Mission-Based Compact
Between:
The Commonwealth of Australia
and
The University of Melbourne
CONTENTS
Context
Part One:
Establishment of the Compact
The University’s Mission
Part Two:
Teaching and Learning
Performance Funding
Part Three:
Research, Research Training and Innovation
Part Four:
Compact Review
Part Five:
General Provisions
Attachments
A.
Indicative list of Commonwealth Funding provided to the University which is
administered by DEEWR and relevant to this Compact.
B.
List of Commonwealth Funding provided to the University which is
administered by DIISR and relevant to this Compact.
C.
University Confidential Information1.
D.
Terms and Conditions of Agreement between the Minister for Tertiary
Education, Skills, Jobs and Workplace Relations and the University about
Performance Funding.
E.
Copy of Commonwealth Grant Scheme Funding agreement between the
Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills, Jobs and Workplace Relations and the
University.
1
There will be an Attachment C only where the University provides commercially sensitive material. The
published version of a Compact will indicate the existence or otherwise of an Attachment C (University
Confidential Information) but will not include the content.
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Date
This Compact is made on ________________
between
The Commonwealth of Australia (Commonwealth) represented by and acting
through both:
The Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills, Jobs and Workplace Relations
Assisted by the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace
Relations (DEEWR)
ABN 63 578 775 294
Of
50 Marcus Clarke Street
Canberra ACT 2601
And
The Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research
Assisted by the Department of Innovation, Industry, Science and Research
(DIISR)
ABN 74 599 608 295
Of
Industry House
10 Binara Street
Canberra ACT 2601
And
The University of Melbourne
ABN 84002705224
A body corporate under the University of Melbourne Act 2009
Of
Parkville Victoria 3010
(University)
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CONTEXT
A.
The Purpose and Effect of this Compact
This Compact is an agreement between the Commonwealth and the University.
It demonstrates that the Commonwealth and the University have a shared and
mutual commitment to provide students with high quality educational experiences
and outcomes and to building research and innovation capabilities and international
competitiveness.
The Compact recognises that the University is an autonomous institution with a
distinctive mission, operating within a state or territory, national and international
higher education environment.
The purpose of this Compact is to provide a strategic framework for the relationship
between the Commonwealth and the University. It sets out how the University’s
Mission aligns with the Commonwealth’s goals for higher education, research,
research training and innovation, and includes information on funding provided by
the Commonwealth to the University.
Section 4 and Attachment D of this Compact together constitute the funding
agreement, for the purpose of section 30-25 of the Higher Education Support Act
2003 (HESA), for the grant of teaching and learning Performance Funding to the
University. Similarly, Attachment E of this Compact contains the funding agreement,
for the purpose of section 30-25 of HESA, for the provision of other Commonwealth
Grant Scheme funding to the University.
This Compact also refers to funding provided under DIISR's Collaborative Research
Networks (CRN) funding program. Any funding provided under that program is not
made under HESA and is separate to, but made within the framework of, this
Compact.
In addition, this Compact refers to a range of other funding that is provided by DIISR
and DEEWR to the University under various legislative and/or contractual funding
arrangements. The details of relevant DEEWR funding arrangements are set out in
Attachment A and the details of relevant DIISR funding arrangements are set out in
Attachment B.
By detailing Commonwealth funding commitments and reciprocal University
commitments, this Compact also contributes to creating a transparent and
accountable system of administration of Commonwealth funding. To support this
purpose, the Commonwealth and the University agree that this Compact will be
published on Commonwealth websites and may be published on the University
website.
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B.
The Principles of Commonwealth Funding Support
The principles under which Commonwealth funding for higher education is provided
are:
C.

opportunity for all, especially for those students from groups under-represented
in higher education;

access to university based on merit;

world-class teaching and learning that advances the international standing of
Australian education;

world class research and research training that advances knowledge, critical
thinking and Australia’s international standing;

responsiveness to the economic and social needs of the community, region,
state, nation and the international community;

a sustainable higher-education sector; and

academic freedom and institutional autonomy.
The Commonwealth’s ambitions for Higher Education and Innovation
The Commonwealth’s vision for the higher education sector is set out in
Transforming Australia’s Higher Education System available at
http://www.deewr.gov.au
Higher education is central to achieving the key objectives for the nation’s future,
including:

A stronger Australia – boosting Australia’s share of high skilled jobs and
productivity growth will require a highly skilled workforce that can rapidly adapt
to meet future challenges; and

A fairer Australia – all Australians will benefit from widespread equitable
access to a diverse tertiary education sector that allows each individual to
develop and reach their potential. Society as a whole will benefit from the
widespread application of cutting-edge research.
In supporting these objectives, the Commonwealth's ambitions for higher education
include:

producing graduates with the knowledge, skills and understandings for full
participation in society and the economy;

providing opportunities for people from all backgrounds to participate to their full
potential and be supported to do so;

providing students with a stimulating and rewarding higher education
experience;

playing a pivotal role in the national research and innovation system through
generation and dissemination of new knowledge and through the education,
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training and development of world class researchers across a wide range of
intellectual disciplines; and

being amongst the leading Organisation for Economic Co-operation and
Development (OECD) countries in terms of participation and performance.
The higher education system also plays a crucial role in supporting innovation. The
Commonwealth’s policy statement, Powering Ideas - An Innovation Agenda for the
21st Century http://innovation.gov.au is designed to build innovation skills, support
research to create new knowledge, increase business innovation and boost
collaboration.
For higher education research, research training and innovation, the
Commonwealth’s ambitions include:
D.

progressively increasing the number of research groups performing at worldclass levels;

boosting research collaboration by Australian universities;

significantly increasing the number of students completing higher degrees by
research over the next decade; and

building an innovation system that promotes economic growth and well being by
promoting linkages between Australian businesses, universities and publiclyfunded research agencies.
Structure of this Compact
Part One provides for the establishment of the Compact, its Term and the purpose
of the University’s Mission. Part One also contains the University’s Mission
Statement. Part One also provides for the Commonwealth to inform the University of
any actual or prospective changes to policy and for the University to inform the
Commonwealth of any actual or prospective changes to its Mission and for each to
consult the other about the possible effects of these changes.
Part Two provides for matters related to teaching and learning, which are matters
administered by DEEWR.
Part Three provides for matters related to research, research training and
innovation, which are matters administered by DIISR.
Part Four provides for review of the Compact.
Part Five provides for operational issues, including the general matters which the
two Departments will administer jointly, liaison between the Departments and the
University, privacy, confidentiality and information sharing, addresses for notices
and how the Compact may be varied and how it may be terminated. This Part also
includes the Dictionary.
The Attachments A to E form part of this Compact and are referenced and explained
in the relevant Parts of this Compact.
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PART ONE
1.
ESTABLISHMENT OF THE COMPACT
The Commonwealth and the University agree:
1.1.
This Compact consists of Parts One to Five and any Attachments.
1.2.
The term of this Compact is from 1 January 2011 until 31 December 2013, unless
terminated earlier in accordance with clause 10.7.
1.3.
In agreeing to this Compact for and on behalf of the Commonwealth each of the
Ministers is acting only to the extent of that Minister’s powers and functions under any
Commonwealth law, including under the terms of any relevant Appropriation.
1.4.
The University acknowledges that a policy underlying some or all of this Compact may
be subject to review by the Commonwealth from time to time. The Commonwealth and
the University agree that if the Commonwealth considers that it may need to change
the Compact because of such a review, the Commonwealth will notify the University of
this in writing and will consult with the University accordingly.
1.5.
Some or all of the funding arrangements set out in Attachments A and B may be
updated by DEEWR and DIISR from time to time. The Commonwealth will notify the
University of any such updates.
1.6.
Either party may propose changes to this Compact at any time. Except for any
changes pursuant to clause 1.5 above, clause 10.5 will apply to any variation proposed
by either party to the Compact.
2.
THE UNIVERSITY’S MISSION
2.1.
The purpose of the University’s Mission
2.1.1.
The University's Mission sets out its values and aspirations, what it does and how
it can best serve the interests of its students, staff and key stakeholders. The
Commonwealth and the University recognise that the University's Mission may
evolve.
2.1.2.
The University and the Commonwealth recognise that the University is an
autonomous institution which is responsible for the determination of its Mission and
for its aspirations and strategies for their achievement.
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2.2.
The University’s Mission statement
The vision driving the University of Melbourne’s Growing Esteem agenda is of a University that
is world-class in the staff and students it attracts, the research and scholarship it undertakes,
the academic standards it upholds and the graduates it produces -- a University committed to its
Australian stakeholders yet clearly international in character and focus. Growing Esteem aims to
make Melbourne a world renowned university of research and scholarship, learning and
teaching, intellectual creativity, academic freedom and humane values. Advancing the
intellectual, cultural, economic and social welfare of the Melbourne, Victorian and Australian
communities it serves is a fundamental objective.
As a public spirited institution, Melbourne aims to serve humanity. This includes taking up
pressing societal problems in research, producing graduates prepared for responsibility and
promoting inquiry and open public debate based on evidence and reason. But while the
University is clearly not a private institution, it is not a public agency. Less than 20% of its
revenue comes from the annual Commonwealth grant.
Melbourne’s current position
Internationally engaged and assessed
Increasingly, the University rates its performance against international benchmarks and through
international networks. Melbourne is the top Australian university in The Times Higher
Education (‘THE’) World University Rankings and The Taiwan HEEACT Performance Ranking
of Scientific Papers (which use leading rather than lag indicators), and one of the top two
Australian universities in the Shanghai Jiao Tong Academic Ranking of World Universities.
Melbourne has close partnerships with many prestigious international universities and seeks to
pursue internationalisation through outstanding networks of like-minded universities from other
countries. The University has engaged with key partners in Europe, the USA, India and China,
and established strategic, long-standing relationships. Melbourne contributes to the global
generation of ideas, through international research collaborations and knowledge transfer
activities. A significant number of staff has been educated or has worked overseas.
The University has a large, diverse and well-integrated student population, predominantly
located on the Parkville campus. Melbourne students are highly mobile, taking opportunities to
participate in exchanges and study abroad. In addition the University has an extensive network
of international alumni. Melbourne graduates are global citizens able to participate effectively in
different countries and cultures and to contribute to world development.
Comprehensive and Research-Intensive
Melbourne is a comprehensive research-intensive university seeking to be internationally
competitive across a broad range of disciplines. This breadth of profile and scale provides a
platform that enables it to be an active and credible participant in research and scholarship, and
in public debate and enquiry across the spectrum of issues and challenges facing contemporary
society. A particular strength is its capacity to draw on inter-disciplinary expertise and research
to tackle the multifaceted problems (the ‘Wicked Problems’) in areas as diverse as global
health, biotechnology, sustainable cities, human rights, climate change and social policy.
This breadth and depth of research competence enable the University to attract and support key
external collaborators to undertake research projects on a scale beyond the capacity of any one
institution. The Bionic Eye project (a collaboration with four other partners) and the Victorian Life
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Sciences Computation Initiative (with which IBM Global is actively engaged) are two
contemporary examples of the comprehensive research mission in practice.
At an international level, Melbourne is the only Australian university to be ranked in the Top 32
for all broad discipline areas assessed in both the THE and Quacquarelli Symonds (QS)
rankings. Nationally, Melbourne has established itself as a leading research university, topping
the key indicators in the Excellence in Research for Australia (ERA) scheme for 2011 with the
highest number of research disciplines ranked at the maximum, i.e., well above world standard.
ERA results indicate that the University is responsible for 18% of Australian research effort
judged to be well-above world standard.
The comprehensive and high quality research base underpins innovative new inter-disciplinary
and high impact research and knowledge transfer activities. This is being progressed through a
significant investment from the University’s Major Research Projects Fund ($30 million) to
establish inter-disciplinary institutes and support major collaboration with external partners. The
Melbourne Institute for a Broadband Enabled Society has 20 industry partners including AlcatelLucent, CISCO and Ericsson. IBM Global, CSL Ltd, the World Health Organisation, and the
Defence Science and Technology Organisation (DSTO) are other examples of the University’s
major external research partners.
With the University at its core, the Parkville Precinct is home to over 10,000 researchers and an
annual research budget of $1.3 billion. While the leading field is medical research through life
sciences and bioscience disciplines, new partners and interactions between basic and
translational programs are building new capabilities in ICT, bio-engineering and other fields.
In terms of nationally competitive income, The University of Melbourne earned in 2010 the
highest total and individual allocations of Federal Government funds awarded on the basis of
performance in key research and research training indicators. Melbourne has also maintained
its top ranking for research income and publications in 2009 (latest available), as well as its
number one national ranking for Australian Competitive Grants (ACGs). The University is also
one of the largest research and development providers in Australia - second only to the CSIRO.
Learning and Teaching Innovation – a national leader in curriculum and educational
pedagogy
The essence of the academic reforms known as the Melbourne Model is a combination of
innovative curriculum reform, strong student engagement through cohort and other experiences,
and a student-centred focus on academic and support services. The foundation of the
Melbourne Model is a broad undergraduate curriculum combining both breadth and deep
knowledge in a particular discipline. This is followed by professional education at graduate
schools and through research higher degrees.
In implementing these academic reforms the University understands that it has been
contributing to broader Commonwealth goals that the seek to foster and sustain a more diverse,
differentiated and internationally competitive higher education sector.
Implementation of the Melbourne Model in a short space of time has been an enormous
undertaking for the University. From 2011 all professional programs will have completed the
transition to graduate only level, with several being offered as three or four year Masters
(Extended) courses with internationally recognised Doctor titles.
Objective indicators are encouraging: demand is high, including from interstate and international
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students. Feedback from current students through the Melbourne Experience Survey (MES) is
positive and provides insights into areas for improvement. The Master of Teaching and the Juris
Doctor, among the first professional courses to move to postgraduate level, have experienced
strong demand from applicants and have been received favourably by the professions and
employers. The breadth component, a core element of Melbourne’s New Generation
undergraduate degrees, builds multiple competencies in students with the aim of challenging
and diversifying student thinking.
In 2010 Australian Universities Quality Agency (AUQA) strongly endorsed the University’s
approach to curriculum renewal and improving the student experience and learning outcomes.
Melbourne’s research scale and disciplinary breadth ensures that all students are studying in a
research-led environment.
Student profile and funding
The University is now part-way through the major transition of its student profile following
introduction of the Melbourne Model in 2008. Under the Model, broad generalist degrees are
offered at undergraduate level, with professional entry qualifications now designed at Masters
level. Over 2011-15 the University’s graduate profile will grow in response to the change and its
undergraduate student load will reduce in broadly similar measure. The University has no plans
to increase its current CSP student load (see details at Attachment E). This includes the
capping of graduate medical places at 247 as agreed with DEEWR.
The quality of the student cohort is a defining characteristic of Melbourne’s student profile. The
University has set minimum Australian Tertiary Admission Ranks (ATARs) for each of its New
Generation degrees at levels which both reflect and assure the high quality demand for these
courses. Of particular note are the Bachelor of Arts and the Bachelor of Science, undergraduate
courses with by far the largest intakes nationally, which in 2011 were each able to make in
excess of 1800 offers and enjoy Clearly-in-Rank ATARs of 88 and 85 respectively.
As shown in the Institutional Performance Portfolio, Melbourne has a high median ATAR of over
94, with the percentile range from 85.3 for the 10th (Go8 with 79 and sector 61) to 99.05 for the
90th. This demonstrates that the University continues to be successful in attracting students of
the highest academic potential.
Through its Access Melbourne program and guaranteed entry arrangements, in 2011
Melbourne achieved an annual increase of almost 10% in the number of offers for
undergraduate places to students from financially, socially or educationally disadvantaged
backgrounds. This trend is being repeated at graduate level, with entry to graduate schools
demonstrating a welcome broadening of backgrounds, in respect of both domestic and
international students.
A distinctive Melbourne Experience – Student Engagement and International Mobility
The introduction of the Melbourne Model has been accompanied by a significant focus on
improving the quality of the student experience and the level of engagement in curricular and
co-curricular activities. This is being achieved through a strengthened and more coordinated
approach to student services, using a more diverse mix of service delivery channels and
increasing expert academic support for groups with specific needs. Co-curricular aspects of the
student experience are recognised as important in achieving desired graduate attributes. Effort
is being made to increase national and international opportunities for leadership, volunteering,
exchange, internships and research experiences. They also include University-supported and
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student-led cultural, community and sporting activities.
Accommodation needs of students are recognised as a pressing issue for the University. A
range of immediate and medium term options are being pursued. These will in part seek to
cater for the increased number of graduate students.
Student Support and International Student Services
Melbourne has an extensive array of support programs available for all students, and seeks as
far as practicable to integrate support for international students via these mainstream activities.
Academic and support services are provided on the basis of the course offerings and the needs
of students both as individuals and as cohorts. The University responds in a timely manner to
the needs of students and seeks at all times to demonstrate a high level of duty of care. At an
academic level student progress is monitored each semester and appropriate action taken by
course and subject coordinators and faculty education committees. The MES gives earlier
feedback on student satisfaction and allows the University to act quickly and to monitor cohorts,
for example, international students. Overall student feedback from the MES and other national
surveys is positive with respect to the quality of student services and level of engagement.
International Student Services (ISS) oversees the co-ordination and service delivery of
specialist services for the University’s 11,000 international students and their families, in
partnership with faculties. Its services are comprehensive, and include planning for students’
arrivals and preparation for departure, welfare and visa needs, advocacy and support. Good
relationships have been developed and are maintained with the Melbourne University’s
Overseas Students Society, a highly visible and active student group
http://www.services.unimelb.edu.au/international/.
Engagement
Engagement is the third explicit strand of the University’s “Triple Helix” Growing Esteem
Strategy. Through engagement the University seeks to reaffirm, demonstrate and communicate
its commitment to regional and international communities, advancing its global standing as a
leading research and teaching institution. The University is widely involved in many
international, national and Victorian initiatives for the benefit of communities. The aim is to
become more focused in developing University-wide programs and partnerships. Delivering
benefits to the community through strategic partnerships, public knowledge programs and
contributing to public debate on issues of public importance are key strategies. Other strategies
include engaging alumni and supporters worldwide in a sustained, mutually beneficial
relationship with the University and attracting high-calibre students and staff from a diverse
range of countries.
Precincts and Infrastructure
As part of its planning for the strategic development of its campus and for the fulfilment of its
research and engagement missions, the University is keen to explore -- in conjunction with its
partners and stakeholders, including all levels of Government -- the potential for further
development of knowledge, cultural and research precincts and how such undertakings might
be realised and supported most effectively in a sustainable manner.
The potential benefits from the establishment and development of precincts are significant for
Government, research partners, industry, the community and the University. These include
better research outcomes and opportunities, enhanced innovation and collaboration with
researchers, industry and the broader community, efficient use of shared technologies and
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increased international profile and reputation. Precincts are becoming the inter-disciplinary and
cross-sectoral collaborative platforms on which much major research activity now depends in
order to tackle major national priority areas and increasingly global challenges.
Over the decade from 1995 the University embarked on a period of rapid student enrolment
growth. This placed considerable pressure on staff resources and physical infrastructure,
especially on the Parkville campus the physical size of which had not grown appreciably for
over 100 years, and gave rise to a re-assessment of how the overall size of the student cohort
might affect the University’s mission. Constraints on the University’s physical capacity now
mean that even moderate increases in student numbers place severe pressure on an already
over-stretched campus.
Within the dimensions of its current student profile, the University has invested and continues to
invest significant funds in the improvement of facilities to support research and learning
activities. The University is continuing to invest in the creation of technologically advanced
teaching and learning spaces that support the deployment of a highly collaborative pedagogical
approach.
On-going upgrades of existing infrastructure and backlog maintenance, attention to areas of
statutory compliance and the heritage fabric of the original University are also priorities.
Major projects are an important component of the University’s rolling ten year physical
infrastructure program. Projects include the Melbourne Brain Centre, the Peter Doherty Institute
for Infection and Immunity, student precinct facilities providing a major hub for student study and
social spaces, and a range of learning and teaching infrastructure projects, such as a major
refurbishment of the Chemistry building and the Centre for Neural Engineering (CFNE), both of
which are being funded in part from the Commonwealth’s Better Universities Renewal Fund.
The physical infrastructure program is being matched by major investments in IT infrastructure
and new or upgraded systems. The University has just introduced a new student system (ISIS),
and is about to embark on a major renewal of its finance and human resources system
(Themis), nearing the end of a $30 million upgrade of its core IT network.
Environmental sustainability continues to be a high priority as Melbourne seeks to establish and
maintain sectoral leadership in this area. Ambitious targets for reduction of the University’s
carbon footprint and consumption of water are driving significant reforms in practice across all
campuses. New facilities are being constructed to a minimum 5-Star green star rating.
Aspirations and Plans
The University of Melbourne is responding to the Commonwealth’s higher education reform
agenda in a manner consistent with its strategic vision to become a more graduate focused and
internationally competitive research university. Growing Esteem has a ‘limits to growth’ strategy
which, over time, may lead to a marginal reduction in overall student load. The broad goals for
2015 are:


