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The new conservative coalition government in Australia has proved aggressive in its relationships with universities and the academic unions are now planning stronger measures in retaliation. The government has already made budget cutbacks and not provided for salary increases. Current plans are for a sharp increase in tuition fees for students and for changes in the system of industrial negotiations. Vice Chancellors are unhappy with the situation but say that without funding increases jobs will be lost.

The Australian higher education budget has been reduced and fees for students will rise and many jobs will be shed. The government is also carrying out an independent review of higher education. Universities will not receive help for a pay claim of 15% from university staff. Degree subjects will be classified according to how expensive they are to provide and the expected future earnings of students, with higher fees for expensive courses.

Fay Gale is the first woman head of the Australian Vice Chancellors' Committee, and is vice chancellor of the oldest and most prestigious university in western Australia. She aims to give the committee a higher public and political profile and wants to develop warmer links with the academics' union.

University students in Australia receive financial support via government allowances and interest-free loans, but the government is considering making major changes. Under the Higher Education Contribution Scheme (HECS) students must pay nearly a quarter of the average cost of tuition, and 29% of students elect to pay their fees on enrolment, to take advantage of a discount. Education minister Amanda Vanstone is considering lowering the salary threshold at which graduate tax will apply.

The new Australian conservative government plans major cuts on all public expenditure, and universities are particularly concerned, with various lobby groups joining forces. There are hints that higher education expenditure could be reduced by as much as 12%, or as little as 2%. There are arguments that full research funding should return to the major institutions, after attempts to divert money to small universities in an attempt to create a strong research base has failed.

David Rindos was dismissed from his post as archaeology lecturer at the University of Western Australia, but has won an inquiry into his dismissal. The University claimed that his performance was not adequate, while Rindos argues that he was not given tenure as a result of raising concerns over the behavior of the archaeology department head of the time, Sandra Bowdler. The inquiry will be held by the parliament of Western Australia, and will take a broad view of the issues related to the case.

The Australian academic industrial organisation National Tertiary Education Union has failed to support the Labor government for the first time in three federal elections because no pay settlement has yet been achieved for the academic and general staff of the country. Approximately 20,000 Australian dollars is being donated, however, to protest against the Conservative party's industrial relations policies.

The cost of studying at UK universities is higher than at institutions in other countries except for New Zealand, according to a survey carried out by the Federal Education Department of Australia. There were 60 UK universities surveyed and fees were analysed to find the median. UK fees are high, and it is also expensive for Asian students to travel to the UK. Fees vary widely in Canada so it was difficult to calculate a median figure.

The Australian government will spend 16.5 billion Australian dollars on higher education in the coming three years. Sending on research and research infrastructure will be raised by 150 million Australian dollars. An extra 11,000 student places will be made available. The budget has pleased the National Tertiary Education Union and the vice chancellors' committee.

Australia is monitoring the quality of its public universities and quality assurance is improving, according to the government. The ranking scheme gives more resources to universities which score well in terms of quality. Academics argue that universities which need funds to improve quality may be denied resources under the scheme. Australian vice-chancellors support the scheme and argue that prestige is as important as finance, with universities keen to secure a place among those which are ranked in the top band.

Simon Crean is an Australian cabinet minister in charge of education, training and employment. He studied law and economics at Monash University and is perceived as a pragmatist. He has helped set up a national admissions center for students and has helped market Australian educational establishments abroad. He argues that reorganization is needed in higher education in Australia and will be announcing a number of measures to this effect.

Australian universities plan to raise over 150 million pounds sterling in 1995 from charging fees to graduate students. The market for these courses has become deregulated and universities are free to increase charges. A loan scheme may be developed for students especially for those on vocational courses. Critics argue that fee-paying courses have been expanded too rapidly and quality has suffered as a result. Universities monitor their own standards and there is little support for a state body to monitor this.

Australian academics and vice chancellors are debating a quality assurance project set up by the federal government. The vice chancellors want the scheme to run for a third year, while academics are seeking to divert funds to secure more places for students. The vice chancellors fear that opposition from academics may lead the government to abandon the scheme as part of a move to reduce spending on higher education. There is also speculation that funds could be switched to research infrastructure.

There have been relatively few developments in higher education in Australia in 1994, although vice chancellors still expressed concern about quality audits, resource allocations and performance indicators. In Feb 1994, a national framework agreement was signed for enterprise bargaining to be introduced at every public university, and university administrators have been trying to establish their own industrial workplace deals with staff. One of the main issues of concern for 1995 will be the fall in the number of university applicants as job prospects improve.

