University of Tasmania, Australia

Open to Talent

Summary of Outcomes: Consultation Round One

Following the release of the Open to Talent Discussion Paper in early August, a community wide conversation was held to explore the possibilities for UTAS over the next ten years.  During this period, over 950 students and 120 staff and community members accessed an online survey to share their ideas.  In addition, approximately 200 staff members attended ‘Our Plan’ workshops in Burnie, Launceston, Sydney and Hobart to discuss their vision for UTAS in 2022. The outcomes of this conversation provide a foundation for the development of Open to Talent, UTAS’s new strategic plan.

While there was a very wide range of views and ideas, there were some strong and consistent themes expressed. The first of these themes was a very positive sense of the importance and potential value to UTAS of its unique geographic, environmental and social location. This is not a new theme, but there was a clear sense that the University could do more to realise the potential of its place in an island State with a relatively small population, an extraordinary history, and a marine and terrestrial environment of world significance at the gateway to the southern ocean and Antarctica. The University’s essential connections to its location were seen as defining characteristics for UTAS on the world stage and as potential sources of distinction and strength permeating its teaching and research.

Closely related to this theme was a strong recognition of the challenges and opportunities inherent in the position of UTAS as the one university in Tasmania. Again this is not a new theme, but there was a sense that there would be substantial mutual benefits to the University and the State in closer engagement. Contributors to the consultations referred to the potential for UTAS to be a university genuinely embedded in its community, providing a forum for the public exploration of ideas and issues and a physical location for the cultural and intellectual life of the community. Many within the University suggested that UTAS could do more to engage productively with government and industry in Tasmania, and there was a reciprocal keenness from external stakeholders for this to occur. Stronger engagement with government, industry and community in Tasmania was promoted not only for its mutual benefits within the State, but also for its potential to extend and strengthen the platform from which UTAS can engage with the rest of Australia and the world.

In turn this theme of closer engagement with the State was closely linked to an emphasis on the role of UTAS in raising educational aspirations, participation rates and outcomes in Tasmania. Contributors to the discussion were conscious of Tasmania’s relatively low levels of post-compulsory educational participation and attainment and argued that UTAS could and should play a stronger part in promoting and providing access to tertiary education in the State. At the same time there was recognition of the challenges involved in achieving successful outcomes for students from diverse backgrounds, and of the potential tension between this objective and the more ‘traditional’ university focus on the education of students with the best academic preparation.

There was a strong focus on the nature of our teaching and research and in particular on the importance of developing more multidisciplinary approaches. This was based on awareness that much of the world’s leading edge research is now conducted in large, multidisciplinary teams focused on complex, multi-dimensional issues and that multidisciplinary teaching and curriculum breadth are required to prepare well rounded graduates able to contribute effectively in the complex modern world. This focus was also motivated in part by a sense of frustration with obstacles in the culture, structures, and ways of operating within UTAS that are perceived to militate against multidisciplinary approaches.

A specific example of a multidisciplinary issue emerged in calls for an institutional focus on sustainability. This was seen as an issue of global significance and an area of particular relevance to UTAS given the unique characteristics of its location. It was argued that UTAS could become a world leading university in this field through a comprehensive approach to issues of sustainability in its teaching, research and operations.

Both students and staff highlighted the importance of the student experience and the potential for UTAS to provide a more distinctive, higher quality, and more actively engaged experience for its students. This was seen as requiring appropriate academic preparation and student support programs, especially for first year students, opportunities for students to develop and apply their knowledge in the context of the University’s unique location, and a lively and vibrant student life.

Related to the student experience, but also a prominent theme more broadly, was an emphasis on the need to re-energise our campuses. This goes to a range of issues, including the nature and quality of the University’s physical and IT infrastructure and its fitness for purpose for future approaches to teaching and research, the location of our campuses and their ‘openness’ to the community, the extent of dispersion of the student and staff population between campuses, the availability of student accommodation on or near campus, and the particular identity of each campus within the University as a whole.

All of these themes were set in the context of a broad reiteration of the importance for UTAS of continuing its commitment to the pursuit of excellence in teaching and research. This fundamental theme had multiple dimensions including an emphasis on attracting and retaining the best staff, developing the right culture, and investing in high quality infrastructure. In relation to teaching and learning there was particular interest in strengthening the University’s capabilities in blended and on-line teaching and learning, making the most of new developments in information and communication technology to enhance the learning experience of all UTAS students. In relation to research there was some concern that there could be a risk of complacency arising from the generally solid research performance of the University in recent years, and a corresponding recognition that this risk must be avoided if UTAS is to improve its position in the intensely competitive and increasingly quality-focussed national and international higher education research environment.