a student profile evenly split between undergraduate and postgraduate with a
cosmopolitan balance of cultures and overall student load plateauing before marginally
declining from current levels;
retention of a national leadership role in teaching and learning undergraduate and
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






graduate outcomes;
increasing significantly the number of low SES students including through access to
professional courses at the graduate level;
attracting an increased proportion of internationally recognised quality staff;
strengthening internationally recognised research performance, in part through strong
partnerships, and maximising the global impact of these linkages;
continuing national leadership role in research higher degree recruitment and outcomes;
leading the reform agenda on graduate education and providing outstanding graduate
experience;
continuing financial sustainability and improvement in the unit of resource level of
funding, and
operating on a sustainable basis by reducing carbon emissions and providing research
and educational leadership in energy, environment and climate change.
Research : Plans involve strengthening international and national research collaborations,
improving research performance of staff and ensuring access to world class infrastructure. The
insitution’s pivotal role in nurturing and subsequently bringing together the research institutes,
other universities, organisations, and funding bodies remains a priority. Increasingly, research
developments are being planned around major inter-disciplinary teams, and research
infrastructure is focusing on developing and maintaining world class technology platforms and
precincts. The quality of research continues to be assessed against international benchmarks.
Learning and Teaching: The Melbourne Model strategy means the number of Bachelor
graduates will decrease marginally as professional courses transition to postgraduate entry.
This will make it difficult for the University to contribute increasing numbers of Bachelor
graduates to fulfil the Commonwealth’s policy agenda of increasing undergraduate participation
rates, although Melbourne’s overall proportion of students from low-SES backgrounds and
under represented schools in regional Victoria and metropolitan Melbourne is planned to
increase. However, any decline in numbers at undergraduate level will be more than offset by
the increase in the number of graduates from professional postgraduate degrees coming from
under-represented groups, thus ensuring a more diverse professional workforce. Graduate
programs will become an area of increasing attention for the University’s social inclusion
agenda.
Graduate Programs: 2011 marks the commencement of the second phase of the Melbourne
Model and the main focus will be on assuring the success of professional degree programs, all
of which are now offered at graduate level. The first intake of students into new graduate
programs for Medicine, Dental Surgery, Veterinary Science, Optometry and Physiotherapy and
several new Masters degrees in Engineering and Science are offered also for the first time. The
new courses are being delivered through an innovative graduate school structure that seeks to
cater explicitly for the expectations of a more diverse and mature, focussed and demanding
student cohort who will enter careers as professionals. Further development of the identity of
graduate schools and their standing with the professions and industry will be an important task
through to 2015.
In relation to graduate places, consistent with earlier undertakings to prospective
undergraduates at least until 2012, not less than 50% of domestic places in the New Generation
professional Masters/Doctorate courses will be offered as CSP. For some courses, for example
Nursing Science and Master of Teaching, the proportion will remain close to 100%. The
University aspires to achieve top ranking for graduate programs in relevant national
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performance measures by 2015.
Undergraduate : The main focus for the Melbourne Model is to consolidate the current reform
of the undergraduate curriculum. Further work is be undertaken to ensure that breadth options
are well tailored to student needs, undergraduate research experiences are well structured, and
that ‘capstone’ subjects in the later years of the degree are widely available. A new Bachelor of
Fine Arts will be introduced from 2012, consolidating within one program structure a number of
programs previously offered as separate degrees within the Victorian College of the Arts.
By 2011, over 1200 students will be undertaking some form of international mobility as part of
their course with a majority participating in formal semester-length student exchange programs.
The University has set a goal of achieving top 5 ranking for CEQ overall satisfaction, good
teaching and generic skills by 2015.
Academic Attainment and Standards: The University continues to work on developing
discipline-specific indicators to measure outcomes against national and international standards
for attainment, participation, engagement and quality. Maintaining Melbourne’s national
leadership in undergraduate progression and success rates is a 2015 target.
Access and Equity: By expanding opportunities at undergraduate level through targeted
access programs, and at graduate level through a larger pool of accessible professional
courses, the University sees itself able to contribute significantly to the achievement of the
Commonwealth’s reform agenda. The University is pioneering initiatives that will ensure that
the composition of the professional workforce is more representative of the wider-community.
Through Access Melbourne and other programs, Melbourne seeks to secure by 2015 an
average annual increase of 10% in low SES commencements and completions in each New
Generation undergraduate degree. The shift to a small number of undergraduate courses with
appreciably larger intakes already means that a more diverse range of students has the
opportunity to enrol in undergraduate courses and, based on undergraduate performance,
legitimately aspire to proceed to one of the professional courses to which entry at
undergraduate level is so competitive elsewhere.
The University’s equity activities will be clustered around four areas: outreach activities,
admission policy, preparing students for leadership roles and social inclusion research.
Advancing the economic, social and educational well-being of Indigenous Australians continues
to be a priority for the University. The University’s Reconciliation Action Plan sets out the
principles and focus areas for action: partnerships, cultural recognition, student recruitment and
retention, learning & teaching, research and employment. A key principle is to embed action in
core business activities and in the annual university planning cycle.
HE Base Funding Review and Capital Funding
The achievement of the Commonwealth reform agenda and the University’s ambitious reforms
will require a solid funding base, well aligned to and supporting reform initiatives.
In part through its engagement with the Commonwealth’s Higher Education Base Funding
Review, the University will be seeking to demonstrate the need for higher levels of funding for
domestic students, in particular to cater for the higher costs of graduate learning and teaching,
and the desirability of introducing greater certainty and sustainability through an improved
funding model able to support a more differentiated and internationally competitive higher
education sector.
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An integral component of resourcing higher education is having an adequate infrastructure
base. Capital funding was rolled into the base grant in 1994 and it is the University’s view that
an important role of the Base Funding Review is to establish whether the proportion rolled in is
adequate to meet the needs of replacing aging building stock across the sector. The 2010 IPP
shows nationally over 30% of buildings require major replacement or are inoperable. Backlog
maintenance as a % of Asset Replacement value is also high, ranging from 5% to 10% across
the sector. The University has invested significantly in capital renewal and backlog maintenance
from revenue earned from non-operating sources (nearly 70%) of the total spend. This is not
sustainable in the longer term, particularly following the impact of the global financial crisis.
Substantial capital funding is also needed to provide high quality infrastructure for research.
Currently there is no on-going source of external funding that might be used as a contribution
for research infrastructure, particularly given the latest changes to EIF funding priorities and
anticipated availability. The University requests the Commonwealth to reconsider the inclusion
of depreciation as an indirect cost of research within the Sustainable Research Excellence
(SRE) Transparent Costing (TC) formula.
Monitoring performance and progress towards strategic goals
Melbourne’s accountability framework Ensuring Accountability integrates annual cycles of
strategic planning, business planning and budgeting, performance monitoring and reporting,
quality assurance and risk management. These cycles are designed to ensure that, at
University, faculty and divisional unit levels, the University’s various obligations are properly
satisfied in an efficient and effective manner. Strong divisional business planning and improved
budgeting and financial management have been key achievements in 2010.
The management of major projects has been strengthened with stronger life-cycle financial and
risk management.
The accountability framework ensures that the University achieves its strategic goals and
demonstrates excellent outcomes. AUQA commended the University for its risk management
strategy and public transparency.
http://growingesteem.unimelb.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0017/119420/00847_ensure_acc_
WEB.pdf
Ensuring Accountability will be the mechanism through which the University will translate its
ambitious aspirations into specific targets, allocate responsibility for delivery and monitor
progress in their achievement.
2.3.
2.3.1.
2.3.2.
Changes to the University's Mission
The Commonwealth acknowledges that the University may adjust its mission from
time to time. The University agrees that it will give the Commonwealth notice in
writing in advance of:
a.
any significant changes that it proposes to make to the Mission during the term
of the Compact; or
b.
any significant changes that it intends to make to its activities that could affect
either or both of the content and the practical application of its Mission.
If the Commonwealth receives notice from the University under clause 2.3.1 and
considers that the proposed changes would require a change to this Compact, the
Commonwealth will notify the University of this in writing and will consult with the
University accordingly.
Page 15
PART TWO
The Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills, Jobs and Workplace Relations, with
assistance from DEEWR, has Commonwealth responsibility for the matters set out
in this Part Two of the Compact.
3.
TEACHING AND LEARNING
3.1.
Quality
Quality: Commonwealth objectives
3.1.1.
A focus on teaching and learning quality underpins the Commonwealth’s vision for
Australia to be one of the most highly educated and skilled nations in the world.
3.1.2.
A focus on quality is an essential element of a system where funding is driven by
student choice, and is essential for ensuring that the Commonwealth’s participation
and social inclusion ambitions are achieved without a risk to quality.
3.1.3.
The Commonwealth has made a commitment to provide more autonomy to
universities through the removal of funding caps on Commonwealth supported
places. In turn, the Commonwealth expects the University to participate in new
higher education quality arrangements which will be overseen by the Tertiary
Education Quality and Standards Agency. The new arrangements are designed to
support academic autonomy while ensuring that the achievement of minimum
standards can be demonstrated and that there is a strong focus on enhancing the
quality of teaching and learning while expansion of the higher education system
meets national participation ambitions.
3.1.4.
The University also has obligations under the quality and accountability
requirements in Division 19 of HESA. This Compact does not change those
obligations.
Quality: University strategies
The University is committed to attracting students of the highest academic potential, regardless
of background, and enabling them through an outstanding curriculum and university experience
to develop as globally aware professionals, citizens and community leaders. Melbourne’s
student population is characterised by students of the highest academic potential and
increasingly from a diverse range of cultural and socio-economic backgrounds.
To achieve these aims, the University’s Learning and Teaching strategies are:
 To attract and support excellent students from all backgrounds;
 To offer a distinctive and excellent Melbourne Model curriculum;
 To deliver an outstanding student experience;
 To offer outstanding graduate programs through world-class graduate schools;
 To support students in maximising their graduate outcomes, and
 To encourage and reward excellence and creativity in learning and teaching practice.
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These interdependent strategies are designed to contribute collectively to continuing
improvement in the quality of teaching and learning, a more engaged student body and
enhanced student access and outcomes. Their achievement will also contribute to a
differentiated and diverse higher education sector and enhance its international standing.
The University recognises Commonwealth and State Government commitment to initiatives that
support institutions, students and staff in the higher education sector to achieve national growth
in skills, qualifications, productivity and social inclusion. In particular, the University records the
additional Commonwealth funding for the operation of the Victorian College of the Arts (VCA),
$5.1m pa, commencing 2012.
3.1 Quality: A distinctive and excellent curriculum: the Melbourne Model
Curriculum renewal is seen by the University as a vital strategy for enhancing the quality of
learning and teaching. The broad re-design of academic programs as part of the Melbourne
Model has entailed re-consideration of the learning objectives of academic programs at all
levels. Graduate attributes appropriate to each type of program have been developed in
consultation with academic and external stakeholders and in consideration of future
expectations of graduates. At the undergraduate level, programs have been designed to
ensure the development of strong intellectual foundations for a variety of employment and
graduate study pathways. Curricula have been developed to build depth of understanding
within a discipline while situating knowledge in a broad and international intellectual and cultural
framework, developing capacity for graduates to work adaptively in settings that are
professionally, culturally and geographically diverse. At the graduate level, the Melbourne
Model design includes programs that build rapidly and deeply on the conceptual skills and
knowledge of graduate students to produce advanced learning outcomes, whether for
professional entry, professional development, research preparation or research training.
Implementation of the Melbourne Model began in 2008 when students entered the first year of
the new suite of six undergraduate degrees and will be complete by the end of 2014 when the
first students graduate from some of the distinctive new professional graduate programs.
Already, the curriculum renewal underpinning this implementation has engaged every academic
domain within the University.
The implementation of the new undergraduate curriculum is overseen by a Course Standing
Committee (CSC) appointed to oversee each degree. Academic leadership is provided by a
Program Director, supported by a nominated custodial Dean for the degree. The CSC regularly
monitors the performance of the degree and reviews the quality of the curriculum, the
embedding of graduate attributes and the quality of teaching. University-wide fora provide
opportunities for staff to share experiences of implementing the new curricula.
Internal surveying provides regular data on the quality of teaching and of the student
experience. These data are carefully monitored and improvements made where indicated. For
example, changes were made at the start of 2011 to the ‘breadth’ requirements of the degrees
as a result of student feedback. In order to monitor progress during the life of the Compact in
improving the quality of academic programs, the University will use the following indicators and
approaches:
 Program scorecards to provide institution-level tracking of program quality and tailored
monitoring of program-specific features. These will provide timely program-level data,
benchmarked nationally and internationally, where possible, on key indicators of
demand, teaching quality, student experience and graduate outcomes and will assist
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




