In the context of the Higher Education Standards Framework 2021, facilities and infrastructure refer to the resources used for educational and research purposes, with 'facilities' referring to the learning environments, including both physical and digital learning environments, intended to promote and facilitate the learning outcomes and…

Academic support at Australian universities has become an important aspect of higher education, as student cohorts continue to diversify, and universities need to ensure the students' success and the institutions' reputations. Often, students in need do not access academic support services and little is known about what influences students'…

Higher education participation has increased worldwide given policies devoted to widening participation for under-represented groups, including the use of alternative entry pathways to university. It is, however, unknown if students admitted via alternative pathways perform well academically. This study uses data for 81,874 students from 16…

The University Australia (UA) 2017-2020 Indigenous Strategy has offered Australian universities a focus that would work to increase Indigenous participation in the higher education sector in Australia. Despite the high-level involvement and detailed monitoring by Universities Australia as the sector's peak body, Australia's universities have not…

The current change agenda to improve the persistently lower rates of access, participation and outcomes of Indigenous Australians in higher education is a broad one that attempts to address the complex range of contributing factors. A proposition in this paper is that the broad and longer-term focus runs the risk of distracting from the detailed…

Australian higher education has its roots deep in the soil of colonisation and European imperialism. Therefore, it has developed as a system that is exclusive rather than inclusive of social and cultural diversity. The poor levels of higher education participation and outcomes for Indigenous students and students with a disability indicate the…

Programmes that provide adult learners with an alternative pathway to university typically offer considerable support. Students in such enabling, or access, programmes are increasingly choosing to study online because of the flexibility it affords, yet little is known about how well this mode of learning caters for their needs. The aim of this…

The educational inequity that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have experienced in higher education in Australia is replicated in virtual learning spaces, with generic models of online learning design taking little account of cultural factors that impact on learning. To counter this, new approaches to online learning design are needed…

This article details the construction of a Grounded Theory to explain the concept of enhancing professional learning through mobile devices. The research data was delimited to the behaviours and beliefs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander pre-service teachers enrolled in two community-based initial teacher education programs in very remote…

This report, authored by Graeme Atherton, examines how universities who are seen as leading internationally and/or in their own national contexts are supporting greater access and success for learners from low-income and other marginalised groups. What can English universities learn from global institutions? By looking at how they work with…

Based on a qualitative, comparative, multiple case study of the contributions and status of 21st century women's colleges and universities, this article analyzes the topic of women's access to postsecondary education in ten nations. Despite decreasing numbers of women-only institutions in some regions (e.g., North America), the sector is growing…

Language practices represent significant barriers to engagement in higher education for many learners from traditionally underrepresented backgrounds. In Australia, such students may be Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander learners, students from rural and remote locations, learners who are the first in their family to access higher education,…

The vocational education and training (VET) system can provide an entry point to the education sector for people who have experienced disadvantage in their lives. Participation in VET can provide personal benefits as well as lead to further study and/or employment. How disadvantaged learners participate in vocational education and training is an…

With almost one-third of young people unemployed or underemployed, it is important for early school leavers to gain skills that improve their employment opportunities. The role that vocational education and training (VET) plays is critical, particularly for young early school leavers. Through interviews and focus groups with young people and those…

International students make a vital contribution to the Australian economy. Due to their importance, a number of studies have been undertaken to examine the living experiences, attitudes and behaviours of international students in Australia. However, very few studies have examined international students' overall satisfaction with their university…