The global online education sector has been rising rapidly, particularly during and after the events of 2020, and is becoming mainstream much sooner than expected. Despite this, research studies report higher levels of perceived isolation, difficulties with engagement, and higher attrition rates in online compared to equivalent on-campus programs.…

Most children starting primary school in Australia do so after attending early childhood education and participating in a transition to school programme. While this has become the expected pathway, it is not the one followed by all children and their families. In this article, we describe visible transitions as those that are known, understood and…

With the rise of international education in the Asia-Pacific, Chinese students have become a key demographic in Australian universities. However, cultural differences between China and Australia often challenge these students' adaptation. Drawing inspiration from the growing trend in the modern entertainment industry, researchers have explored…

In 2020, staff at Griffith University, Australia used a best practice and evidence-informed orientation event framework to create the University's first series of fully online, university-wide orientation sessions. The PECS design framework was created to ensure that orientation events at Griffith focused on developing students' sense of belonging…

Student retention in education courses is a political imperative. This research examined the wicked problem of attrition in a Bachelor of Education (Early Childhood Studies) course, drawing on the experiences of three different groups of students studying early childhood. The participants from each study represented different student groups within…

Growth in online higher education offerings has been significant in recent years, with many Australian Universities launching programs to extend into new markets and meet the student demand for greater flexibility in delivery modes. Further, it is well understood that good support is an essential component to student success, satisfaction and…

This study contributes to child voice research that seeks to understand the early childhood education and care (ECEC) experiences of young children. Forty-seven children from seven disadvantaged communities in NSW Australia, including urban, rural and remote areas, participated in a face-to-face interview guided by Ecocultural theory. The children…

Student attrition remains a persistent problem within the Australian higher education sector. Contributing factors include financial, reputational and quality issues, which can pose significant risks for a university's sustainability. Institutional culture is fundamental to decisions student make about withdrawing or remaining in higher education.…

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to improve the orientation experience of commencing first-year undergraduate business students to better prepare them for the reality of their academic studies through the development and implementation of a Commencing Student-Needs-Centred Orientation Framework. Design/methodology/approach: The methodology…

Formal mentoring programmes continue to gain popularity in higher education, mirroring trends in industry. The study described in this article examines the design features of a formal mentoring programme for first year undergraduates and focused on three key aspects--the matching process, training and orientation, and interaction frequency. The…

This study examined at two Australian university campuses the types of problems that prompt international students to seek counselling services. The concerns reported by ninety students fell within three broad categories; adjustment issues, academic concerns and psychosocial problems. Follow-up interviews with a subset of these students (21) were…

Good practice notes offer practical advice and examples of good practice to guide operations in regard to specific, higher education issues. The good practice notes are intended to support and promote the quality assurance approaches of providers. This Good Practice Note identifies examples of good practice in Australian higher education providers…

Universities throughout Australia are increasingly investing significant amounts of time and money in efforts to improve the quality of first year students' experiences and, by extension, increase retention, performance and student satisfaction. This paper reports upon a pilot research project conducted at a Queensland university that investigates…

This paper describes in detail a successful training program developed for sessional (part-time or nonpermanent) laboratory demonstrators employed in the Electrical Engineering Department of an Australian university. Such demonstrators play an important role in teaching practical concepts and skills in engineering. The success of the program…

In responding to a global audience, universities are increasingly bound up in priorities of maintaining viability within landscapes of globalised market imperatives, and with changing paradigms of purpose; universities need to be accessible to all. In Australia, pathways to university provided by Credit Transfer have increased student mobility;…