academic program managers to track and improve program quality;
The Subject Evaluation Survey, a new internal measure of quality of learning and
teaching administered at the end of each subject, which maintains common items with
previous internal Quality of Teaching surveys but places a greater focus on student
learning;
National benchmarking data for the quality of learning and teaching programs,
including the Course Experience Questionnaire (CEQ);
Two new national benchmarking programs on quality of assessment (the Go8 Quality
Verification System and an ALTC-funded project on moderation of assessment across
eight universities representative of the Australian sector);
National and, where possible, international accreditation of curricula and programs,
especially at the graduate level, and
A systematic cycle of program reviews supported, where appropriate, by
acknowledged external and international experts.
As part of its strategic plan the University has undertaken by 2015 to:
 Secure the equivalent of a ‘top 5’ ranking by Field of Education in national indicators of
quality of teaching and learning, including CEQ Overall Satisfaction and CEQ Good
Teaching scale;
 Achieve a mean of 4.0, by academic unit, in the new University measure of quality of
learning and teaching based on the Subject Experience Survey.
An outstanding student experience: promoting student engagement
The introduction of the Melbourne Model has been accompanied by a significant commitment to
improving the quality of the student experience and the level of engagement by students with
staff and fellow students in curricular and co-curricular activities. This will be achieved through
a strengthened and coordinated approach to student services, using a mixture of web, phone
and face-to-face delivery, including academic support for groups with specific needs. Cocurricular aspects of the student experience enhance the embedding of graduate attributes,
increasing national and international opportunities for leadership, volunteering, exchange,
internship and research experiences. They also include University-supported and student-led
cultural, community and sporting activities.
The University has embarked on a long-term plan of renewal and redesign of its learning
spaces. This is described in more detail in Section 3.3.
In order to assess progress towards an outstanding student experience and enhanced levels of
student engagement during the Compact period, the University will:
 Continue to monitor retention and progression rates;
 Continue to use the MES, first administered in 2007, to monitor the student experience,
particularly in the vital areas of student advising and student engagement;
 Participate in national indicators of the quality of student experience, including the
International Student Barometer and participation in the development of the new
University Experience Survey;
 Continue to participate in national measures of the student experience, including the
Course Experience Questionnaire;
 Monitor participation by students in international exchange, internship, leadership,
volunteering, research opportunities and other engagement experiences;
Page 18


Develop an internal student services scorecard, benchmarked nationally where possible,
to provide timely feedback on success and improvement in implementation of key
aspects of student services, and
Evaluate the impact of all programs designed to address the needs of specific cohorts,
and contribute to state and national research on effective approaches to such support.
As part of its strategic plan the University has undertaken by 2015 to:
 Achieve, by New Generation Degree and Graduate School, mean percentage
agreement on the MES for overall satisfaction with student services and satisfaction with
student/academic advising services of 80% (70% on both measures by 2013).
Outstanding graduate programs in world-class graduate schools
The University sees the development of outstanding graduate programs as strongly aligned with
the Government’s aspirations for a fair, equitable and world-class higher education system.
New forms of graduate program contribute to the diversity of high quality choices available to
prospective students and increase opportunities for full and further participation by underrepresented groups (see 3.2 below). In Growing Esteem the University has committed not only
to offer the best graduate experience in the country by 2015, but also to a student load that is
more evenly split between undergraduate and graduate students.
The University will be offering graduate programs in new forms, on a larger scale, and with
distinctive purposes. New programs have been and continue to be developed in close
consultation with stakeholders, and particular attention is being paid to the desirable
constellation of professional graduate attributes for the contemporary national and global
workforce, including in professional, research and academic contexts. Programs are of four
distinct types:
 Professional entry awards leading to professional qualifications are designed to bring
about advanced learning outcomes and develop leading future practitioners by taking
pedagogical advantage of the greater and, in many cases, more diverse skill base,
maturity, knowledge and experience of graduate students. They are intended to provide
research-intensive, professional learning experiences for well-prepared, focussed and
internationally diverse cohorts of students;
 Research-track coursework programs are designed to provide high-level and often
inter-disciplinary learning in specialised fields, providing preparation for advanced
research training programs or specialist work in those fields. Offered as extensions or
alternatives to Honours programs, these Masters programs provide pathways to
research training or specialist work that not only develop a high level of mastery of the
relevant academic domains and their broader inter-disciplinary contexts, but also offer
important professional skills in the ethics, methods and management of contemporary
scholarship and project work in those domains;
 Professional development programs are designed as flexible, accessible and focussed
programs that are appropriate to the professional and specialist workforce and can
respond effectively to its changing skill needs. Melbourne’s graduate schools will
develop programs that respond to market demand for program content and modes of
delivery, and will deliver them to a high standard using excellent graduate specific
facilities, and
 Research training programs, including the PhD, are as vital a component of the
University’s graduate offerings as in the past. A Graduate Certificate in Advanced
Learning and Leadership has been introduced to provide leadership skill development
for completing PhD students. As a research-intensive university, Melbourne remains
Page 19
committed to research training of the highest quality and to the broader development of
PhD graduates to enhance their capacity for innovation and effective leadership in the
future.
Fundamental to Melbourne’s goal is the enhancement of the graduate student experience
through further developments in physical and virtual infrastructure and in student service
delivery, recognising that the needs and expectations of graduate students differ from those of
undergraduates and vary according to program type.
To support the University’s aspirations for accessible graduate programs of high quality,
Melbourne’s graduate schools must be financially sustainable and build reputations for
excellence. The University has therefore included a review of the financial strength of its
Graduate Schools into the University’s annual cycle of performance review and budgeting and a
review of the international standing of graduate schools into a systematic program of cyclic
review.
In order to monitor the effectiveness of these developments and assure their quality, the
University will:
 Develop graduate program scorecards to provide institution-level tracking of program
demand and quality, graduate student experience, progression and graduate
outcomes, including employment outcomes and employer feedback;
 Where possible, seek accreditation in relevant international jurisdictions for graduatelevel programs and develop other approaches for international benchmarking of quality
in graduate programs, and
 Review the financial viability of graduate schools annually, and include graduate
schools in the cyclic program for review of academic standing.
As part of its strategic plan the University has undertaken by 2015 to:


Have a student profile with similar numbers of undergraduate and postgraduate
students, and
Ensure the financial viability of its graduate schools through a process of systematic
internal review.
Excellent graduate outcomes
The University recognises the fundamental importance of graduate outcomes and the long-term
value (as well as the complexity of so doing) of devising effective methods for measuring them.
Melbourne is committed to assuring graduate attributes and enhancing employment and further
study outcomes. Melbourne will embed an increasing number of internship, volunteering, work
and research experiences within the curriculum and support these experiences with
assessment activities designed to ensure a smooth transition into the workforce. Melbourne is
keen to participate in efforts across the sector to develop useful indicators of graduate
outcomes that are adequately sensitive to new and distinctive configurations of undergraduate
and graduate programs and, in particular, to the difficulties it creates for cross-institutional
comparison.
During the life of the Compact, the University will seek to:
 Further embed graduate attributes in the curriculum, developing assessment
approaches where appropriate;
 Participate in national trials of measurement approaches for graduate outcomes,
Page 20

including the Collegiate Learning Assessment, and
Monitor a suite of indicators for graduate outcomes, including data on short- and longerterm employment and further study outcomes available through the Australian Graduate
Survey and the Beyond Graduation Survey and student perceptions available through
the Course Experience Questionnaire.
As part of its strategic plan the University has undertaken by 2015 to:
 Achieve the equivalent to a ‘top 5’ ranking by Field of Education for undergraduate
programs in national indicators of graduate outcomes, including CEQ Generic Skills
scale and Graduate Destination positive graduate outcomes, i.e. the combined
percentage of those in further study or in full-time employment four months post
graduation, and
 Achieve top ranking by Field of Education for graduate programs in national indicators of
graduate outcomes, including CEQ Generic Skills scale and GDS positive graduate
outcomes, i.e. the combined percentage of those in further study or in full-time
employment four months post graduation.
Excellence and creativity in learning and teaching practice
The role of staff in designing and delivering all forms of learning experience and engaging with
students is also crucial. University leadership will continue to emphasise the importance of
excellence in teaching and learning in staff development, appraisal and promotion and seek to
increase the participation of staff in programs designed to build and support excellent practice,
including the Graduate Certificate for University Teaching and the Melbourne Teaching
Certificate. The University will also develop more systematic and tailored opportunities for
professional development, including in the areas of: induction of sessional staff and tutors; peer
review of teaching; student advising; curriculum design; e-learning; assessment; feedback; and
leadership for quality improvement in learning and teaching.
Progress in promoting excellence and creativity in learning and teaching practice will be
monitored by:
 The level of participation by staff in professional development opportunities, and
 Recognition of University of Melbourne staff for excellence and creativity in learning
and teaching practice, including by national awards and contribution to learning and
teaching scholarship.
As part of its strategic plan the University has undertaken by 2015 to:
 Achieve enrolments of at least 100 academic staff per year in the Graduate Certificate in
University Teaching, and enrolments of 50 academic staff per semester in the
Melbourne Teaching Certificate.
3.2.
Equity
Equity: Commonwealth objectives
3.2.1.
The Commonwealth is committed to a fair and equitable higher education system
that provides equal opportunity for people of all backgrounds to participate to their
full potential and the support to do so.
Page 21
3.2.2.
In particular, the Commonwealth has an ambition that by 2020, 20 per cent of
higher education enrolments at the undergraduate level will be people from low
socio-economic status (SES) backgrounds.
3.2.3.
The Commonwealth is also committed to enhancing participation and outcomes for
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in higher education.
3.2.4.
The Commonwealth funds a range of programs to encourage and support access
to and participation in higher education by people from low SES backgrounds,
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and other under-represented groups,
including the Higher Education Loan Program and Student Income Support.
3.2.5.
The Commonwealth expects all universities to play a part in meeting the
Commonwealth's higher education participation ambitions, consistent with the
objectives and regulatory requirements of specific equity programs and income
support measures.
3.2.6.
The Commonwealth will monitor the University’s equity performance through the
existing reporting requirements attached to individual programs. The University’s
performance in meeting equity objectives will also be linked with teaching and
learning Performance Funding targets, as specified in the table under paragraph
4.14 of this Compact.
3.2.7.
Universities have obligations under the fairness requirements in Division 19 of
HESA. This Compact does not change those obligations.
Equity: University strategies
The University is committed to diversifying its student population and ensuring fair and equitable
access to its courses. Melbourne’s equity strategies has two distinct foci:
 undergraduate access, participation and outcomes, and
 graduate access, participation and outcomes, in particular ensuring equitable access to
the high-level professional and research education that leads to professional careers
and intellectual and community leadership roles.
The two phases of equity inherent in the Melbourne Model provide new opportunities, and pose
new challenges, for the University to advance equity. Influencing significant participation shifts
for populations whose under-representation has been stable and persistent over many years is
a significant challenge, but one that the University is keen to confront. The University seeks to
achieve the following broad goals in the 2011-2013 period:
 to increase steadily the proportion of students from low socioeconomic status
backgrounds, students from schools under-represented at the University of Melbourne
and other disadvantaged students admitted to undergraduate courses while maintaining
national leadership in undergraduate retention, progression and success rates;
 to foster the composition of student cohorts in its graduate schools that reflect the
demography of the wider community, particularly through increasing participation from
students from low socioeconomic status background, and thus to contribute to
professions being more representative of the community, and
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
to improve the access of Indigenous Australians to the University’s undergraduate and
graduate programs and to improve the outcomes for Indigenous students.
The University’s mechanism for achieving these goals includes a Social Inclusion Statement
that includes strategies for integrated outreach, recruitment and selection practices and a
commitment to at least maintaining the already high success and retention ratios for students
from equity groups. The University’s goals for Indigenous student access and participation are
expressed in Melbourne’s Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP), the development and
implementation of which is being overseen by the Director of the Murrup Barak Melbourne
Institute for Indigenous Development. The Pro-Vice Chancellor, Engagement and Participation
has overarching responsibility for addressing issues of student equity, working closely with the
Provost and the Director of Murrup Barak.
The University’s equity activities will be clustered and refined around the following four areas:
 Discovering Melbourne: outreach activities that legitimise and foster aspiration and
attainment for study at the University across a wider cross-section of the community;
 Melbourne Admissions: continued use of selection criteria through the Access
Melbourne program that are designed to admit a more diverse group of high potential
students;
 diversity@Melbourne: support the attainment for all students of graduate attributes and
prepare students from diverse contexts for access to the professions and intellectual and
community leadership roles, and
 Research & development into social inclusion: activities underpinned by research
(including with Go8 partners) into the causes & minimisation of under-representation.
Specific strategies to achieve the University’s equity goals will include:
 the continued refinement of Access Melbourne as a mechanism for recognising the
effects of educational disadvantage on school-leaver achievement and preparedness;
 the continued refinement of Graduate Access as a mechanism for widening participation
within graduate professional degrees;
 the continued development and refinement of the Guaranteed ATAR for entry to
undergraduate courses for students in designated equity groups;
 the continued development of the Kwong Lee Dow Scholars program which engages
Year 10 students from all Victorian secondary schools in activities designed to
strengthen aspirations for undertaking university study;
 the development and implementation of programs specifically targeted at students in
schools presently under-represented at the University;
 a review of the selection criteria and admissions processes for undergraduate courses
with the objective of identifying able students of the highest potential from across a
broader community cross-section;
 strategic contributions to community development and existing partnerships in inner
Melbourne and in the Goulburn Valley region, including through development of the
University’s partnerships with the Indigenous community through the Kaiela Institute and
the Academy of Sport, Health and Education (ASHE) in Shepparton;
 outreach partnerships with other Victorian universities to address issues of low
awareness and aspiration among secondary school students;
 exploration of the possibilities for and potential of partnerships with TAFE institutes;
 the development of new strategies to ensure that all students admitted to courses
achieve their academic potential, including resources to support housing, food and
medical services for students experiencing periods of need, and
Page 23

