Blog
Comparing uni grades: is a distinction always a distinction?
Flickr/Alan Rampton Photography, CC BY-SA How can students be sure their high distinction would be a high distinction at any other university? This article published online in The Conversation is interesting reading for tertiary students who are interested in the comparability of courses. Perhaps the biggest concern for students in higher education aside from the cost […]
Tertiary Deregulation in Australia
The issue of government deregulation of tertiary fees is now a topic of concern and conversation in our community. We will not know whether the Senate will pass this bill, in full, until October. So watch this space! The discussion around possible deregulation of tertiary fees is speculative. If this goes ahead it is possible […]
Career Decisions one Week at a Time
I have re-blogged this article from The Age Monday 4 August 2014, Education supplement. I strongly believe in the merits of work-experience programs in schools. In year 10, when students are beginning some career exploration work, it is of great benefit to work with then on resume writing, interview techniques and job search skills, and […]
HECS upon you: NATSEM models the real impact of higher uni fees
By Ben Phillips, University of Canberra Various organisations have modelled the likely fees and debts students are likely to face in a deregulated environment since the release of the budget last month. The National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU), the Greens, education minister Christopher Pyne’s office and Universities Australia have all released modelling on likely outcomes. […]
Text-messaging isn’t, like, ruining young people’s grammar
I’m reblogging an article that I saw in The Conversation this weekend. I am guilty of worrying about my daughters’ use of unconventional abbreviation of words when they’re texting, however it did not occur to me that this might translate into poor spelling or a lack of adherence to grammatical conventions in their academic essays. […]
Providing advice to Year 10 students: scaling and the ATAR
This blog is from VTAC May 20, 2014 • Helping year 10 students make study choicesAll VCE studies are treated equally in the calculation of the ATAR The ATAR represents a students’ overall performance in their VCE studies, not just in one or two studies. In order to make sure that all studies are treated […]
Correction from ‘The Conversation’ re Student Loans
Academic rigour, journalistic flair Today’s newsletter sponsored by the C20 Summit. Melbourne 2014. EDITOR’S NOTE Yesterday we removed two articles from our website: “Modelling shows more students face lifetime debt under deregulated fees” and “Students could be in debt for the rest of their lives”.Both were removed due to a significant error in the modelling on […]
Modelling shows more students face lifetime debt under deregulated fees
Here’s a report from The Conversation highlighting the likely outcomes of the Federal Government’s proposals regarding educational funding in Australia. Interestingly it is believed that such changes may initiate some investigation on the part of students and parents, into international university courses as these become more financially competitive. Watch this space. Debtors prison: under the […]
Can you change your life in 50 coffees?
I love the idea of calling someone up and suggesting a different coffee shop around Melbourne to meet for a chat about life, politics (very pertinent topic in Australia in light of the proposed changes to funding arrangements, for tertiary education), and career change. Transitions can be hard to navigate. They can be thrown […]