Productivity Commission Confirms that Australian Students Pay More and Get Less
11 February 2003
A final Productivity Commission Report into Higher Education Funding shows that Australian Universities are more reliant on student income than their overseas counterparts.
“The report confirms recent NTEU research which shows that Australian students are paying more and getting less in terms of their university education,” said Dr Carolyn Allport, President of the NTEU.
The Productivity Commission report, entitled “University Resourcing: Australia in an International Context” shows that Australian universities typically receive a higher share of their revenue from students than universities overseas.
“The report indicates that Australian students are making a higher contribution to the cost of their education than overseas students. At the same time, government payments for tertiary education dropped from 1.5% of GDP in 1995 to 1.2% in 1999. Furthermore, student:staff ratios in Australia are generally higher than in other countries and have been rising in recent years” Dr Allport said.
“The NTEU is concerned that government reforms to HECS and university funding, widely expected to be announced as part of the Crossroads review in May, will increase the burden of funding on students and their families. The report adds to the mounting body of evidence showing that the government is failing to meet its responsibilities in relation to investment in the higher education sector,” Dr Allport said.
NTEU research entitled “Students pay more, Universities get less, the Government pockets the difference” can be downloaded from http://www.nteu.org.au//policy/submissions/sub2003