the ongoing development of the Murrup Barak Melbourne Institute for Indigenous
Development as a focal point for Indigenous student recruitment and support.
The University anticipates the achievement of its equity commitments will be influenced by
broader developments in both preparatory and higher education systems. Lag times between
policy development and program implementation and outcomes are likely. Over the life of the
Compact, the University will seek to collaborate with Commonwealth and Victorian
Governments and the tertiary education sector to enhance measurement of the impact and
outcomes of equity initiatives including:
 monitoring of low SES student performance (through use of a suitable proxies during the
period of sector-wide indicator development), beyond pass/fail and with enhanced cohort
analysis in generic survey instruments;
 through collaboration with DEEWR, the establishment of an indicator for measuring the
socio-economic status of graduate students, and
 through collaboration with DEECD, monitoring aspiration and attainment during
preparatory schooling.
Over the Compact period, the University will focus on the participation of students from low
socioeconomic backgrounds enrolled in graduate coursework programs. There is currently no
framework for graduate student equity that balances consideration of socioeconomic
background, current socioeconomic circumstances, or socioeconomic benefits accrued through
and following the attainment of an undergraduate qualification. In this context and
notwithstanding progress in developing an indicator, the University proposes that the 2009
baseline be measured by the participation rate of postgraduate coursework students whose
home address during their final year of schooling was in lowest quartile postcodes assessed
using the SEIFA index of education and occupation. The University proposes a performance
target of a 15% proportional increase over baseline participation during the period of this
Compact.
The University’s commitment to deliver its equity strategies will be undertaken within the size of
its current CSP student profile, consistent with its Growing Esteem Strategy.
As part of its strategic plan the University has undertaken by 2015 to:
 achieve an average annual increase of 10% in low SES commencements and
completions in each New Generation undergraduate degree.
3.3.
Infrastructure
Infrastructure: Commonwealth objectives
3.3.1.
The Commonwealth is committed to the development of world class higher
education infrastructure. A contemporary, technology rich, well designed and
equipped campus environment has a positive influence on staff and student
performance and satisfaction.
3.3.2.
While the responsibility for capital infrastructure development and maintenance
rests with the University, the Commonwealth’s commitment is demonstrated
through programs such as the Education Investment Fund. Universities also utilise
Commonwealth Grant Scheme funding for capital works.
Page 24
3.3.3.
The Commonwealth anticipates that the University will focus not only on
developing new University-owned and operated buildings but also on optimising
the use of existing facilities, refurbishing and adequately maintaining existing
infrastructure, investing in e-learning and other information and communications
technologies (ICT), and utilising space owned by, or shared with, other education
providers.
3.3.4.
The Commonwealth will monitor the University's infrastructure programs, and their
alignment with the Commonwealth's infrastructure objectives, through the
Institutional Performance Portfolio Information Collection.
Infrastructure: University strategies
The University plans and implements its physical and IT infrastructure activities through a rolling
10 year Infrastructure Program and Annual Capital Plan which form part of the annual budget
and financial plan. The Program incorporates strategies for upgrading and renewing teaching
and learning infrastructure.
The University has been addressing the goal of making substantial improvements to the
learning and teaching infrastructure of the University in recent years and will continue to do so
during the life of the Compact. During 2009-2010, the University has completed renewal
projects delivering contemporary learning and teaching, library and student spaces, including
major redevelopments of several undergraduate and graduate areas. Based on a precinct
approach around libraries and student centres, a variety of informal and formal learning spaces
and specialist laboratory facilities are co-located in indoor and outdoor spaces to encourage
interaction among students and to facilitate independent and collaborative learning.
Careful attention has been paid to the design of learning environments to support the distinctive
pedagogical approaches in different programs, especially in new graduate programs. A number
of these projects have been supported by the BURF and TLC, particularly the re-development
of graduate learning and teaching spaces. The recent enhancements have improved the
University’s learning and teaching facilities in ways that will be experienced by undergraduate
students in Biomedicine, Commerce, Science and the Performing Arts, and graduate students
in Arts, Design, Education, Engineering, Land and Environment and Law. A noteworthy addition
to learning and teaching infrastructure has been the multi-function Spatial Lab, a flexible
learning environment that is also designed to support cutting-edge research and development
for new learning environments. All of the new spaces enjoy modern ICT facilities, and the
University has undertaken a major upgrade and extension of wireless network facilities.
The redevelopment of learning spaces has been accompanied by significant upgrades to library
spaces to provide additional study facilities for students that meet modern pedagogical needs.
The ERC, Law and Biomedical libraries have all been partially refurbished to offer facilities for
collaborative group work as well as quiet study. Equipped with up to date computing facilities,
these spaces remain accessible to students for extended hours ensuring equitable access to
quality student spaces.
In addition, the University has completed or nearly completed major new facilities for business
and economics, neuroscience, and neural engineering. Student facilities have also been
Page 25
upgraded at the Creswick and Southbank campus, and at the residential college, Medley Hall.
A new student system, ISIS, was implemented in June 2010, replacing the University’s
longstanding legacy system. Planning for this system has entailed a major review of student
business processes.
During 2011-2013, a number of further major learning and teaching infrastructure improvements
are in process or in planning. These include:
 renewal of the Learning Management System, including a substantial upgrade of the
existing system, and the systematic development of infrastructure support for Personal
Learning Environments, including flexible and tailored mobile access and integrated
portal functions;
 support of the student experience, through: enhanced online functionality and
interactivity, including technology for real-time collaboration, virtual classrooms,
ePortfolio support, and enhanced classroom capture; as well as software support for
student advising;
 a new Scholarly Search tool to improve searchability of rich electronic library resources;
 major re-development of library spaces, including the Baillieu and a new facility to
support Business, Economics and Education;
 planning for a new Research and Cultural Library;
 a new Architecture building;
 an increase in expenditure on the University Library’s collections by $5M per annum to
provide high quality resources to underpin learning, teaching and scholarship;
 development of the Western Precinct (Arts and Music) Student Centre;
 development through the Institute for a Broadband-Enabled Society of UniTV, a
prototype for educational delivery and virtual interaction based on a capacity for
broadband-enabled high definition telepresence;
 development of additional facilities dedicated to Research Higher Degree students to
assist in improving completion rates;
 development of contemporary collaborative learning spaces through adaptive re-use of a
heritage listed building at the Southbank campus, and
 investigation of opportunities to facilitate the development of a range of affordable
student housing solutions, including for graduates.
3.4.
Student enrolments
Commonwealth objectives
3.4.1.
The Commonwealth is committed to the expansion of a high quality higher
education sector, to provide opportunities for all capable people to participate to
their full potential.
3.4.2.
An expanded higher education sector will educate the graduates needed by an
economy based on knowledge, skills and innovation.
3.4.3.
The Commonwealth has announced its ambition for growth in higher education
attainment, so that by 2025, 40 per cent of all 25 to 34 year olds will hold a
qualification at Bachelor level or above.
Page 26
University student enrolment planning
In 2007, prior to the introduction of the curriculum reforms known as the Melbourne Model the
University sought and obtained agreement to a change in its CSP cluster Profile that reflected
the planned substitution of professional graduate programs for previous undergraduate
programs over the period 2008-2014. The principle implication of the shift to the Melbourne
Model was a gradual shift of a significant number of CSPs from undergraduate to graduate
places and related changes in cluster mix within an approximately revenue neutral CGS funding
package. As part of the agreement, the University undertook, in aggregate, to maintain the
same number of places available for commencing undergraduate students.
The University is part-way through the major transition of its student profile to the Melbourne
Model under which professional entry qualifications have been redesigned as Masters level
qualifications, and broad generalist degrees introduced at the bachelor level. This transition
commenced with the introduction of six New Generation undergraduate degrees in 2008 and,
with the first graduates finishing these degrees in 2010, the University has completed the launch
of a range of Masters level courses to cater for professional entry pathways from 2011. Over
the next four years, it is anticipated that the University’s graduate profile will grow with a
commensurate reduction in undergraduate student numbers as previous double-degree
students and those studying longer professional degrees (eg six year MBBS) graduate from the
University.
The scale and complexity of this curriculum change is unprecedented and has led and will
continue to lead to shifts not only between undergraduate and postgraduate numbers but also
between clusters. At undergraduate level, the requirement that all students take ‘breadth’
subjects counting as 25% of their course has resulted in students taking subjects in areas they
would not have otherwise taken. (N.B. From 2011 there is an option for students to take a
smaller ‘breadth’ component although it is too early to tell how many will take up this option).
The phase-out of concurrent Bachelor courses is also leading to shifts in cluster profile. It was
for this reason that the University sought, and the Government agreed, that a clause be
included in its Funding Agreement to acknowledge the need for flexibility to deal with such
uncertainty.
It has also been necessary, in maintaining constant flows of professional graduates, to have no
intake in some courses during the changeover period. This has been a transitional measure
only, with CSP intakes for key professional programs returning, from 2011, to previous levels.
The University is pleased that the quality of the student cohort has not changed as a result of
the transition to the Melbourne Model and its new Generation Degrees. Median ATARs for
commencing students have remained at around 94.0 over the period 2007-10 despite the
phasing out of highly competitive professional undergraduate degrees and an increased
emphasis on social inclusion strategies. Initial feedback suggests that the Melbourne Model is
attractive to students and offers a genuinely differentiated alternative to the more traditional
programs offered elsewhere within the Australian higher education sector.
The table below sets out the University’s current projections of its Commonwealth supported
student load over 2011-13. Given the current stage of transition to the Melbourne Model
projections of student load remain necessarily dynamic.
Page 27
Page 28
NB: References to load throughout the Compact should be read in conjunction with the
University of Melbourne’s funding agreement.
Page 29
4.
PERFORMANCE FUNDING
Commonwealth objectives
4.1
Higher education Performance Funding will provide incentives for universities to
improve outcomes for students.
4.2
To be eligible for Performance Funding, the University must:
(i) be a Table A provider (see paragraph 30-1(1)(a)(i) of the Act); and
(ii) be a provider for which the Minister has allocated a number of Commonwealth
supported places to the provider for that year under section 30-10 (see
paragraph 30-1(1)(b) of the Act); and
(iii) be a provider which has entered into a funding agreement with the
Commonwealth under section 30-25 in respect of a period that includes that year
(this being the 2011-2013 Compact).
4.3
Performance Funding has two components:
(i) Facilitation Funding; and
(ii) Reward Funding for achieving university performance targets
Facilitation Funding
4.4
Facilitation Funding acknowledges both the diverse missions of universities and the
commitment to the Australian Government’s learning and teaching goals.
4.5
The Australian Government will provide Facilitation Funding to universities
commencing in 2011.
4.6
Facilitation Funding will be paid as a formula driven share of the available funding.
Each university’s Facilitation Funding payment will be calculated on their proportional
share of Commonwealth Grant Scheme Basic Grant Amount (section 33-5 of the
Act) and the Grants to Support National Institutes specified in the Other Grants
Guidelines (item 4 of subsection 41-10 of the Act). Refer to the Performance Funding
Technical Guidelines for further details.
4.7
As a condition of the Facilitation Funding component of Performance Funding, in
accordance with this agreement, the University must:
(i) inform the Australian Government of strategies and goals for achieving the
University’s teaching and learning mission described under clauses 3.1, 3.2 and
3.4; and
(ii) agree to the performance targets relating to specific Australian Government
goals contained in clause 4.14.
4.8
Once a 2011-2013 Compact has been agreed, the University will be paid the 2011
Facilitation Funding amount, plus any indexation, each year of the Compact period.
4.9
The Commonwealth and the University agree to annual review, under Section 9 of
this Compact, of the effectiveness of implementation of the strategies and goals for
Page 30
achieving the University’s teaching and learning mission described under clauses
3.1, 3.2 and 3.4.
Reward Funding
4.10
From 2012, the Australian Government will introduce Reward Funding for
universities that achieve performance targets.
4.11
As a condition of the Reward Funding component of Performance Funding, in
accordance with this agreement, the University must:
(i) agree performance targets as outlined in clause 4.14;
(ii) supply performance data to the Commonwealth for relevant indicators as per the
requirements set out in section 2 of the Performance Funding Technical
Guidelines; and
(iii) achieve the relevant targets as outlined in clause 4.14.
4.12
Each university’s maximum possible Reward Funding payment will be calculated on
their proportional share of Commonwealth Grant Scheme Basic Grant Amount,
consistent with the focus of Performance Funding being on improvement of teaching
and learning.
HESA Funding Agreement
4.13
This section 4, together with the terms and conditions set out at Attachment D to this
Compact, constitute the HESA Funding Agreement for the provision of Performance
Funding to the University.
University performance targets
4.14
The University’s performance targets are in the table below.
(i) Performance targets refer to the year of payment.
(ii) Progress targets represent progress towards achievement of aspirational goals.
Reward Funding for achievement against the 2014 and 2015 progress targets
and aspirational goals would be the subject of a future Compact.
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University performance categories and targets
Performance Category 1: Participation and Social Inclusion
Performance indicator 1A: Proportion of domestic undergraduates who are from a low SES
background.
Baseline for improvement target: 8.47% (2009 data).
Excellence
Target
Improvement
Target
2012
Reward
Payment
(target for 2011
students)
2013
Reward
Payment
(target for 2012
students)
N/A
N/A
8.72%
9.12%
2014
Progress target
(target for 2013
students)
2015
Progress target
(target for 2014
students)
9.72%
10.32%
Outcome
Performance indicator 1B: Proportion of domestic postgraduate coursework students who are
from a low SES background
Baseline for improvement target: 6.24% (average of 2008/09 data)
Improvement
Target
2012
Reward Payment
(target for 2011 students)
2013
Reward Payment
(target for 2012 students)
6.46%
6.89%
Outcome
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University performance categories and targets
Performance Category 2: Student Experience
Performance indicator 2A: Domestic undergraduate satisfaction with teaching
(Measured using data from the Australian Graduate Survey – Course Experience
Questionnaire (CEQ) [Good Teaching Scale and Overall Satisfaction Item])
2012
Reward Payment
2013
Reward Payment
N/A
Participate in 2013 CEQ* (2012 final
year students) to establish baseline
performance
Participation
Outcome
N/A
* the 2012 CEQ report refers to students whose final year of study was in 2011 and who participated in
the CEQ survey in 2012 and where performance was reported in 2013.
Performance indicator 2B: Domestic undergraduate experience
(Measured using data from the University Experience Survey [UES])
2012
Reward Payment
2013
Reward Payment
N/A
Participate in the development of the
UES to establish baseline
performance
Participation
Outcome
N/A
Page 33
University performance categories and targets
Performance Category 3: Quality of Learning Outcomes
Performance indicator 3A: Domestic undergraduate satisfaction with generic skills
(Measured using data from the Australian Graduate Survey – Course Experience
Questionnaire (CEQ) [Generic Skills Scale])
2012
Reward Payment
2013
Reward Payment
N/A
Participate in 2013 CEQ* (2012 final
year students) to establish baseline
performance
Participation
Outcome
N/A
* the 2012 CEQ report refers to student whose final year of study was in 2011 and who participated in
the CEQ survey in 2012 and where performance was reported in 2013.
Performance indicator 3B: Domestic undergraduate value added generic skills
(Measured using data from the Collegiate Learning Assessment (CLA))
2012
Reward Payment
2013
Reward Payment
N/A
Participate in the development of the
CLA to establish baseline
performance
Participation
Outcome
N/A
Performance indicator 3C: Composite Teaching Quality Indicator (TQI)
2012
Reward Payment
2013
Reward Payment
N/A
Participate in development of
composite indicator (including
providing data) to establish baseline
performance
Participation
Outcome
4.15
N/A
Section 3 of the Performance Technical Funding Guidelines provides detailed
information on the calculation and assessment of the above indicators. Section 4.2.2 of
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the Performance Funding Administrative Guidelines also provides information on
implementation of new performance indicators.
4.16
The Australian Government undertakes to consult the higher education sector on the
development and enhancement of indicators for the purposes of Performance Funding.
5.
COMMONWEALTH GRANT SCHEME
5.1
Attachment E contains the current HESA Funding Agreement for the provision of
Commonwealth Grant Scheme funding to the University for the 2009 to 2011
calendar years.
5.2
Attachment E becomes part of this Compact on execution of the Compact.
5.3
The Commonwealth anticipates that any future HESA Funding Agreements for the
provision of Commonwealth Grant Scheme funding to the University will also form
part of this Compact.
6.
OTHER FUNDING PROVIDED BY DEEWR
6.1
A list of key programs and funding allocations under which the Commonwealth,
through DEEWR, provides support to the University is set out at Attachment A. This
list may be updated from time to time, including if the University is successful in
applying for any new and/or additional Commonwealth funding.
Page 35
PART THREE
The Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research, with assistance from
DIISR, has Commonwealth responsibility for the matters set out in this Part Three of
the Compact.
7.
RESEARCH, RESEARCH TRAINING AND INNOVATION
A range of research, research training and innovation performance indicators and
targets are proposed in this section. Principal Performance Indicators are
compulsory and institutions may voluntarily nominate Additional Performance
Indicators and targets considered reflective of individual institutional goals.
The Commonwealth recognises that universities have diverse missions and,
consequently, targets and performance will vary between institutions. Universities
should develop performance indicators and targets to reflect their individual
performance and strategic direction.
7.1.
Research performance and research capability
Research performance and research capability: Commonwealth objectives
7.1.1.
The Commonwealth encourages excellence in research performance and the
strengthening of research capability. Particular objectives are to:
a.
progressively increase the number of research groups performing at world class
levels, as measured by international performance benchmarks; and
b.
promote collaboration, including collaboration between researchers within
Australia and internationally.
7.1.2.
The Commonwealth, through DIISR, may provide funding to the University to assist
the University achieve these Commonwealth research performance and research
capability objectives, including through the Sustainable Research Excellence in
Universities (SRE) program, the Research Infrastructure Block Grants (RIBG)
scheme and, where relevant, the Collaborative Research Networks (CRN) program.
7.1.3.
If the University is provided with funding from DIISR under the Collaborative
Research Networks (CRN) program, the University will be required to enter into a
legally binding CRN funding agreement with DIISR. That legally binding agreement
will not be made under HESA and will be separate from, but made within the
framework of, this Compact from the date of its execution.
7.1.4.
Other Commonwealth funding to assist the University achieve these Commonwealth
objectives may also be provided outside of this Compact by the Australian Research
Council (ARC), the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC), the
International Science Linkages program, the Australia-India Strategic Research
Fund, and research infrastructure funds such as the Education Infrastructure Fund,
Super Science Initiative and the Cooperative Research Centres (CRC) program.
Page 36
7.1.5.
The Commonwealth, through the ARC, will implement the Excellence in Research
for Australia (ERA) initiative which will evaluate research undertaken at Australian
universities against international benchmarks. ERA will be used in the future to
assist in determining funding in some research programs (for example, the
Sustainable Research Excellence in Universities [SRE]) administered by the
Commonwealth.
Research performance and research capability: University Strategies
The University of Melbourne is committed to remaining a leading Australian and internationally
competitive comprehensive research-intensive university. It seeks to achieve this by providing
its researchers with the resources, infrastructure, services and working environment that are
conducive to the achievement of high quality research. The University’s comprehensive
research base is the foundation on which a diverse and innovative research outcomes are able
to be realised in partnership with government, industry and community organisations.
In research, Melbourne’s 2020 goal is to confirm its standing as a globally engaged,
comprehensive research-intensive university uniquely positioned to contribute to the major
social, economic and environmental challenges facing humankind.
In recent times the University has maintained its position as Australia’s leading researchintensive university as evidenced both by the recently released ERA outcomes and by receipt of
the highest total and individual allocations of Federal Government funds awarded for research
and research training. The ERA results confirmed the University’s standing, ranking Melbourne
first in terms of well above world standard research output at both 2-dgit and 4-digit
classifications, contributing an aggregate 18% of the total national output at this level.
The University of Melbourne maintained its top ranking for research income and publications in
2009 (latest available) and its number one ranking for Australian Competitive Grants (ACGs).
For commencement in 2011, the University received (i) $37.6 million (the highest nationally) in
multi-year Australian Research Council (ARC) Discovery Project Grants with the highest
success rate (31 per cent) and number of successful applications (107) and (ii) $52.6 million in
National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) Project Grants (the second highest
nationally and an increase of 29.3 per cent) for 95 projects and two Program Grants totalling
$30.5 million (the highest nationally).
The latest analysis, based on late-2009 and mid-2010 data, by the Business Review Weekly
publication saw the University maintaining its position, second to CSIRO, as one of the largest
research and development providers in Australia.
The University’s objective is to continue to perform at a level that allows it to be top ranked
nationally over the period through to 2015.
As part of its strategic plan, the University has undertaken by 2015 to:




