Higher Education Reform Principles

• Prohibitions removed on domestic postgraduate fee paying arrangements

• Additional population growth places annually from 2007 - 1,400 new places in 2007 $10.9m in 2007DiversityEquity

Sustainability Quality

• Deregulation of market & increased capacity to generate non-government revenue

• Creation of coherent & consistent policy framework

• Increased Commonwealth funding per place

• Additional support for regional campuses

• Ensuring programme growth in line with population

Sustainability

Sustainability

• Improving governance & flexibility of institutions

• Ensure course provision addresses labour market needs

• Ensuring all Commonwealth supported places are funded at a level that sustains quality learning outcomes

• Improving the quality of learning & teaching outcomes

• Creating incentives to promote collaboration between institutions & business/industry & local communities

• New accountability framework

Quality

Equity• No cost to students at the point of entry

(public & eligible private institutions) • Increased repayment thresholds in student

loan schemes• Increasing participation & outcomes for

disadvantaged groups • Incentives for students to undertake courses

in National Priority areas • Additional Commonwealth supported places

• Differentiation through structure, mission, goals, course offerings, research strengths & partnerships

• Provision of a range of targeted performance-based incentives not mandated requirements

Diversity

Support for InstitutionsCommonwealth Grant Scheme (CGS)

• Funding based on negotiated discipline mix & paid on actual places delivered

• Penalties for over/under enrolments

• Commonwealth & university Funding Agreements

• Commonwealth contribution per place set in 10 clusters (plus National Priorities)

Commonwealth Grant Scheme (CGS)

• Institutions set student contribution levels within Commonwealth set ranges

• Institutions keep student contributions – student contributions do not impact on Commonwealth Grant Scheme funding

• Transition fund of $12.6m available in 2005 to ensure no institution is significantly disadvantaged

Support for Institutions

Increase to CGS

• 2.5% - 7.5% increase to Commonwealth contribution per place - $404.3m

• Conditional on compliance with National Governance Protocols & Commonwealth workplace relations (WPR) policies

Support for Institutions

Commonwealth Workplace Relations Policies: • Flexible working arrangements• Direct relations with employees• Improving organisational productivity &

performance

•Assessment criteria yet to be determined

Increase to CGS

Support for Institutions

National Priorities and Growth

• Consistent & coherent policy framework (eg. institution eligibility)

• Increased Commonwealth contribution levels & fixed student contribution levels:

Nursing - $40.4m over 4 years

Teaching - $81.4m over 3 years

Support for Institutions

Support for Institutions

• Additional 745 places by 2008 in the National Priority areas of Nursing and Teaching and education of Indigenous people - $22.1m by 2008

• Additional 574 nursing places by 2007- $17.1m over 4 years

• Additional population growth places annually from 2007 - 1,400 new places in 2007 $10.9m in 2007

National Priorities and Growth

Regional Loading• Regional loading for students enrolled at regional

campuses of public higher education institutions -$122.6m over 4 years from 2004

• Current list of eligible regional campuses is indicative

• Uses 2001 data for public higher education institutions

• Institutions will be given the opportunity to nominate specific regional campuses for consideration in the allocation of 2004 funding

• Access centres will not be eligible

Support for Institutions

Band Regional Loading Criteria

Regional campuses

Estimated loading

1 Northern Territory 2 30% 2 Distant and small 9 7.5%

3 Proximate and small or distant and large

27 5%

4 Proximate and large 20 2.5%

Support for Institutions

1: Located in the Northern Territory2: More than 300 km from a mainland capital city, in pop centre of more than 250,000 people

and institution has fewer than 10,000 EFTSU3: Either more than 300 km from a mainland capital city, in pop centre of more than 250,000

people or institution has fewer than 10,000 EFTSU4: Neither more than 300 km from a mainland capital city, in pop centre of more than 250,000

people nor institution has fewer than 10,000 EFTSU.

