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Why saying yes to the Uni’s city move is good for education and good for Hobart

University of Tasmania Chancellor Alison Watkins is the face of a new campaign supporting the city move. Here she explains why.

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A little over 40 years ago, as I finished school, I was weighing up a decision about my future.

I grew up on a farm in Tasmania and university wasn’t an automatic thing in my family – neither of my parents went to university.

There were two options I was considering: a Bachelor of Commerce at the University of Tasmania, or Agricultural College on the mainland. I chose Tasmania.

It was the right choice. The education I received and the experience I had at the University of Tasmania changed my life, opening the door to a wonderful career. It was also where I met my husband.

Chancellor Alison Watkins
University of Tasmania Chancellor Alison Watkins.

Last year, after finishing my executive career, I had another decision to make. Should I put myself forward for the role of Chancellor of the University of Tasmania?

Clearly, I chose to do just that, and I am pleased and proud I got the job. It was the University’s mission that was the deciding factor for me. At the heart of the University’s strategy, the thing that drives everything it does, is the mission to do good for Tasmania and, from Tasmania, to do good for the world.

I found this a clear and inspiring mission, powerful in its simplicity. As Chancellor of the University of Tasmania, I want to play my part in making it happen.

We are a university. For us, doing good for Tasmania means providing the best possible education and research, not just now, but for future generations. And it means making sure Tasmanians can access that education and research.

The University’s consolidation in Hobart’s CBD, announced in 2019, is about helping us achieve those things.

I am a passionate supporter of the move – with my heart and head. It is important to our strategy, and to our future. That’s why you will see and hear me explaining the move and seeking the community’s support over the coming weeks and months.

In the 40 years between when I chose to study at the University of Tasmania and when I accepted the role of Chancellor, the world has changed.

Government funding for university students has fallen by two thirds. Technology – and our understanding of teaching best practice – has changed how students learn.

For me and my Christ College friends, the only way to learn from a lecture was to attend the lecture. If you missed it, you had to borrow someone’s notes and hope they captured all the important bits. Now, students can get that information online when and where it suits them.

That’s important because today’s students are not like they once were. Less than 20 percent of commencing students at the University are school leavers. The average age of our cohort is 32, and 80 percent are working while they study.

Students today need flexibility. They want education they can fit into busy lives. They want lifelong learning they can access when and for how long they need it.

While online options are important, we remain an on-campus university. Our focus, like universities around the country, is on providing in person learning through small group activities – like tutorials, workshops, practicals, labs, seminars, field trips and work integrated learning – because that’s the best way to teach.

Our current campus at Sandy Bay does not support the evolution in education Tasmanian students need. Buildings are out-of-date, inefficient and inaccessible for many people. We must invest in new infrastructure for our students and staff in southern Tasmania, just as we are doing, together with local, state and federal governments, in Burnie and Launceston.

Relocating into the Hobart CBD will deliver state-of-the-art facilities for students and staff and secure the University’s financial future. It will also reconnect our university community. Already, 4 in 10 Hobart-based students study in the city. We are fragmented now; the move will bring us back together with 90 percent of students within a 10-minute walk of our new campus heart.

In line with our mission, consolidating in the city will also benefit Tasmania, especially Hobart.

We will be directly injecting hundreds of millions of dollars into the local economy and supporting hundreds of jobs during construction. Staff and students will add vibrancy and support local businesses, while new parks will help green the city. All this with a campus that brings empty buildings and deserted sites to life in a total area comprising just four percent of the CBD.

With staff and students based in the city driving less, the move will reduce Hobart traffic by hundreds of cars per day.

Most importantly, a university in the city is a university that is more accessible to more Tasmanians. It is easier to get to, it makes it easier to balance study and work, and it is easier for Tasmanians to see it as somewhere they are welcome and where they belong as much as anyone else.

Education changed my life. Access to high quality education is something everyone needs and deserves. Talent is equally distributed, but opportunity is not. We must do everything we can to change that in Tasmania.

I think this move is exciting. I think it is important for our future and does good for Tasmania. I support it, the University Council supports it, and I am asking the community to support it.

Alison Watkins AM is the Chancellor of the University of Tasmania, an alumna of the university, a Board Member of the Reserve Bank of Australia, Director of CSL Limited, Wesfarmers Limited and a former Group Managing Director of Coca Cola Amatil Limited.