Maintain its number one national ranking for research income;
Maintain its number one national ranking on Australian Competitive Grants;
Maintain its number one national ranking for research publications, and
Improve research productivity from 2010 baseline (research outputs per FTE).
Page 37
Collaboration
A major highlight and achievement in 2010 was the undertaking of a number of significant
collaborations with national and international partners with support from the Federal and State
Governments. In addition, the operations of the five initial inter-disciplinary University research
institutes have been consolidated successfully and planning has commenced to broaden the
portfolio of institutes. New support has been provided for the development of a research
infrastructure strategy, a major review of research strategy has commenced, and initiatives
introduced to increase the international research funding base of the University.
The University seeks to be an active partner in supporting the Commonwealth Government’s
National Innovation System, driving international competitiveness and greater productivity.
Collaboration and partnerships remain key aspects of the University’s engagement strategy. An
agreement has also been struck with Victoria University (VU) to work together in health related
fields at Western Health, to complement VU’s programs in nursing and exercise physiology.
The University is also a partner organisation in five Collaborative Research Networks (CRN)
proposals. These CRN projects will strengthen existing research relationships with less
research-intensive and / or regional universities and provide opportunities for new collaborations
to develop.
At the end of 2010, the University was involved in over 95 centres and institutes for research
and research training, including eleven of the total of 42 Cooperative Research Centres (CRCs)
nationally, twelve ARC Centres (with one co-funded with the Grains Research and Development
Corporation) and two NHMRC Centres. More than half of these centres and institutes for
research and research training involve collaborators from other research institutions or industry.
All centres and institutes are required to undergo formal reviews at least every five years. Of
the ARC Centres of Excellence and CRCs to receive new funding in 2011, this institution will be
a participant in seven and three respectively.
In addition, the University has taken an active leadership role in more ad hoc or one-off special
research initiatives such as the recently announced ARC Special Research Initiative in Stem
Cell Science. A total of $25.7M was awarded from the Victorian Science Agenda Investment
and Strategic Funds for seven bids involving Melbourne. The University also aims to maintain a
diverse research funding base beyond these schemes, incorporating other government
schemes, industry and not-for-profit organisations.
Melbourne’s research infrastructure capability is increasingly being recognised as a sector-wide
resource. Its longstanding housing of AAREnet is now complemented by the role it is playing as
hub in relation to AURIN and NeCTAR. The University is lead agent for AURIN (Australian
Urban Research Infrastructure Network). This $20M Super Science funded initiative will provide
a targeted research infrastructure for built environment and urban researchers, designers and
planners. Melbourne is leading the National eResearch Collaboration Tools and Resources
(NeCTAR) project, which is developing national eResearch collaboration infrastructure. The
total Commonwealth funding for the project, provided as part of the Super Science initiative, is
$47 million over four years. The primary objectives of the NeCTAR project are to enhance
research collaboration and research outcomes by providing Information and Communication
Technology (ICT) infrastructure that creates new information-centric research capabilities.
Key Strategies
Melbourne will continue to enhance its long-standing collaborations, such as with the medical
Page 38
research institutes in and around the Parkville Precinct and other teaching hospital clusters, as
well as nurture the ever-increasingly complex web of researcher-to-researcher interactions that
comprise the DNA of world class research. In recent years the University has also been
working to develop a number of deep partnerships with leading organisations to help shape our
research agenda and promote the translation of research into development and business
application (see the innovation section for further information).
Established in 2009, the five initial University inter-disciplinary research institutes have
experienced a successful year of consolidation and progress in 2010. These institutes
concentrate on the areas of internet broad-band, energy, materials, neurosciences and
sustainability. Each of these institutes arose from a desire by the University to focus on key
societal issues that transcend limited disciplinary boundaries. Each is attracting strong levels of
external collaboration and engagement with industry and government. The Melbourne
Neuroscience Institute was a leading proponent in the successful bid for the ARC Special
Research Initiative in Stem cell Science.
This development of cross-disciplinary networks and collaborations within the University to
focus on global problems is complemented by the undertaking of pioneering research through
large scale hubs that provide the research infrastructure, platform technologies and social
amenity to enable large scale internationally competitive research to occur in partnership with
industry collaborators.
The most advanced of these hubs is the Bio21 Molecular Science and Biotechnology Institute
(Bio21 Institute) which specialises in medical, agricultural and environmental biotechnology,
including genomics and proteomics and incorporates large scale nuclear magnetic resonator
and microscopy technologies. The Bio21 Institute provides accommodation for CSL’s research
and development laboratories and, in doing so, provides unique opportunities for collaboration
with Australia’s only major pharmaceutical company. The Institute is awaiting advice from the
Victorian Government that plans for it to become a lead collaborator in a new initiative Science
Sub-School (bringing together an innovative approach to science education through interaction
between University and Debney Park High Schools and the University) will proceed.
The Florey Neurosciences Institute project is a collaboration between the University, the Florey
Institute, the Mental Health Research Institute and other research partners. It brings together
world class research capability focussing on the brain in world class facilities being constructed,
in part supported by the Health and Hospitals Fund, on the Austin Hospital and the University’s
Parkville sites.
The Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity, a $220 million facility, in part supported
by EIF funding, is a collaboration between the University, Melbourne Health and State
Government agencies designed to create within Australia’s region a consolidated capability
modelled on the US Centre for Disease Control in Atlanta, Georgia.
Further precinct development, involving other collaborators with government and the private
sector, are in early stages of development.
In the health and medical area, the University will be seeking to work closely with its university
teaching hospitals to ensure appropriate facilities and infrastructure are in place to support
internationally competitive bio-medical research at its various hospital locations. A rapidly
emerging theme is the development of an enhanced international research capability that seeks
to integrate more closely the work of researchers and clinicians. The University will be seeking
Page 39
to contribute to the development of Advanced Health Science Centres, the policy development
for which is currently being auspiced by the NHMRC.
The Victorian Life Sciences Computation Initiative (VLSCI) - providing computational biology
expertise and state-of-the-art computing infrastructure to institutions throughout Victoria - aims
to be one of the top five life science computation facilities in the world by 2013. Collaboration
with IBM Global on this project has in part resulted in its announcement late in 2010 to establish
a research and development collaboratory in Melbourne directly adjacent to the University. This
will be only the tenth such facility IBM Global has established worldwide.
Research performance and productivity
The University has developed, and is implementing, strategies to address key aspects of
research performance and productivity. These are grouped for internal planning purposes into
six areas, parts of which are addressed elsewhere in this Compact (research training and
aspects of innovation and economic growth): excellence, engagement (collaborations and
partnerships), impact, training, infrastructure and research foundations.
SRE Performance - In preparation for the new Federal Government SRE Scheme, the
University participated in a series of Transparent Costing of Research exercises during the
2010 Trial Year. The University satisfied the eligibility conditions by submitting two Staff TimeUse Data Collections (exceeding the required response rates) and providing details related to
the indirect costs of research against the audited 2009 financial reports. In addition, the
University has used SRE implementation funding to sponsor a series of projects that aims to
facilitate the costing of research including a project being trialled in two faculties related to a
new pricing model for research contracts.
The Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Research (DVC-R) provides leadership for the University’s
research strategies and line management responsibility for the Research Office. Faculties are
responsible for the ongoing management of research outputs. The DVC-R works closely and
collaboratively with faculties to advance the University’s research agenda and provides
stewardship for a portfolio of five whole-of-University inter-disciplinary research institutes that
were established in 2009 to provide opportunities for the University’s research community to
tackle society’s pressing problems in new ways outside traditional discipline and faculty
boundaries. A small number of cross-University committees have been established to advise
the DVC-R on key research issues, most notably the Research Infrastructure Advisory Group
(RIAG) and the Research Metrics Working Group (RMWG).
In 2011 the University is reviewing and refining faculty-specific research active definitions as the
part of the first phase of a broader program of activities to improve research productivity over
the next three to five years. This work is closely aligned to revisions currently occurring in the
University’s Human Resources framework.
The Vice-Chancellor is chairing a University-wide Research Commission in 2011. This
commission will be developing a 10 to 15 year research and research training vision for the
University as well as identifying strategies to build on current research strengths and
achievements, and will identify new opportunities and to create an internal environment that
enables our researchers to flourish. An emphasis of the Research Commission is to consider
methods that most effectively support the University’s research mission, in particular via the
acquisition of external resources and strategic partnerships, and in a manner that appropriately
balances research with the learning and teaching and engagement agenda. More specifically
Page 40
the Commission will develop policy and make recommendations on:









