STAFF SAY THE JURY IS STILL OUT ON THE MERITS OF THE MELBOURNE MODEL
April 17, 2007
University of Melbourne staff believe the jury is still out on the merits of the proposed Melbourne Model being launched today.
“There is a great diversity of views among the University’s staff about the merits and potential disadvantages of the proposed Melbourne Model,” said Matt McGowan, NTEU Victorian Secretary.
“While there is a general recognition of the model’s potential educational benefits, the jury is still out on the plan’s overall merits given the significant amount of detail about it yet to be released by management.”
“In particular, there is a great deal of debate about the implications of the changes for equity of access to Melbourne University, and the balance of students attending on HECS, scholarships and full fee paying places.”
“While the University has received Commonwealth Government approval to transfer a proportion of its undergraduate HECS places to students seeking to undertake postgraduate professional degrees in areas such as law and medicine, and it will supplement this through a generous scholarship scheme, the proportion of students that will have to pay upfront full fees remains unclear.”
“The issue of student access to the professions on an affordable basis is a serious concern given indications that a number of other universities are giving consideration to adopting changes similar to those proposed by the Melbourne Model.
“The Union’s other concern is the impact the proposed model will have on working hours and job security for staff at the institution,” said Ted Clark, President of the University of Melbourne NTEU Branch.
“Given the scale of the changes envisaged, the University’s management must understand that the support of staff is vital to the success of the Melbourne Model.
“The University’s staff are keen to cooperate to ensure that the transition is a success, but this good faith is contingent on the real involvement of staff in decision making and a commitment to ensuring that the interests of the staff as well as its students are taken into consideration.”
“In particular, we want to ensure that the Vice-Chancellor’s statement that ‘fewer staff will be required in some areas and more in others’ does not imply staff redundancies, and we will be monitoring the situation closely to ensure that this is not the case.”
Information and Comment:
Ted Clark, President, NTEU University of Melbourne Branch: (03) 8344 6828
Matt McGowan, Secretary, NTEU Victorian Division: (03) 9254 1930