the Australian Defence Force Academy (commencements up 237 per cent, all up 161 per cent), Charles Sturt University (commencements up 162 per cent, all up 149 per cent), Central Queensland University (commencements up 281 per cent, all up 133 per cent), Swinburne University of Technology (commencements up 131 per cent, all up 129 per cent) and Macquarie University (commencements up 103 per cent, all up 100 per cent). The largest decreases in postgraduate coursework enrolments were for the University of Tasmania (commencements down by 65 per cent and all down by 60 per cent) and the University of Western Australia (commencements down by 3 per cent, all down by 27 per cent).

The eight universities with the largest number of postgraduate coursework enrolments in 1993 were Monash University, the University of Melbourne, the University of New South Wales; University of Technology, Sydney, the University of Sydney, Deakin University, the University of New England, and the University of South Australia. These universities accounted for 45 per cent of all such enrolments in 1993 (38 400 students). By 2001 the University of New South Wales had taken first place on this list and the University of Sydney, the University of New England and the University of South Australia had been replaced by Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, Charles Sturt University and Macquarie University.

Table B3: Postgraduate coursework enrolments by institution, 1993 and 2001^(a)

Institution	1993 Commencing enrolments	2001 All enrolments	% Change 1993–2001 Commencing enrolments	All enrolments	Commencing enrolments	All enrolments
New South Wales
Australian Film, Television and Radio School	0	0	88	88	–	–
Avondale College	0	0	15	50	–	–
Charles Sturt University	1 242	2 241	3 258	5 572	162.3	148.6
Macquarie University	1 665	2 783	3 384	5 553	103.2	99.5
National Institute of Dramatic Art	7	7	6	6	–14.3	–14.3
Southern Cross University^(b)	0	0	646	1 121	–	–
The University of New England^(b)	2 449	4 357	1 218	2 519	–	–
The University of New South Wales	2 719	4 893	5 306	8 910	95.1	82.1
The University of Newcastle	606	1 058	1 398	1 949	130.7	84.2
The University of Sydney	2 538	4 509	2 425	3 962	–4.5	–12.1
University of Technology, Sydney	2 895	4 584	3 942	6 786	36.2	48.0
University of Western Sydney	1 278	1 987	1 787	3 042	39.8	53.1
University of Wollongong	1 067	1 754	1 892	2 567	77.3	46.4
Victoria
Deakin University	2 249	4 428	3 187	6 629	41.7	49.7
La Trobe University	1 641	3 133	1 890	3 006	15.2	–4.1
Marcus Oldham College	0	0	0	0	–	–
Melbourne College of Divinity	0	0	44	125	–	–
Monash University	3 193	5 991	4 553	7 324	42.6	22.3
Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology	1 824	3 559	3 715	6 232	103.7	75.1
Swinburne University of Technology	851	1 388	1 967	3 177	131.1	128.9
The University of Melbourne	3 352	5 859	3 783	5 856	12.9	–0.1
University of Ballarat	252	379	463	615	83.7	62.3
Victoria University of Technology	1 009	1 600	1 733	2 775	71.8	73.4
Queensland
Central Queensland University	532	1 156	2 028	2 690	281.2	132.7
Griffith University	913	1 382	1 613	2 612	76.7	89.0
James Cook University	401	655	382	648	–4.7	–1.1
Queensland University of Technology^(c)	2 236	3 803	2 718	4 600	21.6	21.0
The University of Queensland	1 558	2 854	2 017	3 127	29.5	9.6
University of Southern Queensland	769	1 357	2 157	3 781	180.5	178.6
University of the Sunshine Coast^(c)	0	0	189	243	–	–
Western Australia
Curtin University of Technology	1 515	2 787	1 747	2 795	15.3	0.3
Edith Cowan University	1 040	1 786	1 379	2 186	32.6	22.4
Murdoch University	386	751	692	1 161	79.3	54.6
The University of Western Australia	640	1 239	620	902	–3.1	–27.2
University of Notre Dame Australia^(d)	0	0	25	47	–	–
South Australia
The Flinders University of South Australia	620	1 312	835	1 538	34.7	17.2
The University of Adelaide	738	1 309	939	1 389	27.2	6.1
University of South Australia	2 232	3 810	2 567	4 103	15.0	7.7
Tasmania
Australian Maritime College	52	103	77	128	48.1	24.3
University of Tasmania	799	1 310	283	520	–64.6	–60.3
Northern Territory
Batchelor Institute of Indigenous Tertiary Education	0	0	11	20	–	–
Northern Territory University	290	492	459	694	58.3	41.1
Australian Capital Territory
Australian Defence Force Academy	126	235	425	613	237.3	160.9
The Australian National University	765	1 174	1 105	1 362	44.4	16.0
University of Canberra	920	1 479	1 069	1 548	16.2	4.7
Multi-state
Australian Catholic University	987	1 794	1 344	2 243	36.2	25.0
Total	48 356	85 298	71 381	116 813	47.6	36.9

(a) Includes all institutions receiving Commonwealth, operating and/or research funding.

(d) Enrolments for the University of Notre Dame are Commonwealth-funded enrolments only. Fee-paying enrolments are not included.

Source: Higher Education Statistics Collection.

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Higher degree research students

The changes in higher degree research enrolments between universities in the period 1993 to 2001 have been far more variable than for any other category of students (see table B4). Some universities, mostly those starting from a low base, recorded large percentage increases while others reported large decreases. The largest increases in enrolments were for the Australian Catholic University (commencements up 838 per cent and all up 1150 per cent), and the University of Ballarat (commencements up 714 per cent, all up 430 per cent). Other universities to report increases in all higher degree research enrolments of more than 100 per cent included Charles Sturt University, the University of Western Sydney, Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, Griffith University, Edith Cowan University and the University of South Australia. The largest decrease in higher degree research enrolments was for the University of Southern Queensland (commencements down by 75 per cent and all down by 43 per cent).

In 1993, 54 per cent of all higher degree research enrolments were concentrated in eight universities (the University of Sydney, the University of Melbourne, the University of Queensland, Monash University, the University of New South Wales, La Trobe University, the University of Western Australia and the University of Adelaide). Six of these universities were still in the top eight for higher degree research enrolments in 2001, but the University of Adelaide and La Trobe University had been replaced by Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology and the Australian National University. In 2001 these eight universities accounted for 50 per cent of all higher degree research enrolments.

Table B4: Higher degree research enrolments by institution, 1993 and 2001^(a)

Institution	1993		2001		% Change 1993–2001
Institution	Commencing enrolments	All enrolments	Commencing enrolments	All enrolments	Commencing enrolments	All enrolments
New South Wales
Australian Film, Television and Radio School	0	0	3	3	–	–
Avondale College	0	0	0	1	–	–
Charles Sturt University	68	162	81	371	19.1	129.0
Macquarie University	287	799	222	891	–22.6	11.5
National Institute of Dramatic Art	0	0	0	0	–	–
Southern Cross University^(b)	0	0	107	311	–	–
The University of New England^(b)	306	814	172	696	–	–
The University of New South Wales	771	2 083	620	2 304	–19.6	10.6
The University of Newcastle	217	656	373	1 015	72.8	54.7
The University of Sydney	901	2 742	755	3 157	–16.2	15.1
University of Technology, Sydney	208	587	219	718	5.3	22.3
University of Western Sydney	217	460	134	946	–38.2	105.7
University of Wollongong	220	650	184	795	–16.4	22.3
Victoria
Deakin University	195	512	238	810	22.1	58.2
La Trobe University	299	1 184	294	1 145	–1.7