Research Strategy –The University’s 2025 research vision;
Research Workforce – Aligning the University’s HR policies with its research strategy
and continuing to provide an environment where researchers can flourish;
Research Infrastructure – Identifying and catering most effectively for future needs;
Research Partnerships – The role of partnerships and the strategies for enabling them;
Internationalisation – Enabling aspirations with regard to international research and
collaboration;
Precincts – Fostering existing or proposed precincts;
Research Training – Recruiting, managing and supporting RHD students to maximise
outcomes;
Assessing Research Performance – Measurement that supports research management
and helps demonstrate impact; and
Enablers and Governance – Getting the right structures and processes in places.
Research performance and research capability: Performance indicators and targets
7.1.6.
The purpose of the research performance and research capability performance
indicators and targets is to assist the University and Commonwealth monitor the
University's progress against the Commonwealth's objectives and the University's
strategies for research performance and research capability.
7.1.7.
The University will aim to meet the research performance and research capability
performance indicators and targets set out in the following table.
Principal Performance Indicators
(Required)
Baseline2
Target
20133
Number of disciplines, as defined by two-digit Fields of Research
(FoR), performing at world standard or above (3, 4 or 5)
24/24
24/24
Number of disciplines, as defined by four-digit FoR, performing
at world standards or above (3, 4 or 5)
102/103
100% of
nominated
disciplines
Disciplines the university commits to demonstrating substantial
improvement in as defined by two-digit FoR and/or four-digit
FoR.(a)
See note (a)
See note (a)
(a) ERA outcomes demonstrate research from this institution to be at or above world standard. The baseline and 2013 target for the
first two indicators (regarding 2 and 4 digit performance) therefore reflect the University’s strategic intent in this area. Internal
mechanisms are set to encourage individual researchers to achieve excellent outcomes. The University’s intention is to maintain
continuing high performance.
2
Baseline data is collected in 2010 but will generally refer to an earlier period. For example, the baseline for
Category 1 income is collected through the 2010 HERDC data collection but refers to income in 2009. Similarly, the
targets relate to the year in which the data is collected.
3
Target refers to data collected in the previous year. For more information, see definition of baseline data.
Page 41
Principal Performance
Indicators
(Required)
Baseline4
Progressive
Target 20115
Progressive
Target 2012
Target
20136
Category 1 income
(based on 2009 Cat 1 total income)
$166.2 M
14%
14% share of
total available
Cat 1 income
14% share of
total available
Cat 1 income
14% share of
total available
Cat 1 income
Number of Joint PhD degree
enrolments with overseas
institutions. See note (b)
Number of joint research grants with
Australian and overseas research
organisations
(See note (c))
19 PhD
See note (b)
20 PhD
See note (b)
21 PhD
See note (b)
22 PhD
See note (b)
Aus=2836
Int=109
See note (c)
Maintain
See note (c)
Maintain
See note (c)
Maintain
See note (c)
7.1.8.
(b) Joint enrolments are currently through Cotutelle and Universitas 21
arrangements. There are currently no Australian fully joint degree candidates
because of past reporting issues. Over the period of the Compact and in light of
recent Commonwealth reporting policy changes, the University will work to develop
mechanisms that allow for Joint Degrees with Australian universities. The Group of
Eight Universities are working together to finalise a Go8 Joint PhD agreement in
2011.
7.1.9.
(c)The University's Research Agreements system was used to determine the
number of Australian and Overseas i) Joint Research Grants with other universities
and research organisations (Research Performance) and ii) active collaborations
and partnerships with Industry and Other (Innovation). Organisations listed on
Agreements were categorised into one of four categories; Aust-Uni/ResOrg, IntUni/ResOrg, Aust-Ind/Other or Int-Ind/Other. This method will have under reported
the actual number of collaborations and partnerships active at the University in any
one year. Not all collaborations and partnerships as defined in the footnotes are
captured by the University's Research Agreements module. As some volatility can
be expected from year to year a rolling average has been calculated.
4
Baseline data is collected in 2010 but will generally refer to an earlier period. For example, the baseline for
Category 1 income is collected through the 2010 HERDC data collection but refers to income in 2009. Similarly, the
targets relate to the year in which the data is collected.
5
Progressive target refers to data collected in the previous year. For more information, see definition of
baseline data.
6
Target refers to data collected in the previous year. For more information, see definition of baseline data.
Page 42
Additional Performance
Indicators
Improving research productivity –
HERDC publications per research
FTE
7.2.
Baseline
2010
HERDC
pubs per
research
FTE
Targets
expressed
in terms of
increasing
research
active and
excellence
Progressive
Target 2011
Progressive
Target 2012
Annual increase.
Annual increase
Target
2013
Annual
increase
Research training
Research training: Commonwealth objectives
7.2.1.
The Commonwealth encourages excellence in the provision of research training.
Particular objectives are to:
a.
Support research excellence and develop an internationally competitive
research workforce in Australia through high quality research training; and
b.
Significantly increase the number of students completing higher degrees by
research over the next decade.
7.2.2.
The Commonwealth, through DIISR, may provide funding to the University to assist
the University achieve these Commonwealth objectives, including through the
Research Training Scheme (RTS), Australian Postgraduate Awards (APA), and
International Postgraduate Research Scheme (IPRS).
7.2.3.
Other Commonwealth funding to assist the University achieve these Commonwealth
objectives may also be provided outside of this Compact by the ARC, NHMRC,
DEEWR and DIISR, for example through the Cooperative Research Centres (CRCs)
program.
Page 43
Research training: University strategies
The University of Melbourne is committed to sustaining the provision of high quality research training
and improving the quality of the higher degree research (HDR) student experience. In 2010 the
University developed a Research Training Strategic Statement which outlines a vision for research
training over the next four years and sets goals, targets and actions to achieve that vision. Strategies
include making improvements in the areas of supervision, completion rates, research outputs and
student support infrastructure. Alongside this, in 2011, the Research Commission, see above, will
include a review of research training policies and practices.
The University has participated in the consultation process leading to the development of a
Commonwealth research workforce strategy. Melbourne commends this work which will lead to a
greater understanding of nature and size of the future research workforce. The national strategy will
inform the University’s development of RHD strategies and targets.
The University is currently reviewing its policy in relation to the preferred size of its HDR program. The
parameters that determine a University’s carrying capacity include: supervision time, infrastructure,
research support, scholarships and access to quality students. The Research Training Advisory
Committee (RTAC) has undertaken preliminary work to determine the preferred number of HDR
candidates within each faculty, factoring in the academic workload reflected in teaching and course
administration, infrastructure and supervisory capacity.
Although this HDR profile planning is yet to be completed, it is likely that the University will focus
increasingly on output (completions) and productivity (completion rates) measures rather than
continuing to give priority to input measures such as HDR load.
Analysis of long term University completion rates indicates a completion rate of approximately 70% over
a ten year period. To improve completion rates, new performance targets have been introduced. These
targets are based on incremental increases which aim to lift individual faculty 5-year timely completion
rates to 80% by 2015.
By 2015, the University has undertaken to continue to be number one ranked nationally for RHD
completions.
While many areas of the University naturally align research and research training through grants and
other funding agreements, to ensure that research training is aligned with areas of significant research
strength the University decided in 2010 that the APA allocation would be amended to allow 10% of the
total APA allocation to be placed in a pool for strategic initiatives. All discipline areas will be eligible to
apply for support from the pool. It is expected that the Strategic Pool will contain up to 35 APAs per
annum. In addition, the Research Commission will investigate options better to align research and
research training including the introduction of designated PhD programs.
One of the major goals of the University is to ensure that there is adequate infrastructure for all HDR
students. Projects are currently underway to address the shortage of space, including the refurbishment
of the Walter Boas building. It is the University’s objective that, by 2012, all full-time commencing HDR
students should have local access to basic infrastructure and space.
Page 44
High quality supervision is a major priority for the University. Supervisor professional development
workshops and training are conducted through the Melbourne School of Graduate Research (MSGR). It
is widely recognised, however, that current standards of supervision are variable and that there are
inequities in supervisory load distribution, both within individual faculties and graduate schools and
across the University. The Supervisors Accreditation Working Group (SAWG) was set up in late 2009 to
examine appropriate pre‐requisites for accreditation as a principal supervisor.
The Graduate Research ePortfolio (GreP) (previously the Graduate Research Portal) is an online resource
that has improved the quality of the HDR experience at Melbourne. The GreP offers students online
tools assisting with all aspects of candidature. Students are able to establish links and networks with
supervisors and academics at the University and across the world, access courseware such as PhD
Master Classes and templates for research profiling and skills analysis tools, participate in enrichment
programs and link to HDR resources and MSGR communications.
Three major components of the GReP are:
 the Doctoral Attributes Workshop - enabling students to self-assess in relation to the attributes;
 the Postgraduate Essentials Courseware Suite - equipping students with the academic,
management and writing skills needed during the candidature process, and
 the Global Research Ethics and Integrity Module - offering an interactive approach to ethics and
integrity issues in research higher degrees.
The Graduate Certificate in Advanced Learning and Leadership (GCALL) is another recent initiative that
has improved the quality of the HDR student experience. It has attracted enthusiastic support from
graduate research students. The GCALL is an inter-disciplinary coursework program designed to build a
PhD cohort with the attributes, skills and understanding required for future leadership roles. Input from
community, corporate and academic leaders into the design and delivery of the course ensures that the
GCALL draws on experiences, insights and knowledge from every sector. Twenty five students enrolled
in GCALL in 2010, an increase of 25 per cent from 2009. Two key questions in the University of
Melbourne Quality of Teaching Survey relating to satisfaction with the subject quality received a mean
score of 4.8 out of 5.
Melbourne has an aspiration to increase application rates from quality PhD candidates originating from
other universities (both within Australia and internationally). International PhD enrolments continue to
rise, with enrolments in jointly badged degrees also improving in 2010. Collaborative agreements for
research training with international universities provide an important basis for increasing graduate
research activities. Students enrolling under international agreements include the Malaysian Split PhD
Collaboration, the Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Teecnologia of Mexico and the Comision Nacional de
Investigacion Cientifica y Technologica of Chile. Through the Group of Eight Melbourne is also seeking
ways to enable joint-badged degrees amongst Australia’s research intensive universities.
Page 45
Research training: Performance indicators and targets
7.2.4.
The purpose of the research training performance indicators and targets is to assist
the University and Commonwealth monitor the University's progress against the
Commonwealth's objectives and the University's strategies for research training.
7.2.5.
The University will aim to meet the research training performance indicators and
targets set out in the following table.
Principal Performance
Indicators
(Required)
HDR Student load*
Baseline7
Progressive
Target 2012
Target
20139
2721 PhD.
493
Masters
3214
3214
3214
Improve rate
2% increase
Improve rate
2% increase
Improve
rate2%