More than 5 billion pounds sterling will be invested by the Australian government in the higher education system in 1995 and 1996, part of a programme to improve quality, equality of access and diversity. The government is also planning to increase the number of postgraduate awards, making 18,300 students exempt from paying tuition fees. However, universities will still be expected to raise funds from other sources.

Australian universities will have to undergo a federal quality audit to secure their share of nearly $80 million of extra grants. Additional funds were awarded in 1993 for overall quality performance, but many universities complained they were wrongly ranked in the lower bands as the auditors did not take diversity into consideration. For the forthcoming audit the review teams will examine the quality of postgraduate teaching and ways to improve access for the disadvantaged. Examples of best practice will be published to help the universities providing poor service delivery.

The drug albendazole, which has been used to treat people suffering from giardia and intestinal worms, may also prove to be an effective treatment against malaria. Albendazole seems to act against the tubulin protein in giardia which is also present in the malaria parasite. The drug has few or no side effects. The discovery was made by Australian researchers. Other Australian researchers have also discovered a new way of sourcing large amounts of qinghao, another potential anti-malarial compound. As many as five million people worldwide die each year from malaria.

Australian students are protesting against proposals to raise fees which were submitted in Aug 1994. Students admitted after university quotas are filled would have to pay full fees, and other students would face higher fees under the Higher Education Contribution Scheme, if the proposals are accepted. Fees were abolished in 1974, and reintroduced in the mid 1980s, since when they have risen almost tenfold. The Australian Vice Chancellors' Committee is pressing for the right to charge full fees for students admitted above quota levels.

Australian universities are increasingly setting up joint institutions in overseas countries, with foreign joint ventures expected to be established in Australia in return. Off-shore campuses are also being established by Australia in a move towards genuine multi-national universities, with overseas expansion being considered due to anticipated future lack of government funding. Higher education will be generally expected to play a greater role in economic development in future years, with greater focus on innovation and research and development.

Paul Keating, prime minister of Australia, has stated that there will be a new emphasis toward vocational training and away from universities. The Australian higher education system is used by 30% of people aged between 17 and 22 years old, but only 20% of those aged 16 and 17 years old are in vocational training. The aim is for 95% of 19 year olds to be involved in education by the year 2001. Universities have suffered from rapid expansion leaving them with overcrowding, and chancellors are asking for partial privatization in order to be able to charge fees.

Australia has brought in a new policy for research funding which is linked to competitive grants won by universities and their ability to attract research finance from industry. This could affect established universities who benefited from the previous system which based research funding on grants won by individual universities in 1989. The government has pledged that funding for 1995 will not be under 75% of 1994 funding, and funding for 1996 will not be under 50%.

The University of Papua New Guinea (UPNG) expects to see the number of enrolments rise to 13,000 over the next ten years, compared to the current 5,600, despite a predicted fall in acceptance rate to 27% from 38%. The UPNG relies on national government for financial support, and with priority currently going to primary and secondary education, further education is to continue feeling the pinch.

The Australian government is to place more emphasis on vocational education rather than higher education, in order to emulate the example of Germany. Australia has expanded higher education with 17 universities set up in the eight years to 1994, but vocational training has lagged behind. Australia aims to have 95% of its 19-year-old inhabitants in education and training, or having finished their last year at school. Productivity is higher in Germany due to greater emphasis on training, argues Paul Keating, prime minister of Australia.

Women university chancellors in Australia complain that the rule allowing university staff aged over 65 to remain in employment indefinitely has led to a lack of women in senior education management posts. Women account for just 10% of staff above the level of senior lecturer but 44% of those at the level of lecturer. The average age of senior academics in Australian public universities is around 60. Academics appointed during the late 1960s-early 1970s are still holding their positions with few new jobs available.

The Australian government plans changes in repayment of tuition fees by students once they graduate, with implementation scheduled for Jan 1995. Australia has a Higher Education Contribution Scheme under which the government is owed 2 billion Australian dollars. Students with low incomes do not have to repay their debt under tax surcharges, but this will change in 1995. Some 225 million Australian dollars will be repaid by students in 1994.

Australian universities saw funding changes in Mar 1994, when 40% of an 80 million quality grant went to top universities, called the Big Seven, Smaller universities argue that the quality award was made on the grounds of research performance, and the performance of the Big Seven was good because they had receive a large share of the research funds. The Big Seven had argued for most funds to be allocated to them on the grounds that otherwide scarce resources would be spread too thinly.

