CHESTER SEEKS ASSURANCES ON GIPPSLAND UNIVERSITY
March 28, 2013
The restructuring of Gippsland’s main tertiary institution at Churchill must focus on the needs of regional students, according to The Nationals Member for Gippsland Darren Chester.
Mr Chester made the comments during a meeting with University of Ballarat (UB) Vice-Chancellor, Professor David Battersby, in Canberra.
Professor Battersby was in Canberra to discuss tertiary education in regional areas with Federal Ministers and MPs.
He took the opportunity to brief Mr Chester on the proposed new entity to provide tertiary education in the region through the collaboration of Monash University’s Gippsland campus and UB.
Mr Chester has been busy seeking assurances that Gippsland students will not be disadvantaged by the change in tertiary provider.
Under the agreement, which is yet to be finalised, a new university for regional Victoria would be formed with students right across the state offered an expanded number of degree options.
Mr Chester said UB, which is a 140-year-old dual-sector university with four campuses, has had good success in providing career pathways for students looking to study in a regional setting.
“Gippsland needs a university campus that is focussed on getting more local students into tertiary education and a career pathway,” Mr Chester said.
“Right now we have too many young people falling through the cracks for a multitude of reasons but most significantly, the cost and physical distance of moving to Melbourne to study.
“Providing courses and support services which better tailor to the needs of regional students so that we can improve student numbers is critical to any restructure of the current Gippsland campus.”
Mr Chester said the proposal put forward by UB and Monash had been offered in-principle support by the State Government but still required formal approval. The Federal Government’s Department of Education must also give its approval to the plan.
He said approvals will be sought after current consultation work with staff, students, key stakeholders and the community is finalised.
Professor Battersby said the proposed model could provide new courses for Gippsland students.
He also said that the Gippsland campus would be able to pursue greater flexibility in entry requirements.
“There are a number of courses which could be implemented in Gippsland as part of the new model such as engineering, graphic design and multimedia, human movement and sports science, early childhood, metallurgy and health science,” Professor Battersby said.
“The model could also assist the campus to respond more quickly and effectively to the demands of the local community, tailoring education to better meet the needs of students who live and work in the region.
“Ideally, any new model will take effect from January 1, 2014, although that will depend on all necessary processes being completed.”