Masters
2009
Masters
198

Doctorates
577
HDR Student completions by level
of degree
Progressive
Target 20118
Doctorates
*EFTSL
Additional Performance
Indicators
Improvement in individual faculty
5 - year PhD timely completion
rates to 80 % by 2015
7.3.
Baseline
Progressive
Target 2011
Improve rate
2.5% increase
2009
Progressive
Target 2012
Improve rate
2.5% increase
Target
2013
Improve rate
2.5%
increase
Innovation
Innovation: Commonwealth objectives
7.3.1.
The Commonwealth encourages innovation and seeks to build an innovation system
which contributes to economic growth and wellbeing by promoting links between
Australian businesses, universities and publicly-funded research agencies.
7.3.2.
The Commonwealth, through DIISR, may provide funding to the University to assist
the University achieve this Commonwealth objective, including through the Joint
Research Engagement (JRE) program. Details of any funding provided by DIISR to
the University to encourage innovation are set out in Attachment B.
7
Baseline data is collected in 2010 but will generally refer to an earlier period. For example, the baseline for
Category 1 income is collected through the 2010 HERDC data collection but refers to income for 2009. Similarly, the
targets relate to the year in which the data is collected.
8
Progressive target refers to data collected in the previous year. For more information, see definition of
baseline data.
9
Target refers to data collected in the previous year. For more information, see definition of baseline data.
Page 46
7.3.3.
Other Commonwealth funding to assist the University to achieve this
Commonwealth objective may also be provided outside of this Compact including
through Commercialisation Australia, the CRC and Enterprise Connect programs,
and by AusIndustry and the ARC.
Innovation: University strategies
As a public-spirited, research-led institution, the University of Melbourne is committed to playing
a leading role in the National Innovation System and ensuring that its activities make the
greatest possible contribution to national prosperity. An essential pre-requisite for this is the
maintenance of a world-class base of research across a broad range of fields. Innovation
initiatives are focused in three areas: establishing and nurturing strong partnerships with
industry and other sectors; ensuring strong engagement with government research and
innovation programs; and pursing an integrated approach to commercialisation of research
outcomes.
University has pursued a strategy of establishing deep partnerships with leading organisations
to help shape our research agenda and ensure end-user impact. An example of this is the
multifaceted collaboration with IBM, which has already resulted in IBM’s decision to co-locate a
global Research and Development laboratory at the University. In specific areas, the University
is also co-ordinating multilateral partnerships, such as in the Institute for a Broadband Enabled
Society, which brings together key players in that field, including Alcatel Lucent, Cisco and
Huawei. A partnership between DSTO and our Materials Institute focuses on strategic
technologies for the defence industry.
Recognising the University’s breadth of activities, it is significant that such partnerships are not
limited solely to scientific and technical fields, as exemplified by our partnership with the
community of the Goulburn Valley which spans several fields from Indigenous issues to
agriculture and education, and in which the University has partnered with local Indigenous
organisations to launch the Kaiela Institute in early 2011. The University will continue both to
strengthen its existing partnerships and to establish new ones in the years ahead.
Melbourne is strongly committed to supporting the Federal Government’s major initiatives,
including the ARC Linkage program and the CRC program. In recent years the University has
significantly strengthened its engagement with the ARC Linkage program (in the most recent
round the University achieved a substantial increase in the financial contribution from partners
across Government and industry, with researchers leveraging the ARC funding component
more than four-fold) and has provided dedicated support to our academics to encourage them
to make use of the program in building strong linkages outside the University. The University
has also been a key supporter of the CRC program and in the most recent selection round was
a participant in three successful bids, adding to the 12 in which it is already currently involved.
The University sees significant value in these programs and is committed to ensuring that our
academics are fully engaged with them.
The University is continuing to develop and strengthen the commercialisation of research. It
pursues this agenda through its commercialisation subsidiary, UoM Commercial, which includes
a separate division, Melbourne Ventures,that focuses particularly on the communication of
research. Through UoM Commercial Melbourne is a foundation member of Uniseed Pty Ltd, a
pre-seed fund in which the University of Queensland, UNSW and Westscheme are also joint
partners. The partners have contributed some $65 million of capital to support early stage
Page 47
commercialisation of research emanating from the source universities. The collapse of the
venture capital market following the global financial crisis and the withdrawal of previous
government funds for innovation schemes have meant that Uniseed’s role has been more vital
than originally envisaged.
Melbourne has invested in developing a broad capability for managing Intellectual Property and
making it available to a commercial audience, whether that be via consultancies, contract
research, technology licensing, or investment in start-ups. For example, the University
announced a major technology licensing partnership with the German biotech company
Morphosys in 2008 and is continuing to work closely with them as a research partner to bring
their innovative anti-inflammation therapy to market. Similarly, technology developed at the
University was the foundation for Fibrotech Therapeutics, which since 2006 has been
developing novel compounds for the treatment of the fibrosis prevalent in such chronic
conditions as chronic kidney disease, chronic heart failure, pulmonary fibrosis and arthritis.
Fibrotech was financed by a consortium of venture capitalists which included the University’s
own pre-seed fund Uniseed.
In 2010 the supporting services for these activities were brought together under a single
organisational structure, both to streamline activities and to find opportunities to make our
engagement in commercialisation broader and deeper. In the future the University will continue
to build on its track record in this area by more closely aligning its planning processes for both
commercialisation and research to ensure that prospective opportunities are identified early and
suitable pathways to market put in place. The University is also engaging with Commonwealth
Government programs in this area, most notably Commercialisation Australia.
In addition to the above specific initiatives, the University is regularly reviewing and refining its
internal structures and processes to help assure maximum effectiveness in translating the
findings of its research. To this end, a new position was recently created to improve the
communication of the University’s research activities to a broader (non-specialist) audience.
The University has also created a new position to focus on developing stronger collaborations
with international partners, to capture a greater share for Australia of the international research
dollar. The University will continue to invest in specific initiatives such as these where it can
identify an opportunity to increase the impact of its research.
Innovation: Performance indicators and targets
7.3.4.
The purpose of the innovation performance indicators and targets is to assist the
University and Commonwealth monitor the University's progress against the
Commonwealth's objectives and the University's strategies for innovation.
7.3.5.
The University will aim to meet the innovation performance indicators and targets
set out in the following table.
Page 48
Principal Performance Indicators
(Required)
Baseline10
Progressive
Target 201111
Progressive
Target 2012
Maintain
current share
of national
total, rolling
average (est
11%)
Maintain
number of
active
collaborations
Category 3 research income
$78.9M
Maintain
current share of
national total,
rolling average
(est 11%)
Number of active collaborations 13 and
partnerships14 with industry and other
partners:
 in Australia
 overseas
See notes (d) and (e)
2009
Aus: 1661
Maintain
number of
active
collaborations
O/S: 158
Target
201312
Maintain
current share
of national
total, rolling
average (est
11%)
Maintain
number of
active
collaborations
(d)The University's Research Agreements system was used to determine the number of Australian and Overseas i) Joint Research
Grants with other universities and research organisations (Research Performance) and ii) active collaborations and partnerships
with Industry and Other (Innovation). Organisations listed on Agreements were categorised into one of four categories; AustUni/ResOrg, Int-Uni/ResOrg, Aust-Ind/Other or Int-Ind/Other. This method will have under reported the actual number of
collaborations and partnerships active at the University in any one year. Not all collaborations and partnerships as defined in the
footnotes are captured by the University's Research Agreements module . As some volatility will be expected from year to year a
rolling average has been calculated.
(e) The University encourages individual researchers to build partnerships and collaborations with peers. The University’s focus,
however, is on whole-of-institution partnerships with leading international institutions. Internal targets have been specified for the
latter (see additional indicator below).
10
Baseline data is collected in 2010 but will generally refer to an earlier period. For example, the baseline for
Category 1 income is collected through the 2010 HERDC data collection but refers to income for 2009. Similarly, the
targets relate to the year in which the data is collected and will refer to performance achieved for the preceding year.
11
Progressive target refers to data collected in the previous year. For more information, see definition of
baseline data.
12
Target refers to data collected in the previous year. For more information, see definition of baseline data.
13
Collaboration involves activities where two or more parties work together and each contributes resources
such as intellectual property, knowledge, money, personnel or equipment, to address a shared objective with
a view of mutual benefit
14
Research and development collaborations with industry or other partners with a commercial intent: include active
ongoing research projects or partnerships activated through a written agreement (eg contract or signed letter of
intent) between the university and either Australian or overseas industry partners. Activities could include, joint
research/development projects with industry or arrangements with firms to commercialise research outcomes, other
non-teaching activities, or other collaborations).
Page 49
Principal Performance Information1516
(Required)
Number of patent and plant breeder’s rights
families filed, issued and held
Number of licences, options or assignments
(LOAs)17 executed and income derived
Number and value of research contracts and
consultancies executed
Investment in spin-out companies during the
reporting year and nominal value of equity in spinouts based on last external funding/liquidity event
or entry cost
7.3.6.
Baseline
Filed
46
No.
20
No.
638
Investment ($)
$1.5M
Issued
19
Held
157
Value($)
$5.2M
Value($)
$49.9M
Value($)
$1.7M
The set of performance information on patents and other research
commercialisation activities does not require targets. Universities should advise their
baseline performance here. Annual reporting on future performance against these
indicators will be in the context of the Institutional Performance Portfolio Information
Collection commencing in 2011.
Additional Performance
Indicators (May be proposed by
the University)
Strategic in-depth alliances with
leading international universities and
external organisations/industry
partners
Baseline18
2009 = 1
Progressive
Target 201119
5
Progressive
Target 2012
8
Target
201320
11 and 13
by 2015
8.
FUNDING FOR RESEARCH AND RESEARCH TRAINING PROVIDED BY DIISR
8.1
Attachment B sets out the University’s Commonwealth funding allocations for 2011
from Commonwealth research and research training programs administered by
DIISR. This list may be amended from time to time, including if the University is
successful in applying for any new and/or additional Commonwealth funding.
15
This set of performance information does not require targets. Universities will be asked to advise their baseline
performance and will report on their future performance in the context of the Institutional Performance Portfolio
Information Collection commencing in 2011. Patent and plant breeder right family refers to a group of patent or plant
breeder rights applications or grants emanating from a single filing. Note: this question only concerns patent and
plant breeder rights families, and is not in reference to families of other forms of registered IP (ie trade marks).
16 Please use the definition of contracts and consultancies utilised in the National Survey of Research
Commercialisation (NSRC). A copy of the survey is available at this URL:
http://www.innovation.gov.au/Section/Innovation/Pages/TheNationalSurveyofResearchCommercialisation.aspx
17 A LICENCE agreement formalises the transfer of technology between two parties, where the owner of the
technology (licensor) grants rights to the other parties (licensee). An OPTION agreement grants the potential
licensee a time period during which it may evaluate the technology and negotiate the terms of a licence agreement.
An option agreement is not constituted by an Option clause in a research agreement that grants rights to future
inventions, until an actual invention has occurred that is subject to that Option. An ASSIGNMENT agreement
conveys all right, title and interest in and to the licensed subject matter to the named assignee.
18 Baseline data is collected in 2010 but will generally refer to an earlier period. For example, the baseline for
Category 1 income is collected through the 2010 HERDC data collection but refers to income in 2009.
Similarly, the targets relate to the year in which the data is collected.
19 Progressive target refers to data collected in the previous year. For more information, see definition of
baseline data.
20 Target refers to data collected in the previous year. For more information, see definition of baseline data.
Page 50
PART FOUR
9.
COMPACT REVIEW
9.1
This Compact will be reviewed annually by both the Commonwealth and the
University. This review will be a mechanism for considering progress made towards
agreed goals outlined in this Compact. It will aim to ensure that the Commonwealth
and the University will continue to focus on key objectives and strategies.
9.2
The review will create an opportunity to consider any developments that may have
occurred in the previous year, and whether these may impact on the Compact or
trigger a need to amend the Compact.
9.3
To facilitate this review the Commonwealth will produce an annual Institutional
Performance Portfolio and the University agrees to contribute to the annual
Institutional Performance Portfolio Information Collection (IPPIC). The
Commonwealth will consult with the higher education sector on the information
collection requirements and any issues arising from the IPPIC process.
Page 51
PART FIVE
10.
10.1
GENERAL PROVISIONS
Administration of the Compact by the Departments
10.1.1
DEEWR will administer Part Two of this Compact and DIISR will administer Part
Three of this Compact, in accordance with their respective Ministers’ legislative
responsibilities under the Administrative Arrangements Orders as in force from time
to time. The other Parts of this Compact may be administered by one or both
departments
10.1.2
In administering the Compact, employees of each Department will make decisions in
accordance with any relevant instruments of delegation or authorisation in force from
time to time.
10.2
10.2.1
10.3
10.3.1
10.4
10.4.1
Departmental Meetings and Liaison
Employees of the Departments will collaborate to streamline as far as practicable the
Commonwealth’s interactions with the University.
Part 2-2 HESA Funding Agreements
To the extent that this Compact contains Part 2-2 HESA Funding Agreements, the
University acknowledges that each such Part 2-2 HESA Funding Agreement is
subject to specific legislative and other requirements and that the University will need
to meet all such requirements.
Privacy, confidentiality and information sharing
Subject to clause 10.4.2 below, the University acknowledges and agrees that any
information it provides to either DEEWR or DIISR for the purposes of this Compact,
or for any Part 2-2 HESA Funding Agreement contained in this Compact, may be
accessible under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 and may also be:
a.
published by the Commonwealth in any manner in accordance with any
legislative requirement;
b.
used by a Department for any purpose of the Commonwealth, including
dealings with other Commonwealth agencies;
c.
used in reporting to or answering questions from a Minister of State of the
Commonwealth or a House or Committee of the Parliament of the
Commonwealth; or
d.
disclosed where the Commonwealth is required or permitted by law to do so.
10.4.2
The Commonwealth and the University agree to carry out their roles under this
Compact in accordance with any obligations they have under the Privacy Act 1988 or
any state or territory law relating to the protection of personal information.
10.4.3
The Commonwealth recognises that the University’s Confidential Information has
commercial value to the University and may disadvantage the University if it is
Page 52
disclosed. Accordingly, the Commonwealth will not publish or otherwise disclose the
University’s Confidential Information unless required by law to do so, or unless the
University consents in writing prior to such disclosure.
10.5
Variation
10.5.1
Subject to clause 10.5.2 below, except for action that either the Commonwealth or
the University is expressly authorised to take elsewhere in this Compact, any
variation to this Compact is to be in writing and signed by the University's, and both
of the Commonwealth’s Representatives.
10.5.2
A variation to:
a.
any provision of Part Two only or to any Attachments to this Compact that arise
solely under a provision of Part Two must be in writing but needs only to be
signed by the Commonwealth's DEEWR Representative and the University.
b.
any part of this Compact that forms part of a Part 2-2 HESA Funding Agreement
may only be made under this clause 10.5.2 if that funding agreement does not
contain variation provisions specific to that funding agreement;
c.
any provision of Part Three only or to any Attachments to this Compact that
arise solely under a provision of Part Three must be in writing but needs only to
be signed by the Commonwealth's DIISR Representative and the University.
Either DEEWR or DIISR as the case requires will send the other Department notice
of any variation made in accordance with paragraph (a) to (c) above.
10.6
10.6.1
Notices
A party wishing to give notice under a provision of this Compact:
a.
must do so by sending it to each of the other Representatives set out in
clause 10.6.3; and
b.
must, if a response is required to the notice, set out the time in which the
response is to be given;
10.6.2
Notices required to be sent by the University to the Commonwealth under this
