www.monash.edu.au
Competing globally for the best research staff
Edwina Cornish
Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research)
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Why is our research performance important?
• Global “market” for students• International rankings• Increased competition from private
providers• Future viability of Go8 universities will
depend on the international standing of our research
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Global demand for academics(courtesy University of Adelaide)
• Hugo (2002) estimates 230,000 new academic staff need to be recruited in Australia, NZ, Canada, USA, UK in the next decade
• In the UK, an additional 19,000 academics are required over 2002-2012 for replacement purposes
• A further 17,000 required to realise UK government plan to encourage 50% of potential students to enter university
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Australian universities: age distribution 2003(courtesy University of Adelaide)
Age Distribution: academic staff 2003
01,0002,0003,0004,0005,0006,0007,000
<25 25-29 30-34 35-39 40-44 45-49 50-54 55-59 60-64 >64
Age range
Per
sons
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Median age of Go8 academic staff (2000) (courtesy University of Adelaide)
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
Age
in y
ears
UNSW
Adelaide
Sydney
ANU
UWA
Monash
Melbourne
Qld
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• Lack of academic jobs in recent times has seen many graduates leave the university system
• Many high quality graduates move to other countries as a result of Increased globalisation of knowledge and labour
• Growing international competition for top graduates and staff
Trends
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Competitive advantages
• Lifestyle considerations: – Western democracy
– English speaking
– Relatively unspoilt environment
– Low population
• Australian research generally “punches well above its weight”
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• Geography:– Distance from EU and USA is less of an
impediment to research
– Proximity to Asia is an advantage
• Many Australians like to come home
Competitive advantages
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Constraints
• Can’t offer the same level of salaries and infrastructure support as US universities
• We do not have the same level of endowments = discretionary spending power
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The challenges
• An ageing academic population
• A high-quality, English speaking academic workforce attractive to other English-speaking nations with deep pockets
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Strategies must address the whole pipeline
• HDR students• Early career researchers• Research leaders
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• Widen our HDR recruitment net – not just domestically but also internationally– More scholarships to attract the top students
– Provide high quality supervision
– Better infrastructure:> Physical (labs, equipment, space, IT)> Non-physical (support policies, environment)
HDR students
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HDR students
• There has been some growth in HDR enrolments over last triennium in Go8 but not sufficient to replace the academic baby-boomer bulge
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HDR enrolments, Go8, 2000-2002
0
500
1000
1500
2000
2500
3000
3500
4000
1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004
Year
Nb
r
Melbourne
Queensland
Sydney
Monash
NSW
WA
ANU
Adelaide
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HDR students
• Our ability to recruit HDR students is limited by funded places allocated by DEST
• AVCC suggests – increase of 1000 additional places by 2008
– Increased funding per research student by 7.5% by 2007
– Increased number of APAs and IPRSs
• Will AVCC approach result in sufficient in sufficient flow of qualified, high quality researchers into the Australian university system in 10-15 years time?
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Development of the range of skills ECRs will need to be top performers– Academic mentoring
– Exposure to national/international peers through collaborations and conferences
– Leadership development
– Management training
Early Career Researchers
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Attraction & retention of the best researchers
Influences:– Colleagues
– Infrastructure
– Time for research
– Career path opportunities
– Support for national/international collaborations
– Personal rewards
– Excitement about the future
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HR strategies/policies
• Recruitment• Career development/mentoring• Leadership training• Performance management
– Clear research performance expectations
– Rewards for excellence
• Workload management
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Policies and practices
• Are we clear about research performance expectations?– Is performance adequately rewarded as part of
annual review
• Are our policies too cautious and/or Inflexible?
• Do HR policies support achievement of our research objectives
• Are we too democratic?
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