• Conversion of 25,000 Marginal Places - $347.6m over 3 years from 2005

• Limit of full fee paying students increase to 50 per cent (with the exception of medicine)

• Prohibitions removed on domestic postgraduate fee paying arrangements

Support for Institutions

Commonwealth Course Contribution Schedule

Cluster Discipline Commonwealth

Contribution 1 Law $1,509

2 Accounting, Administration, Economics, Commerce

$2,481

3 Humanities $4,180 4 Mathematics, Statistics $4,937

5 Behavioural Science, Social Studies

$6,636

6 Computing, Built Environment, Health

$7,392

7 Foreign Languages, Visual and Performing Arts

$9,091

8 Engineering, Science, Surveying

$12,303

9 Dentistry, Medicine, Veterinary Science

$15,422

10 Agriculture $16,394 Priority Education $7,278 Priority Nursing $9,733

Higher Education Loans Programme (HELP)

Tuition Loans Overseas Study

Higher Education Information Management System (HEIMS)

FEE-HELPHECS-HELP OS-HELP

Commonwealth Educational Costs

Scholarships

Commonwealth Accommodation

Scholarships

From 2005

• From 2005 all eligible Australian citizens, New Zealand citizens and holders of Australian permanent visas will receive a Learning Entitlement

• Learning Entitlement is 5 years equivalent full-time - extension for initial undergraduate course where normal enrolment period longer than five years

• Institutions will be responsible for Learning Entitlement appeal mechanisms & associated remission of debts

Learning Entitlement

• HECS-HELP available to eligible Commonwealth supported students who are Australian citizens or holders of Australian permanent humanitarian visas

• Institutions will set student contribution levels within ranges set by the Commonwealth

• Student contribution levels in areas of teaching & nursing will not increase

HECS-HELP

• 20% discount for upfront payment of student contribution

• Current HECS students and HECS students commencing in 2004 will study under the current HECS contribution levels until the end of 2008, unless enrolment discontinued before 2008

HECS-HELP

New Student Contribution Ranges from 2005

Band 3 (law, dentistry, medicine, veterinary science)

$0 - $8,355

Band 2 (accounting, commerce, administration, economics, maths, statistics, computing, built environment, health, engineering, science, surveying, agriculture)

$0 - $7,137

Band 1 (humanities, arts behavioural science, social studies, foreign languages, visual and performing arts)

$0 - $5,010

Band National Priorities (education, nursing)

$0 - $3,854

• Income contingent loan facility for full fee paying students to pay undergraduate or postgraduate fees at public or eligible private institutions that meet quality & accountability criteria

• Replaces PELS, BOTPLS & OLDPS

• Students will be able to defer a maximum of $50,000 in tuition fees over a lifetime

• FEE-HELP debts will be indexed each year based on CPI movements & a 3.5 per cent interest rate per annum will apply for the first ten years

FEE-HELP

• Tuition fee is tax deductible

• Current PELS students & students commencing in 2004 continue to have access to current arrangements until they discontinue or complete their course or until the end of 2008 which ever comes first

• Undergraduate & postgraduate students studying through OLA may borrow up to the full amount of the tuition fee for part-time & full-time study

FEE-HELP

• Income contingent loan facility for eligible full-time undergraduate students in Commonwealth supported places at public higher education institutions to study abroad for one or two semesters

• $5,000 per semester

• 2,500 loans in 2005 rising to 10,000 in 2008

OS-HELP

• Not available in first or final year of course

• OS-HELP debts will be indexed each year based on CPI & a 3.5 per cent interest rate per annum will apply for the first ten years

OS-HELP

Repayment of HELP loans

• Existing HECS, PELS, BOTPLS & OLDPS debts & new HECS-HELP debts identified as a HECS-HELP debt

• 10% Bonus for voluntary repayments of more than $500 on HECS-HELP debts

• HECS-HELP debts indexed by CPI annually

• Compulsory repayments directed to HECS-HELP debt first

• FEE-HELP & OS-HELP debts will be identified separately as FEE/OS-HELP debts

• No bonus for voluntary repayment of FEE/OS-HELP debts

• FEE-HELP debts will be indexed each year based on CPI & a 3.5 per cent interest rate per annum will apply for the first ten years

Repayment of HELP loans

Repayment Income Range Percentage Below $30,000 Nil $30,000 - $35,606 4.0% $35,607 - $42,972 4.5% $42,973 - $45,232 5.0% $45,234 - $48,621 5.5% $49,622 - $52,657 6.0% $52,658 - $55,428 6.5% $55,429 - $60,971 7.0% $60,972 - $64,999 7.5% $65,000 and above 8.0%

HELP Repayment Schedule (2005)

