University of Tasmania, Australia

Regional Campuses and the Future Skills Needs of Regions

The Institute for Regional Development is currently undertaking a major project on ‘The New Regional Campus’. This project seeks to understand the role that regional university campuses may potentially play in regional development. As part of this larger project, we would welcome a PhD project exploring the interface between regional campus offerings (teaching and research) and the changing skills needs of regions. While ‘skills’ have traditionally been the domain of technical and vocational institutions, the 21^st century economy is increasingly requiring a new mix of conceptual, research, management and communication skills that universities are, in theory, well equipped to offer. This project will explore regional industries’ perceptions of the need for ‘new economy’ skills and the role of regional campuses in meeting these skills needs.