We are pleased to release the first report in our new ACSES Data Insights Series, in which we examine the experiences of Australian university students with disability.
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Data Insights Series Report
Dear colleagues
We are pleased to announce the release of the first report in our new ACSES Data Insights Series—"Students with Disability in Australian Higher Education: An Overview".
This comprehensive report examines the experiences of students with disability across the sector, revealing that in 2022, 11.6% of undergraduate students reported having a disability.
These numbers vary across institutions, ranging from 5.2% to 20.3%. Of those who disclosed a disability, 47% reported mental health conditions, 27.3% cited medical conditions, and 18.2% identified other forms of disability.
In addition, the 2023 higher education equity statistics from the Department of Education have now been released, which, for the first time, include cohort completion rates for students with disability. This development marks an important step in understanding and addressing equity within higher education.
Stay tuned for more data insights into student equity in Australian higher education.
In other news...
ACSES attends Aurora Perth
Earlier this month, ACSES Executive Director Professor Shamit Saggar joined an Aurora Perth event organised by Advance HE, where he spoke about the future of higher education in the Australian context.
Aurora is Advance HE's leadership development initiative for women. It brings together leadership experts, higher education providers, and research institutes to take positive action to address the under-representation of women in leadership positions in the sector.
Data Updates
Updated Interactive Data Tool
We have updated our Interactive Data Tool with 2022 data, now including data on students who are First in Family. We have also introduced aggregated groupings ‘All Equity Students’ and ‘Non-Equity Students’, which encompass the five major groupings of Low SES Students, First Nations Australian Students, Students from Remote and Regional Australia, and Students with Disability. Please note that we are awaiting confirmation of the 2022 Low SES student data, therefore, these data are not yet shown (this also affects the equity and non-equity groupings).
Student Equity Data Guides
We have also released two Student Equity Data Guides - ‘Higher Education Institutions in Australia' and ‘Defining Equity Groups’. We hope these guides, and the next to follow (‘Equity Performance Measures’ and ‘Selecting and Using Equity Reference Values’) can help demystify equity data and provide clarity and practical guidance for stakeholders across the sector. You can find the Student Equity Data Guides and other upcoming data related resources in the Data Resources Hub on our website.
LAST CALL | Fellowships applications deadline approaching
We are currently accepting applications for our Fellowship programs:
The 2025 rounds of our First Nations and Equity Fellowship programs will provide fully-funded annual fellowships for researchers and practitioners in higher education, to complete a project that will inform an area of Australian higher education practice and policy in relation to domestic students, via a combination of research, translation, best practice implementation, evaluation, and knowledge transfer.
Applications are open until 4pm (AWST) on Friday, 27 September 2024.
More information about each program – including application packs, guidelines, eligibility and selection criteria – is available on our Grants & Fellowships page.
Equity Frontiers Program: Funding and support for your trials
In response to feedback from the sector, our Equity Frontiers funding scheme has been redesigned to make it easier for equity practitioners to access support to run trials on their nominated equity programs or activities. Key changes are removing fixed deadlines so people can apply for funding at any time, and introducing an Expression of Interest stage to help applicants work through their approach and, if required, seek support in designing and running the trial.
We are accepting Expressions of Interest now. You can find the Equity Frontiers Program Guidelines and an Expression of Interest template for download on the ACSES website.
Upcoming events
ACSES Fellowship Panel Discussion
There’s still time to join ACSES Fellows' upcoming online event which will bring together experts and changemakers to discuss equity as a shared responsibility in higher education.
Join Bret Stephenson, Amani Bell, Tracy Woodroffe, Peter Anderson, Darren Garvey, and Cathy Stone for rich, insightful, and forward-thinking conversations.
Date: 24 September 2024 | Time: 10.00 am – 11.00 am
(AEDT)
Location: Online
Find out more and register here.
Trials for Equity: A Workshop (QLD)
ACSES is delivering a three-hour workshop on Wednesday, 9 October 2024. In this workshop, Dr Patricia Vermillion Peirce will facilitate a discussion with equity practitioners, learning about the equity practices that are currently underway across Queensland universities, and identifying those programs that may be of greatest value to trial for the benefit of our equity cohorts.
To explore the potential opportunity to undertake an ethical trial, ACSES will also workshop some challenging concepts relevant to trials.
Date: 9 October 2024 | Time: 9.30 am – 12.30 pm (AEDT)
Location: Griffith University, South Brisbane
Find out more and register here.
Equity within the Academy: Rethinking the 'why' of higher education
Tune in for a thought-provoking talk by Distinguished Professor and Dean at Charles Sturt University Sarah O'Shea, who will explore the complex challenges of embedding equity in Australian higher education, as highlighted by the recent Accord report, and question the very purpose of universities in light of the current ambitious equity policy agenda.
Date: 23 October 2024 | Time: 6.00 pm – 7.00pm (AEDT)
Location: Online and Charles Sturt University, Dubbo campus
Find out more and register here.
Future Solutions for Higher Education Conference
We are delighted to be able to support HEDx in their endeavour to create inspiring and innovative conferences for the higher education sector. Next up is the Future Solutions for Higher Education Conference, held at The University of Queensland, where ACSES Executive Director Shamit Saggar and Research and Policy Program Director Ian Li will join the impressive line-up of speakers.
Date: 31 October 2024 | Time: 9.00 am – 4.30pm
Location: The University of Queensland, St Lucia Campus
Find out more and register here.
ESA Webinar | Labour market outcomes of graduates in economics
Hosted by the Economic Society of Australia (NSW), Professor Ian Li will discuss the labour market outcomes of graduates in economics in Australia. This online event will discuss key insights presented in the economic paper on the Labour Market Outcomes of Graduates in Economics in Australia. The webinar examines the strong employment prospects for graduates in economics after graduation, in terms of full-time employment and salaries.
Date: 6 November 2024 | Time: 12.00 pm – 1.00pm AEDT
Location: Online
Find out more and register here.
ACSES Equity Hub: A Community of Practice for Student Equity Evaluation
The Australian Centre for Student Equity and Success (ACSES) invites you to the Equity Hub Community of Practice (CoP), which will be held in-person and online on 18 November at Waipapa Taumata Rau (The University of Auckland, New Zealand).
Equity Hub CoP aims to bring HEPPP-funded program managers and staff together to strengthen cross-institutional student equity practitioner networks; and provide an opportunity for practitioners to share their lessons learned and best practices on evaluation in the context of SEHEEF.
Date: 18 November 2024 | Time: 2.00 pm – 5.00pm NZDT
Location: The University of Auckland, New Zealand
Find out more and register here.
ACSES in the News
