Annual Report 2001

PLANNING FOR OUR FUTURE

Building on a planning framework which began in 1995, the University embarked in 2001 on a process aimed at developing a more focussed and explicit commitment to agreed objectives for the next five years and beyond. The Flinders Strategic Priorities and Future Directions 2001-2005 was developed as a result of that process. The following is a summary of that document.

OVERVIEW

Flinders University, 1995-2000

Between 1995 and 1997, the University conducted an extended review and planning process aimed at clarifying institutional aims and objectives, and policy directions. The result was a set of documents which together provided a broad strategic framework for the University:

the Statement of Intent which contains a set of fundamental principles and aspirations for Flinders and which is the basis for policy and planning in the University;
the Education and Research Policy which outlines the characteristics, philosophies and principles which underpin education and research at Flinders;
the Key Accountability Processes and Measures which Flinders uses to assess performance against objectives.

Associated with this planning process were a number of cognate initiatives aimed at improving efficiencies, ensuring quality and implementing the objectives as defined in the strategic documents. These initiatives included reviews of governance and decision-making structures and the development of a quality assurance process for reviewing performance.

From 1997 on, the University embarked on a series of major developments designed to increase our capacity for income generation from non-government sources. The international student program, both on- and off-shore, was expanded. Education alliances with partners in Australia and overseas were pursued. Research effort was reorganised into four Flinders Institutes which are university-wide, broadly based and thematic.

The University also continued to develop new and innovative courses in response to community expectations and demand. This helped to strengthen the position of the University in terms of marketing and reputation, particularly within South Australia but also more widely. The period 1995-2000 was one of intense activity for the University. The initiatives outlined above have positioned the University well to cope with current and future challenges in attracting and retaining students, in responding to external organisations and community needs, in research and research training, in internationalisation, and in quality management. However, it has become increasingly clear that the overall pace and scale of change experienced over the past five years cannot be sustained if the University is to continue to flourish in the next period. What is required is a more sharply defined and focussed set of priorities and directions which take into account both Flinders' principal distinctive characteristics and achievements to date, together with opportunities and challenges in a constantly changing external environment.

Flinders University's Statement of Intent, which was first adopted in 1997 and later updated, is the explicit formulation of the University's fundamental guiding philosophy. As such, it is the basis upon which the process for setting priorities and future directions must rest.

Flinders University 2001 - 2005

In developing the Flinders Strategic Priorities and Future Directions 2001-2005, the aim has been to establish a broad framework, building on an agreed set of distinctive characteristics and current strengths, as a basis for determining where the University should direct its energies and resources and against which new activities or initiatives could be assessed. This plan comprises strategic priorities and future directions for the University overall and for the core areas of operation (education, research and international activities) for the period 2001-2005. It identifies organisational, resource and policy implications, including staff-related issues, with respect to the internal functioning of the University, and recognises the key role in all areas of activity of partnerships and collaborations with external organisations and different communities. It is designed to be a broad statement about Flinders University as a whole for both internal and external audiences.

Flinders' distinctive characteristics

The following have been identified as key characteristics of Flinders which should underpin the development of strategic priorities and future directions:

an internally cohesive university, which combines a participatory mode of governance with effective and responsible leadership, and with a sense of community characterised by a regard for the well being of students and staff and a commitment to equity, diversity and cultural inclusivity;
an outward-looking university which seeks out, listens to, takes seriously and meets wherever possible the needs of the multiple external communities that have expectations of universities generally and of Flinders in particular;
a university of academic breadth, depth and high quality which supports both disciplinary specialities and cross-disciplinary collaborations in education and research, encourages innovation and applies a future oriented critical perspective to all its current and proposed new activities.