Compact are to be sent to both the DEEWR and DIISR Representatives set out in
clause 10.6.3.
10.6.3
The Representatives are:
a.
University Representative
Ian Marshman, Senior Vice-Principal
The University of Melbourne, Victoria 3010 Australia
Email: i.marshman@unimelb.edu.au
b.
DEEWR Representative
Group Manager
Higher Education Group
Page 53
Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations
GPO Box 9880
Canberra ACT 2601
OR
compacts@deewr.gov.au
c.
DIISR Representative
Head of Division
Research Division
Department of Innovation, Industry, Science and Research
GPO Box 9839
Canberra ACT 2601
OR
compacts@innovation.gov.au
10.7
10.7.1
Termination/Transition Plan
If for any reason, either or both of the Commonwealth or the University reasonably
believes that it is not possible to continue the operation of this Compact:
a. The Commonwealth and/or the University, as the case requires, will give the
other notice of that belief;
b. The Commonwealth and the University will negotiate in good faith to resolve
any issues in bringing this Compact to an end; and
c. The Commonwealth and the University will implement an agreed transition out
plan to bring the Compact to an end.
10.7.2
Notwithstanding clause 10.7.1, if:
a.
the University ceases to exist as a body corporate; or
b.
the University ceases to be approved as a higher education provider under
HESA,
the Commonwealth shall have the right to terminate this Compact immediately by
giving the University Representative written notice.
10.7.3
Except to the extent of any rights the University has under a Part 2-2 HESA Funding
Agreement contained in this Compact, the University is not entitled to compensation
for any loss, damage or claim arising from or in connection to the early termination of
this Compact by the Commonwealth.
10.7.4
These termination and transition out provisions are without prejudice to and do not
alter any other rights or obligations of the Commonwealth and the University
pursuant to their funding arrangements.
Page 54
10.7.5
10.8
Rights and obligations of the Commonwealth and the University under the Funding
Agreement at Attachment E that exist as at the date of termination of the Compact
survive the termination of the Compact
Order of precedence
10.8.1
In this Compact:
a. each HESA Funding Agreement contained in this Compact operates as a
separate agreement between the Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills, Jobs
and Workplace Relations and the University.
b. In the event of an inconsistency between the terms of a HESA Funding
Agreement contained in this Compact and the Operational Provisions in this
Part Five, the term of the HESA Funding Agreement will prevail for the
purpose of that agreement.
10.9
Counterparts
10.9.1
This Compact may be signed in any number of counterparts and all counterparts
together constitute one instrument.
10.10 Dictionary
10.10.1
In this Compact, unless the contrary intention appears:
‘Appropriation' means a law, or provision in a law, that authorises the expenditure of
money by the Commonwealth.
‘DEEWR’ means the Commonwealth Department of Education, Employment and
Workplace Relations or any successor.
‘Department’ means either or both of DEEWR or DIISR as the case requires.
‘DIISR’ means the Commonwealth Department of Innovation, Industry, Science and
Research or any successor.
‘Tertiary Education Minister’ means the Minister administering Part 2-2 of HESA.
‘HESA’ means the Higher Education Support Act 2003 and includes any subordinate
legislation or Ministerial determination made under that Act.
‘HESA Funding Agreement' means a funding agreement:
a.
that is made under section 30-25 of HESA by the Minister for Tertiary
Education, Skills, Jobs and Workplace Relations and the University for the
provision of a grant of funding to the University under Part 2-2 of HESA; and
b.
with which the University is required to comply under section 36-65 of HESA.
‘Institutional Performance Portfolio’ (IPP) is a report which provides an historical record of
a university's performance based on information provided by the university and an
analysis of the Higher Education Data Collections. An IPP will be prepared by the
Commonwealth for the University annually using the latest available data.
Page 55
‘Institutional Performance Portfolio Information Collection’ (IPPIC) is a set of
Commonwealth instructions requesting that universities provide a submission to the
Commonwealth, endorsed by the university's chief executive, that includes student, staff,
financial and research information needed for the preparation of an Institutional
Performance Portfolio for that university.
‘Minister’ means either or both of the Tertiary Education Minister and the Research
Minister.
‘Mission’ means the University’s Mission set out at Part One of this Compact as
amended in accordance with the variation provisions in this Compact from time to
time.
‘Research Minister’ means the Minister administering the Australian Research
Council Act 2001.
‘TEQSA’ means the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency.
‘University’ means The University of Melbourne ABN 84002705224
‘University’s Confidential Information’ means the information referred to at
Attachment C to this Compact as 'University Confidential Information' or that the
Commonwealth otherwise agrees in writing is 'University Confidential Information',
but does not include information that is or becomes public knowledge, except due to
non-compliance with this Compact.
Page 56
SIGNED for and on behalf of the UNIVERSITY OF MELBOURNE
by
……………………………………………………..
Signature
Professor Glyn Davis
Vice-Chancellor
In the Presence of:
.....................................................................................
WITNESS
.....................................................................................
Full name and occupation or profession of witness (Please print)
SIGNED for and on behalf of
THE COMMONWEALTH OF AUSTRALIA
by
……………………………………………………..
Signature
David de Carvalho
the Group Manager
of Higher Education Group
of the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations
a Delegate of the Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills, Jobs and Workplace Relations
In the Presence of:
.....................................................................................
WITNESS
.....................................................................................
Full name and occupation or profession of witness (Please print)
SIGNED for and on behalf of
THE COMMONWEALTH OF AUSTRALIA
by
……………………………………………………..
Signature
Anne Baly
the Head
of Research Division
of the Department of Innovation, Industry, Science and Research
a Delegate of the Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research
In the Presence of:
.....................................................................................
WITNESS
.....................................................................................
Full name and occupation or profession of witness (Please print)
Page 57
ATTACHMENT A
INDICATIVE LIST OF COMMONWEALTH FUNDING PROVIDED TO THE
UNIVERSITY BY DEEWR AND RELEVANT TO THE COMPACT
DEEWR provides a range of funding to the University under various legislative and/or
contractual funding arrangements. The following is an indicative list of that funding. The
table will be updated from time to time.
Funding to be delivered during the Compact ($m)
2011
Commonwealth Grant Scheme
-
Cluster funding
-
Regional loading
0.045
-
Enabling loading
0.073
-
Medical student loading
0.987
-
Transitional loading (Maths/Science)
9.730
-
Advance payment for estimated over enrolment
4.320
-
Facilitation Funding
4.467
209.671
Higher Education Partnerships and Participation Program
-
Participation component
1.853
-
Partnership component
0.356
Disability Support Program
-
Additional support for students with disabilities
Not Yet Known
-
Performance based funding
Not Yet Known
Indigenous Support Program
0.724
Diversity and Structural Adjustment Fund
Commonwealth Scholarships Program
4.242
2.465
Education Investment Fund
26.285*
National Institutes Funding
2.0
Page 58
ATTACHMENT B: LIST OF COMMONWEALTH FUNDING PROVIDED TO THE UNIVERSITY BY DIISR
AND RELEVANT TO THE COMPACT
The University of Melbourne – Research Block Grant Funding for 2011
Research Training Scheme (RTS)
$70,578,754
Australian Postgraduate Awards (APA)
$22,136,422
International Postgraduate Research Scholarships (IPRS)
$2,248,441
Research Infrastructure Block Grants Scheme (RIBG)
$30,361,619
Joint Research Engagement (JRE)
$37,573,669
Commercialisation Training Program (CTS)
$782,711
Sustainable Research Excellence (SRE) Base
$3,360,756
Sustainable Research Excellence (SRE) Threshold 1
$472,100
Sustainable Research Excellence (SRE) Threshold 2
$13,559,948
The University of Melbourne – Collaborative Research Networks Funding for 2011
Collaborative Research Networks (CRN)
$0
Page 59
ATTACHMENT C
UNIVERSITY CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION
Not applicable.
Page 60
ATTACHMENT D
TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF PART 2-2 HESA FUNDING AGREEMENT FOR
THE PROVISION OF PERFORMANCE FUNDING
Terms and Conditions of Funding Agreement between the Commonwealth and the University
for the purposes of grants in respect of Performance Funding under section 30-25 of HESA
1.
2.
3.
4.
Agreement
1.1
Pursuant to clause 4.13 of the Compact, section 4 of the Compact together with the
terms and conditions in this Attachment D of the Compact constitute the HESA
Funding Agreement entered into by the Minister or his or her delegate (on behalf of
the Commonwealth) with the University under section 30-25 of HESA, for the
provision by the Commonwealth of Performance Funding to the University.
1.2
These terms and conditions apply only to Performance Funding and do not apply to
any other agreement between the Commonwealth and the University entered into
for the purposes of section 30-25 of HESA or for the purposes of any other
legislative provision.
Eligibility
2.1
The University meets the requirements of subparagraph 30-1(1) (a)(i) or
subparagraph 30-1(1)(a)(ii) of HESA.
2.2
It is a precondition to funding being provided under this agreement that the
University does and will continue to meet the requirement in paragraph 30-1(1)(b) of
HESA in each of the Grant years during the term of this agreement.
2.3
Entering into this agreement is a requirement under paragraph 30-1(1)(c) of HESA
for a grant to be payable to the University under Part 2-2 of HESA for Performance
Funding.
Term and Grant years
3.1
The term of this agreement is the same as the term of the Compact.
3.2
This agreement is made in respect of the Grant years 2011, 2012 and 2013.
Conditions additional to the HESA
4.1
Subject to subsections 30-25 (2A) and 30-25 (2B) of HESA, this agreement
specifies conditions to which the grant is subject that are additional to the conditions
to which the grant is subject under Division 36 of HESA.
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5.
Publication
5.1
6.
The Compact, of which this agreement forms part, will be tabled in Parliament in
accordance with subsection 30-25(4) of HESA.
Preconditions to receiving Performance Funding
6.1
Facilitation Funding
As a condition of the Facilitation Funding component of Performance Funding, in
accordance with this agreement, the University must:
(a) inform the Commonwealth of strategies and goals for achieving the university’s
teaching and learning mission described under clause 4.7 of the university’s 2011-13
Compact; and
(b) agree to the performance targets relating to specific Commonwealth goals contained
in clause 4.14 of the 2011-2013 Compact.
6.2
Reward Funding
As a condition of the Reward Funding component of Performance Funding, in accordance
with this agreement, the University must:
(a) agree performance targets as outlined in clause 4.14 of their 2011-2013 Compact
agreement;
(b) supply performance data to the Commonwealth for all indicators as per the
requirements set out in section 2 of the Performance Funding Technical Guidelines;
and
(c) achieve the relevant excellence or improvement targets as outlined in clause 4.14 of
their 2011-2013 Compact agreement.
7.
University’s Grant Amount
7.1
Facilitation Funding
The University’s grant amount for the Facilitation Funding component of Performance
Funding will be calculated in accordance with the Commonwealth Grants Scheme
Guidelines Chapter 12 as in force from time to time during the term of this Agreement.
7.2
Reward Funding
The University’s grant amount for the Reward Funding component of Performance
Funding will be calculated in accordance with the Commonwealth Grant Scheme
Guidelines as in force from time to time during the term of this Agreement.
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7.3
Performance Funding Grant Amount
The University’s total grant amount for Performance Funding in each Grant year (that is,
the total of the amounts in that Grant year for Facilitation Funding and for Reward
Funding) will be the University’s ‘Performance Funding Grant Amount’ for the purposes of
Subsection 33-1(1A) of HESA.
8.
Payment of Grant Amounts
8.1
Facilitation Funding
Subject to the University’s compliance with this agreement and with HESA, the
Commonwealth will pay the Facilitation Funding Grant Amount to the University in
accordance with the following timeframes and conditions:
(a) Facilitation Funding will be paid to eligible universities fortnightly commencing in 2011
and ending in December 2013, with the amount to be paid as per the calculations
outlined in the Technical Guidelines.
(b) In accordance with section 164-5 of the Act, Facilitation Funding payments will be
paid in such a way as the Minister determines, and at such times as the Secretary
determines.
8.2
Reward Funding
Subject to the University’s compliance with this agreement and with HESA, the
Commonwealth will pay the Reward Funding Grant Amount to the University in
accordance with the following timeframes and conditions:
(a) Reward Funding will be paid to eligible universities in one instalment in the second
half of each of 2012 and 2013, with the amount to be paid as per the calculations
outlined in the Technical Guidelines.
(b) In accordance with section 164-5 of the Act, Reward Funding payments will be paid in
such a way as the Minister determines, and at such times as the Secretary
determines.
The University is not entitled to be paid any instalment of its Reward Funding Grant unless
and until the Commonwealth is satisfied that the requirements for paying that instalment
have been met.
9.
Waiver
9.1
If either party does not exercise (or delays in exercising) any rights under this
agreement, that failure or delay does not operate as a waiver of those rights.
9.2 Any waiver by either the Commonwealth or the University of any provision or right
under this Agreement:
(a) must be in writing signed by that party’s representative;
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(b) is effective only to the extent set out in the waiver; and
(c) does not prevent the further exercise of any right.
10.
Dispute resolution
10.1 Subject to clause 10.3, the parties agree not to commence any legal proceedings in
respect of any dispute arising under this agreement, which cannot be resolved by
informal discussion, until the procedure provided by this clause 19 has been used.
10.2 The parties agree that any dispute arising during the course of this agreement is
dealt with as follows:
(a) the party claiming that there is a dispute will send the other party a written notice
setting out the nature of the dispute;
(b) the parties will try to resolve the dispute through direct negotiation by persons who
they have given authority to resolve the dispute;
(c) the parties have 10 business days from the receipt of the notice to reach a resolution
or to agree that the dispute is to be submitted to mediation or some alternative dispute
resolution procedure; and
if:
(a) there is no resolution of the dispute;
(b) there is no agreement on submission of the dispute to mediation or some alternative
dispute resolution procedure; or
(c) there is a submission to mediation or some other form of alternative dispute resolution
procedure, but there is no resolution within 15 business days of the submission, or
extended time as the parties may agree in writing before the expiration of the
15 business days,
then, either party may commence legal proceedings.
10.3 This clause 10 does not apply if:
(a) either party commences legal proceedings for urgent interlocutory relief;
(b) action is taken by Us under clause 20; or
(c) an authority of the Commonwealth, a State or Territory is investigating a breach or
suspected breach of the law by the University.
10.4 Despite the existence of a dispute, both parties must (unless requested in writing by
the other party not to do so) continue to perform their obligations under this
agreement.
11.
Termination for default
11.1 The Commonwealth may immediately terminate this agreement by giving written
notice to the University of the termination if:
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12.
(a) the University fails to fulfil, or is in breach of any of its obligations under this
agreement, and does not rectify the omission or breach within 10 business days of
receiving a notice in writing from the Commonwealth to do so; or
(b) the University is unable to pay all its debts when they become due;
Notices
12.1 Notices under this Agreement must be sent to the addresses and in accordance with
the procedures set out at clause 10.6 of the Compact.
13.
Reports
13.1 The University must, during the term of this agreement, provide the Commonwealth
with the following reports by the due dates set out below:
(a) a report on the provision of performance data by 31 December of each year.
13.2 The University owns the intellectual property rights in the reports and grants to the
Commonwealth (or must arrange for the grant to the Commonwealth of) a
permanent, irrevocable, free and non-exclusive license (including a right of
sublicense) to use, publish or disclose the reports in any of the ways set out in
subclause 10.4.1 of the Compact.
14.
Applicable law and jurisdiction
14.1 The laws of the Australian Capital Territory apply to the interpretation of this
agreement.
14.2 The parties agree to submit to the non-exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of the
Australian Capital Territory and any courts which have jurisdiction to hear appeals
from any of those courts in respect to any dispute under this agreement.
15.
Entire agreement, variation and severance
15.1 This agreement records the entire agreement between the parties in relation to its
subject matter.
15.2 Except for action the Commonwealth is expressly authorised or required to take
elsewhere in this agreement or HESA, no variation of this agreement is binding
unless it is agreed in writing and signed by the parties.
15.3 If a court or tribunal says any provision of this agreement has no effect or interprets
a provision to reduce an obligation or right, this does not invalidate, or restrict the
operation of, any other provision.
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16.
Interpretation
16.1 Words used in this Part D that are defined in HESA or in the Commonwealth Grants
Scheme Guidelines have the same meaning in this Part D as they do in the
document in which they are defined.
16.2 In this Part D:
‘Compact’ means the Mission Based Compact between the Commonwealth and the University
of which this Attachment D forms part;
‘Grant year’ means a calendar year in respect of which the University has entered into this
agreement;
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ATTACHMENT E
PART 2-2 HESA FUNDING AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE COMMONWEALTH
AND THE UNIVERSITY FOR THE PROVISION OF THE COMMONWEALTH GRANTS
SCHEME FUNDING
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