Australian universities have been classified according to quality, and a further step in a wider change to funding of higher education in Australia. Colleges of advanced education have been eliminated, and a league table has been set up of the 36 public universities in Australia. The traditional, wealthy universities are at the top of the table, and the poorest, new universities are near the bottom. The table could affect applications, and quality award funds are allocated according to ranking, giving more funds to the richer institutions.

Australian unemployment is high at present, and the outlook is even bleaker. One in five Australians is currently unemployed, under-employed, or is unlikely to get a job. There are now 350,000 long-term unemployed people, compared to 50,000 15 years ago. The number of people of working age will increase by 826,000 by 1996 from 1991. The government's aim of creating 1.9 million jobs over the coming six years depends on a 3% yearly increase in employment.

Public funding of Australian higher education is slowing down, after large increases in student numbers. Enrolment has increased by nearly 70% over the last 10 years. Expenditure on universities totals over 4 billion Australian dollars annually. The government is now urging school leavers to go to further education and technical colleges instead of university. Open Learning Agency, television-based college, will soon have about 80 units, with over 10,000 students.

Lecturers in Australian universities are protesting at the increased powers of dismissal awarded to vice chancellors and, following a strike on October 14 1993, will conduct a campaign of industrial action, coordinated by the new National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU). The lecturers have requested the backing of the Australian Council of Trade Unions, and the Australian National Union of Students has asked members to support the academics.

There has been a two-fold increase in the number of foreign students at Australian universities in the five years to 1993, according to government statistics, while the number of fee-paying students has quintupled in this period. A larger proportion of foreign students pay fees, and quotas have been abolished, though universities first have to meet obligations to Australian students. The Pacific region accounts for nearly 20% of foreign students, and New Zealnd is the country which supplies most students from abroad.

Australia has increased the numbers entering higher education by 64% from 1982-1992. This increase has not meant greater numbers of students from less privileged backgrounds have taken advantage of higher education. The higher education system was changed and many institutions amalgamated. There is concern that the Aboriginal population make up only 30% of the total numbers, and that over half the academic staff will reach retirement age in the early part of the next century.

Australian university vice-chancellors have been given new powers to alter conditions of employment for their academic staff. This has led to considerable unrest in the academic community. The new arrangements are part of an overhaul of industrial relations being undertaken throughout the country. Instead of national awards the government want agreements between workers and management to be conducted by each company on working conditions and pay awards.

Australian students with correct qualifications are failing to get places in universities, while postgrad numbers have gone up by 53%. Less undergraduates were admitted in 1992 because of over-admission in 1991. Student numbers have increased dramatically , but this is as a result of fewer dropping out and more going on to take higher degrees. Repayment of student loans has cut the drop out and failure rate, and the recession has been favourable also.

Higher education students in Australia now have to pay 24% of their course costs. In spite of protests when the scheme was introduced in 1989 student enrolments have increased by nearly 30%. Students can either pay when they enrol or through their taxes when they have left college. The fee is index-linked, and stands at 2,328 Australian dollars. Student applications were a record 250,000 in 1992, and 50,000 qualified people were unable to obtain places.

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation estimates that 200,000 people are watching its higher education programmes, and the government has decided to spend 47 million Australian dollars expanding the service into degree-level courses. 'Telecottages' where people can watch the programmes or work on computers are being set up, to make use of the study packages. The programmes are attracting older people rather than the 50,000 young people unable to obtain university places in 1992.

Australian universities are now offering degree and higher courses to Asians, using local colleges there or building new ones. Five thousand students are working for degrees in this way, and 65,000 people are expected to arrive in Australia to register for study there this year. This earns 1 billion Australian dollars annually, and is expected to increase to 5 billion. There have been problems with Chinese students not returning home after their visas expired, or being unable to take up offered places. These problems have led to Australian colleges exporting their courses.

Australian minister for higher education Peter Baldwin has released a White Paper, the intention being to allocate 29 million pounds sterling each year from 1994 on for a quality control and enhancement programme to reward those institutions making maximum use of their resources. He has asked the Higher Education Council to look at five specific points, including methods for monitoring and evaluating quality-related changes. Chairman of the Australian Vice Chancellor's Committee Ken McKinnon has denied suggestions that quality is lacking in Australian universities.