• Two new scholarship programmes for rural & regional, low socio-economic status & Indigenous students

• Available to eligible full-time undergraduate Commonwealth supported students who are Australian citizens or holders of Australian permanent humanitarian visas

Commonwealth Learning Scholarships

• $2,000 per year for up to 4 years

• 2,500 scholarships in 2004

• 5,075 new scholarships in 2007 & 17,630 scholarship holders

• $84.4m over 4 years

Commonwealth Education Costs Scholarships (CECS)

• Students from rural & regional areas who have to move to take up a higher education place

• $4,000 per year for up to 4 years

• 1,500 scholarships in 2004

• 2,030 new scholarships in 2007 & 7,550 total scholarships

• $75.8m over 4 years

Commonwealth Accommodation Scholarships (CAS)

Higher Education Information Management System (HEIMS)

• Web-based information management system

• HEIMS underpins the Learning Entitlement, Commonwealth Learning Scholarships & Higher Education Loan Programme

• Facilitate effective & efficient transfer of financial & statistical data between institutions & DEST

• Students accessing Commonwealth supported higher education places, loans or scholarships to be provided with a Commonwealth Higher Education Student Support Number (CHESSN)

• Provision of one off payment to public institutions of approximately $200,000 for IT development

• System development begins 2003

Higher Education Information Management System (HEIMS)

National Institute for Learning and Teaching in Higher Education

• National focus for enhancing learning & teaching

• Major competitive grants scheme for learning & teaching innovation; benchmarking & dissemination of good practice in learning & teaching

• $21.9 annually from 2006; seed funding in 2004/05 from HEIP; overseen by AUTC

Learning and Teaching Initiatives

• Increase in number of awards to reward more outstanding teachers • 210 awards at $10,000 each• 40 awards at $25,000 each• PM Award for Teacher of the Year - $50,000

• Additional $2.7m annually from 2006

Learning and Teaching InitiativesAustralian Awards for University Teaching

Learning and Teaching Initiatives

Learning and Teaching Performance Fund

• To reward institutions that best demonstrate excellence in learning & teaching - 2 stages:1. Demonstrate strong strategic commitment

to learning & teaching2. Assessment of institutional performance

using range of indicators (consultation with sector)

• $54.7 in 2005/06, rising to $83.8 in 2006/07

• Taskforce to develop national research infrastructure strategy

• Taskforce to examine collaboration between universities & PFRAs

• Affiliation of AIMS with James Cook University

• ARC to fund some Chief Investigator salaries in competitive grants

• Evaluation of ‘Knowledge & Innovation’ reforms

Strengthening Research

• Establishment of the Indigenous Higher Education Advisory Council $260,000 annually – 2003

• Increase to Indigenous Support Fund & changes to criteria - $10.4m over 3 years – 2005

• Indigenous Staff Scholarships to undertake full-time study – 5 from 2004 – tuition fees + stipend= ca $30,000 a year

Equity Initiatives

• Increase to Higher Education Equity Programme & changes to allocation – no block grants - $7m over 3 years from 2005

•Increase to the Students with Disabilities Programme - $3.3 over 3 years - 2005

Equity Initiatives

• Workplace Productivity Programme - $55.2m over 2 years from 2006

Criteria to be determined

• Changes to Workplace Relations Act

• Association of Governing Bodies of Australian Universities

Flexible and Responsive Workplaces

• Competitive fund to foster collaboration: in course provision between VET & universities between universities & their communities (in

particular regional communities) between universities, industry, business,

employers & professional associations• Commencing 2005 - additional $20m over 3 years

Collaboration and Structural Reform Fund

• Commonwealth to commission the Australian Universities Quality Agency to conduct overseas audits of Australian higher education provision on a 'whole-of-country' basis - $590,000 annually from 2005

• Increased funding to support the promotion & further development of the Graduate Skills Assessment - $270,000 annually from 2005

Quality Initiatives

• Legislation to ensure that membership of student organisations is optional

• Ensuring that universities do not collect fees that are not directly related to course provision

Optional Membership of Student Organisations

03/04$m

04/05$m

06/07$m

07/08$m

4 year total$m

67.9 249.3 486.2 661.1 1464.5

Our Universities: Backing Australia’s Future

Total Financial Impact

Fiscal Balance (including student loans)