The University in 2005

Flinders will be continuing to function successfully as a single university within the Australian higher education system.
We will have a recognised leadership position within the higher education sector and more broadly in key fields where we have established the distinctiveness, quality and relevance of our education and research.
Flinders will have increased its income utilising a greater pool of income sources, and a higher proportion of income deriving from non-government sources.
We will have further developed and strengthened our education, research and international activities in areas where the University has made strategic commitments based on recognised academic capability, specialist expertise, established institutional reputation, and/or competitive advantage.
We will have moved progressively towards a closer articulation between the University's priority areas of education and those of research, with a concomitant matching of resources to the priority areas in education, research and higher degree research studies.
Teaching and research will have a stronger international orientation, and staff will be more skilled at teaching and supervising international students.
We will have demonstrated our commitment to being a Ôconnected' university by generally consolidating and expanding our collaborations and affiliations, for the advancement of our educational, research and international activities, with a range of state, national and international organisations, including other universities, industry, governments and various external communities.
We will have established closer and stronger links with a selected number of particular organisations for specific purposes (eg Australian and overseas universities, industry bodies and businesses, local government in key regions, community agencies, TAFE institutes and schools).
We will have achieved a higher level of cross-cultural, indigenous and international knowledge and understanding both in our academic activities and in the University community.
Flinders staff will have had access to an expanding range of professional development and training opportunities to assist them to work effectively in the ever-changing higher education environment.
We will have done the best we can to maintain and where feasible improve the facilities, services, policies and practices, technical and social support (including ICT infrastructure), and other provisions to meet the requirements of our staff and students, within resource constraints.

Research

The majority of supported and publicly recognised research activity will be focussed in a relatively small number of areas Ð maybe no more than 20 across the University. Each of these areas will be well-known nationally and internationally, where appropriate, not just within narrow specialist circles, but also within external organisations with interests in the relevant areas.
The majority of those courses which distinguish Flinders University in the education marketplace in 2005 will have some association with an area of research focus Ð new successful courses may have arisen out of areas of research focus, or it may be that courses were introduced first and that this then led to the strengthening of research in the corresponding area.
The overwhelming majority of Flinders University academic staff will be active in research, as demonstrated by publications, research grants and research higher degree student completions; for most, this will mean working in research teams of various sizes, with internal and external collaborations, and involving postdoctoral fellows, research assistants and research higher degree students.
A significant fraction of the research higher degree scholarship stipends at Flinders University will be supported by funds other than the Australian Postgraduate Award and Flinders University schemes.
The Flinders Institutes, through their constituent centres and other research related activities, will attract sufficient external income to support their own staffing costs and to provide a surplus for discretionary investment in research.
The bulk of this income for Institutes will come from infrastructure charges on research contracts and other activities, and from commercialisation of intellectual property derived from research.
The Institutes and the Faculties will jointly have identified ways in which external supporters of research can contribute to the basic research infrastructure of the university, including academic staff salaries.
Changes in the nature and focus of research activity in the University will be reflected in appropriate policies and procedures, including those relating to appointment, promotion and professional development.

Education

Flinders will have a balanced, more focussed suite of undergraduate programs related to areas of student, employer and community demand, academic strength, strategic research investment and comparative advantage.
We will have a transparent process to evaluate and justify the continuation of each of our education programs in the context of the University's profile, external demand and resource availability.
We will have maintained excellent national rankings in student satisfaction, generic skills and good teaching.
All academic staff and relevant general staff will be trained and competent in educational approaches and technologies appropriate for the changing environment, including those that are web-based.
We will have achieved a high degree of integration of ICT infrastructure, led by academic criteria.
Flexible delivery will be embedded within all postgraduate courses and within all identified undergraduate courses, and a web presence will be available in all topics.
We will offer at least 6 new targeted professional development postgraduate courses available flexibly for the national and international market.
Flinders will have further formalised its partnerships with other educational institutions, industry and the professions, with outcomes that clearly benefit the students.
We will have the Australian Science and Mathematics School on campus, which will be recognised nationally and internationally for its innovation in senior school science and mathematics education.
Policy improvements that facilitate credit transfer, professional placement, international delivery and quality assurance will be in place.
We will have a wider range of well-supported professional placement locations in metropolitan, regional and rural areas for students across a range of courses.
We will have increased postgraduate coursework students by 25% and research higher degree students by 20% in areas that draw on academic capabilities of staff and that complement areas of research investment.
We will have developed further our relationships with TAFE in the areas of credit transfer, joint programs and other initiatives to support life-long education and to provide opportunities to students from a variety of backgrounds.

International

Flinders will be a more internationally oriented university with greater opportunities for staff and students to participate in international activities.
The University will have a strong international profile and presence in the global higher education system.
Flinders will have developed additional strategic alliances with significant international universities.
The combined numbers of Flinders international students will total 2,600 in 2005, compared with around 1,200 in 2001.
Flinders' international students in Adelaide will number 1,800 and represent about 15% of all students on campus; the proportion is currently around 10%.
Off-shore international students will have grown to about 800.
About 100 Flinders students will go abroad on exchange programs each year, and 100 international exchange students will come to Flinders each year.
Flinders will have a multi-cultural campus environment which is supportive of the needs of our culturally diverse students and staff.