Reform at the turn of the century: 1990s to mid 2000s

This period saw post-Dawkins expansion and acceleration during Howard’s Prime Ministership (1996-2007), and resulted in new challenges for university management and governance, with the rise of multi-campus universities formed through amalgamations of Colleges of Advanced Education, Teachers’ Colleges and Institutes of Technology, expansion of student enrolments, a greater level of accountability required by governments, a shift from State to Federal accreditation and regulation (leveraged largely through Commonwealth funding conditions), opening up of new markets for education, the (re)introduction of a ‘user-pays’ model for student contributions and an accompanying decrease in direct Commonwealth funding for universities (Marginson & Considine, 2000; Meek & Wood, 2002; Forsyth, 2014).

This era laid the foundations for subsequent higher education policy directions, creating the conditions for massification, growth in international student enrolments, increased reliance on market and performance-based approaches to funding, and the shift from public to private funding sources (the latter being principally individual students and their families) (Pick, 2006). The trend towards central regulation started with the harmonising of State accreditation standards – the 2000 MCEETYA National Protocols for Higher Education Approval Processes [pdf, 59KB] Links to an external site.. This was the first articulation of national standards, to which the States voluntarily committed, and they were ultimately incorporated into the Higher Education Standards Framework [pdf, 366KB] Links to an external site. that now underpins regulation and accreditation by the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency Links to an external site. (TEQSA).

The 1995 Review of Higher Education Management (the Hoare Report)

The review's objective was to develop excellence in management and accountability of the resources available to the Higher Education sector by the adoption of a much more corporate style approach to the governance and management of universities (Hoare Committee, 1995).

The 1998 Review of Higher Education Financing and Policy

The Report of the Review of Higher Education Financing and Policy 1998 (DEETYA, 1998), the West Report, strongly supported a move to a form of student-centred funding, recommending that public funding for tuition be driven by student choice of institution for enrolment at both the undergraduate and post graduate levels.

2002 Higher Education at the Crossroads

The 'Crossroads Papers' covered policy proposals and discussion on major aspects of the higher education sector, from learning and teaching, institutional diversity, Indigenous education and the TAFE/VET-HE  (Vocational Education and Training-Higher Education) relationship to the governance and management of universities. The Issues Papers foreshadowed some radical policy changes in relation to higher education, including issues around funding, governance, the possibility of different types of higher education providers, expansion of accreditation for private providers, voluntary student unionism and industrial reforms.

Our Universities: Backing Australia’s Future and the Higher Education Support Act

As part of the 2003 Budget, the Federal Government released Our Universities: Backing Australia’s Future. This policy document proposed a package of reforms to higher education funding, organisation, governance and industrial relations. Changes included new HECS arrangements ('top up' fees introduced by all but three of Australia’s universities), introduction of domestic undergraduate full fee places (DUFFs) and conditional funding for compliance with National Governance Protocols (NGP) and Higher Education Workplace Relations Requirements (HEWRRs). Voluntary student unionism (VSU) took effect from July 2006, preventing universities from charging compulsory fees to subsidise student unions and associations.