MEDIA RELEASE
HIGHER EDUCATION REFORM PACKAGE ENHANCED
17 September, 2003 MIN 463/03
I am pleased to announce enhancements to the higher
education reform package, Our Universities: Backing Australia’s
Future, which will provide significant benefits to students and
institutions.
A number of measures have been modified in the
package to provide greater flexibility for institutions and a
significant advantage to students, particularly those from
low-income backgrounds.
As I have said previously, I am prepared to consider
reasonable arguments for change that do not undermine the
fundamental integrity of the package.
Universities and other stakeholders made a strong
case on the following issues. The following changes will be of
significant benefit to both students and institutions.
Including external students in the regional
loading programme.
In the original policy, only on-campus students were
included in the calculation for regional loading assistance.
Universities have made a case that the provision of education for
external students at regional campuses should also be acknowledged
in the calculation.
The regional loading programme will now be
calculated to take into account a proportion of an eligible
institution’s regional external student population.
Significant beneficiaries of this enhancement will
be the University of New England, Central Queensland University, the
University of Southern Queensland and Charles Sturt University.
Extending the Student Learning Entitlement.
The announced Student Learning Entitlement provided
students in a Commonwealth-supported place with five years of
full-time study (extended where the duration of the course was
longer). A five year limit provides those undertaking a three or
four year degree extra time to complete. However, where the course
is longer than five years, students may need extra time to complete.
The Student Learning Entitlement will be extended to
cover the duration of a student’s course plus one year where the
course is five years or longer.
This will give students the flexibility to change
their preference after commencing and allow for factors that may
affect their progress, it will also help to improve retention in
universities and reduce the number of students dropping out.
Lifting the current two per cent overenrolment
limit to five per cent.
The reform package provided for a two per cent limit
within which institutions could enrol above their target number of
students. This initiative addressed concerns across the sector that
overenrolled places, which attract a marginal funding rate, were
putting pressure on quality and causing overcrowding. Institutions
are currently overenrolled at around eight per cent across the
sector.
Institutions strongly argued that the two per cent
limit should be increased to give universities greater flexibility
in planning their student numbers. Institutions argued that a higher
limit would alleviate problems associated with accurately estimating
acceptances, withdrawals and continuing students, a particular
problem for smaller institutions.
The Government does not want a situation where large
numbers of students are overenrolled and potentially compromising
quality. However, it appreciates the planning challenges of
institutions and has lifted the limit to five per cent. This will
give institutions greater flexibility but will still keep
overenrolments within a manageable range. A five per cent limit will
provide for around 20,000 places across the sector.
As institutions’ overenrolled places are phased out
to within a five per cent range over the next five years to 2008,
approximately 25,000 new fully-funded places will be rolled out at a
cost of $347.6 million.
Treatment of fee exempt scholarships for income
support purposes.
Fee-exempt scholarships for low-income students,
where the university determines that there is no fee for the course,
will be excluded from the social security income test.
Currently around 2,000 of this type of scholarship
are offered across the sector.
The Government will now allow institutions to
provide fee-exempt places or fee-exempt scholarships to students
whom they consider to be disadvantaged. This will not be counted as
income for social security purposes. This mechanism will enable
institutions to offer disadvantaged students access to courses
without a fee and have no impact on their Youth Allowance, Austudy
or ABSTUDY entitlements.
It is well-established policy under the Social
Security Act, 1991 that receipt of financial assistance which is
of immediate and discretionary benefit is to be counted as income
for social security purposes. This approach maintains the integrity
of the social security system while ensuring that students from low
income backgrounds are treated in a fair and equitable manner.
Media contact:
Dr Nelson’s Office: Ross Hampton 0419 484 095
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