Students at the University of Melbourne are facing uncertainty as lecturers and tutors take part in a national strike and week-long teaching ban, with all but two classes cancelled. Saria Ratnam, a bachelor of arts student, writes that the industrial action, near the end of semester, throws final assessments and grades into doubt, with speculation about whether classes will resume or if last Friday was the last day on campus for the year.
Broader instability in Australian tertiary education
Ratnam notes that this instability is not new and extends beyond her university. In recent years, Australian tertiary education has faced sharp and uneven fee hikes under the job-ready graduates scheme, controversy over the management of pro-Palestine protests, and difficulty regulating the use of AI.
She describes the situation as a watershed moment, with the relationship between universities and their students and staff reaching an untenable level of conflict. Course fees continue to rise while education quality decreases, and staff face uncertain casual contracts, low wages, and a lack of rights protection.
Impact on students and staff
Ratnam expresses frustration at the $2,100 price tag on each subject, reduced to 2.5 contact hours a week, and the cutting of subjects from her degree each year. Assignments are becoming increasingly simple, designed to be AI-proof rather than to test intellect.
The treatment of staff is worsening education quality. The Atlantic previously reported on the correlation between the casualisation of tertiary staff and grade inflation, as staff on precarious contracts feel pressure to design easy assignments and hand out good grades to secure future employment.
Government policy and future outlook
Ratnam attributes the combination of issues to government and university executives, citing years of federal policy missteps, including a lack of reform to protect staff from casualisation and steep fee increases under the job-ready graduates scheme. A proposed Coalition cut to international student intake would leave a significant gap in university revenue, likely worsening subject and staff cuts.
She calls for the government to scrap the job-ready graduates scheme, overhaul laws governing tertiary employment, and for universities to reinstate staff, subjects, contact hours, and assessments. If not, she warns, they will engineer the extinction of the tertiary system itself.
