Higher education at the crossroads: Response to an Australian ministerial discussion paper

Byline: Peter Karmel (1) Abstract: The Commonwealth Governmentshould move to the funding of undergraduate coursesfor Australian students through the studentsrather than by way of direct grants toinstitutions. An independent coordinating bodyshould be re-established to report on thehigher education sector, advise theCommonwealth and administer Commonwealth highereducation programs. Public funding ofundergraduate education and research trainingshould be decentralised through a system ofscholarships. Undergraduate scholarship holdersshould pay charges determined by universitiesunder HECS (Higher Education ContributionScheme) arrangements. HECS arrangements alsoshould apply to full fee paying undergraduatesand PELS (Postgraduate Education Loan Scheme)arrangements to full fee paying researchstudents. Institutional research fundingshould be on a disciplinary basis, takingaccount of the volume and quality ofoutputs. Author Affiliation: (1) Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, 2600, Australia Article History: Registration Date: 11/10/2004