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The challenge of funding a high quality higher education system, ensuring it has the capacity to help meet the increasing demand for high level skills in our economy and the aspirations of our students, has been an ongoing concern for successive Australian governments over many years. This paper reviews the findings and recommendations of significant reviews of Australia's higher education funding system from the 1988 Dawkins white paper through to the 2014 "Review of the Demand Driven Funding System." It summarises the challenges identified and responses proposed across that period as well as some recent international literature about higher education reform. What is clear from the survey of major reviews from 1988 to the present is the similarity of issues that were of concern to governments of the day. Successive governments have sought to build and fund a higher education system to meet the need for high level skills and innovative research for the Australian economy. The challenge for all governments has been how to enable greater numbers of students to access the benefits higher education offers--in terms of employment, earnings, social and cultural opportunities--while ensuring the system remains fair, high quality and affordable for both individuals and taxpayers. The number of domestic higher education students has more than doubled since 1989, reaching just over a million in 2014. International students comprised another 350,000 students in 2014. As student numbers have grown, they have come from more diverse social, economic and academic backgrounds. The number of providers and their diversity has also grown, with around 20 new public universities since the late 1980s and the emergence of significant numbers of non-university providers. The proportion of the Australian working age population with a bachelor degree or higher qualification has tripled since 1989 to just over 25 per cent. Direct Australian Government funding for teaching, learning and research has grown both in absolute and real terms, rising from $3.2 billion in 1989 to $15.4 billion in 2014, more than doubling when adjusted for inflation. Australia is not unique in facing this growth and higher education systems around the world are increasingly moving from elite to mass systems, and beyond to universal systems.

Taking a break between completing high school and entering university is common overseas, and is becoming more popular in Australia. There are many reasons why young people take a gap year. It may be to travel, to take a break, to study, or to work. The authors' definition of a "gapper" is a young person who commenced university one to two years after completing Year 12. While the concept of a gap year is related to the deferral of a university offer, it is different. Some gappers have deferred, others decide to enrol during their gap year, not beforehand. Similarly, some who defer a university offer subsequently do not take up a place and are thus not defined as gappers. This report was prepared for the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations in 2009 prior to the Australian Government's announcement of proposed changes to Youth Allowance as an initiative in the 2009-10 Budget and the subsequent reforms based on recommendations from the "Review of Student Income Support Reforms" (Dow 2011). The research uses data from three cohorts of the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY) to throw light on the incidence of gap-taking, the characteristics of those taking a gap year, the activities undertaken in the gap years, and subsequent study and employment outcomes. The report also looks at whether there is any evidence that young people were taking a gap year in order to qualify for Youth Allowance payments. This report reveals that: (1) The incidence of gap-taking has increased and it is estimated that around 20% of Australian students who complete high school will take a gap year; (2) Gap-takers tend to be weaker academically, with lower-than-average tertiary entrance rank (TER) scores, lower than average Year 9 mathematics achievement, and less favourable attitudes to school. In addition to academic factors, young people from English speaking backgrounds and from regional locations are more likely to take a gap year. Students who do not receive Youth Allowance payments while at school (and thus who were from higher socioeconomic status families) are also more likely to take a gap year; (3) The most common activities of Australian gap students are work (40%) and study or training (33%), with only 3% reporting travel as their main activity; (4) It appears that relatively few took a gap year principally to qualify for Youth Allowance: four out of 69 who deferred a university place gave "needing to qualify for Youth Allowance" as a reason for their deferral; and (5) The university completion rates of "gappers" are a little lower than "non-gappers". Appended are: (1) Variables and methods; and (2) Supplementary tables. (Contains 25 tables and 15 footnotes.) [For "Who Takes a Gap Year and Why? Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth. Briefing Paper 28," see ED533076.]

This report presents an analysis of the diversity of income streams in UK higher education institutions (HEIs) at a time when the sector is facing considerable uncertainty. The research was conducted over a six-week period from March to April 2010 and, as such, it predated the establishment of the new Coalition Government in the UK. In the period since, both the Government's Emergency Budget of June 2010 and subsequent announcements have introduced a series of measures with important implications for higher education (HE) in the UK. With Lord Browne's "Independent review of higher education funding and student finance" due to report in the autumn, it is inevitable that there will be substantial changes across the HE sector. This report is intended to highlight some of the issues to be considered as the sector plans for the future. It is, however, important that it is read with its timing in mind. It is possible that the recent announcements by the new Government would elicit different responses if the research were to be repeated now. This notwithstanding, the report offers both an analysis of trends in HE income over time as well as a snapshot of the views of the sector at a time of great challenge and uncertainty. List of contributing institutions is appended. (Contains 17 figures and 9 endnotes.) [This paper was prepared by EKOS.]

This paper covers the whole of the UK higher education sector. It presents statistics relating to students, staff and finance. The data is derived from a variety of sources.

This paper presents the facts and figures of the whole UK higher education sector in 2009. The data is derived from a variety of sources, and is updated on a yearly basis.

This paper presents the facts and figures of the whole UK higher education sector in 2007. The data is derived from a variety of sources, and is updated on a yearly basis.