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22 November 2022

Navitas Welcomes Universities Accord

Navitas welcomes the announcement by Education Minister, the Hon Jason Clare MP, of a comprehensive review of Australian higher education through the Australian Universities Accord. The outcomes of the Accord will herald a new future for Australian tertiary education.

On 16 November 2022 Minister Clare announced the panel members that will lead the Accord and the terms of reference that will guide the panel’s consultations and recommendations. We are delighted with the appointment of Professor Mary O’Kane AC as Chair, and the Accord members. The panel comprises a group of extraordinary Australian leaders who are eminently qualified to recommend the future direction of higher education.

The Universities Accord is the first comprehensive review of the higher education sector since the Bradley Review of 2008. In leading that review, Professor Bradley foresaw the high-quality higher education sector we have today and developed the pathway to get there. The establishment of TEQSA as a single national quality regulator has driven excellence and stability in the sector and the focus on increasing participation across the Australian society has created opportunities for generations of ‘first-in-family’ graduates to achieve higher education qualifications.

Professor Bradley also envisaged a higher education system that harnessed the innovation and investment of the private sector in partnership with the excellence delivered by Australian universities.

“The legacies of Professor Bradley’s vision are evident at Navitas in our Colleges and University partnerships” Navitas CEO Scott Jones said. “With 64% of our domestic EFTSL load ‘first-in-family’ and higher than average participation rates of low SES students across most Australian states, Navitas is committed to providing opportunities and learning environments for all students to succeed.”

“The Universities Accord brings a timely focus on renewing the pathways to higher participation for all Australians and the opportunity to advance a new vision for the design, regulation, and quality performance for higher education.”

The challenging fiscal environment and enormous global demand for education brings urgency and scale to work of the Accord. To support this work, Minister Clare has also established a Ministerial Reference Group with membership to be announced before the end of the year. As a Pathway provider in partnership with universities, and a provider of domestic colleges ACAP and SAE, Navitas operates across the public and independent sectors. We look forward to working with the Universities Accord panel to develop a new vision, new measures of success and greater opportunities for all students to participate in Australian higher education.

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