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Australia's higher education sector is strong and globally competitive, but funding changes are required if the sector is to remain strong and globally competitive, James Cook University Vice Chancellor and President, and Universities Australia Chair, Professor Sandra Harding has told a CEDA forum in Adelaide .
30/09/2014
Speaking at the higher education review, Ms Harding said: "Successive governments have been disinclined to fund universities and research at the level required in order for us to certainly maintain, if not build, our competitive position."
Current funding levels would not allow the higher education sector to meet the future needs of the Australian economy in a globally competitive environment, she said.
"The way in which we go about funding higher education research right now in Australia is unsustainable," she said.
Ms Harding said the fact that Australian universities have a consensus position regarding sector reforms is rare.
"I'm not quite sure when it occurred last time that the universities of Australia… established a consensus position on something as important as the proposed Government reforms and the future of higher education in this country," she said.
In regards to the Federal Government's proposed higher education reforms currently in the Senate, Ms Harding said there are many facets worth supporting. However, in order to be reasonable and sensible three essential changes are required to the proposed reform package.
These changes, proposed by Universities Australia, are:
Ms Harding said Universities Australia is encouraging senators to "think these reforms through" and not oppose fee deregulation.
"They have the opportunity now to craft a major legacy: the largest changes and the most significant changes to higher education reform that this country has seen in a generation," she said.
"In a globally competitive economy, in an economy that is shifting, that is changing, we're going to be ever more reliant on the skills of our people and on the innovation that we can create."
The following Vice Chancellors also spoke at this event:
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