MEDIA RELEASE
AUSTRALIAN MARITIME COLLEGE POINT NEPEAN CAMPUS
11 May 2004 MINBUD 17/04
The 2004-05 Budget will ensure that students in Victoria’s
Mornington Peninsula have access to increased tertiary education
opportunities through additional support for the National Centre for
Marine and Coastal Conservation.
Support for the Centre includes funding for new higher education
places, with $600,000 in 2004-05, $1.1 million in 2005-06 and $1.6
million per year in 2006-07 and 2007-08. The funding will deliver 40
higher education student places at the campus in the first year, and
build to 109 places by 2009.
In addition to offering higher education courses, the Centre - to
be located at former Department of Defence land at Point Nepean -
will offer programmes to primary and secondary schools, vocational
education students and short professional development courses.
Until now, Mornington Peninsula has been desperately short of
tertiary education opportunities for students. This Centre will be
an enormous boost for an area which is now beginning to advance
significantly.
The Centre will attract students from the local region, Victoria
and other States and overseas (the latter as full-fee payers).
Initially courses available to students at the Centre will build
on the Australian Maritime College’s (AMC) Bachelor of
Administration (Marine Resource Management). Courses taught at the
Centre will complement existing courses offered at Victorian
universities. The AMC also plans to provide short courses in
professional management of marine resources at the Centre.
The AMC, currently primarily located in Tasmania, is Australia’s
only specialist maritime training institution, and as such, will be
receiving $3.5 million each year from 2005 in National Institute
funding under the Government’s higher education reform package.
The reform package, Our Universities: Backing Australia’s
Future, will provide $2.6 billion over the next five years in
additional Government funding for the higher education sector.
Media Contacts:
Dr Nelson’s Office: Ross Hampton 0419 484 095
Dept of Education, Science & Training: Virginia Cook 0412 971 323
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