Deakin University

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Deakin University
Deakin University Logo
Established: 1974
Type: Public
Chancellor: David M. Morgan
Vice-Chancellor: Prof. Sally Walker
Faculty: 1,170 (2006)
Staff: 2,592 (2006)
Students: 32,374 (2006)
Undergraduates: 23,568 (2006)
Postgraduates: 8,171 (2006)
Location: Burwood, Toorak, Geelong, Warrnambool, Victoria, Australia
Campus: Suburban and Regional
Affiliations: Australian National Business Schools (ANBS) Limited,[1] ASAIHL
Website: www.deakin.edu.au
Source: Deakin Pocket Statistics

Deakin University is an Australian public university with around 32,000 students studying as of 2004. It has campuses in Geelong, Melbourne, and Warrnambool, Victoria. It was named after Alfred Deakin, Australia's second Prime Minister.

Contents

[edit] History

Deakin University is a commissioned Victorian university. Its establishment was the result of the efforts of the Fourth University Commission which was created by the State Government of Victoria in 1973 to establish Victoria's fourth university in regional Victoria. Three locations at Ballarat, Bendigo and Geelong were considered.

In its report on 14 December 1973, the Federal Government's Australian Universities Commission recommended that a university be established at Geelong. This led to the establishment of Deakin University as a university in 1974, by an Act of Parliament referred to as the DEAKIN UNIVERSITY ACT 1974. Act No. 8610/1974.[2][3] Ballarat and Bendigo became independent Colleges of Advanced Education.

The three other commissioned Victorian universities that preceded Deakin University were: The University of Melbourne (1853), Monash University (1958), and LaTrobe University (1964).

Upon establishment, Deakin absorbed the Geelong campus of the then State College of Victoria and adopted several of the more academic subject areas of the independent Gordon Institute of Technology (now the Gordon Institute of TAFE), which began concentrating on vocational education. Deakin enrolled its first students at its Waurn Ponds campus in 1977.

Deakin remained a single campus university for approximately fifteen years until the Federal Government's Dawkins Revolution of higher education in the late 1980s came into effect. As a result, Deakin became a larger university by merging with the Warrnambool Institute of Advanced Education in August 1990 and most of Victoria College, Melbourne in December 1991.

In the 1980s and early 1990s, debate ensued in Geelong about the fate of the city's historic waterfront woolstores, which were dilapidated amidst an area which was undergoing major development.[citation needed] Some buildings were demolished despite a community outcry, and the fate of the remaining buildings was unclear until Deakin University acquired the site for a sixth campus. Major renovations took place over several years, and in 1997, the Woolstores campus (now the Geelong Waterfront campus) opened.

The result of the developments created a large multi-campus university spanning 300 kilometres covering six campuses in the cities of Melbourne (Burwood, "Rusden" (Clayton) and "Toorak" (Malvern)), Geelong (Waurn Ponds and Geelong Waterfront) and Warrnambool.

In the early 2000s, the university decided to close the Rusden campus, which held mainly the Environmental Science Department. The campus was progressively closed between 2001 and 2003, with students and courses relocated to the extensively redeveloped Burwood campus. Rusden's buildings have been converted into student accommodation and now forms part of Monash University's Clayton campus.

In 2007, the Toorak Campus in Malvern was closed and sold. Its courses were moved to the Burwood campus.

[edit] Campuses

[edit] Waurn Ponds

The original campus of Deakin University is located in the regional city of Geelong in the suburb of Waurn Ponds on a 365 hectare site, adjacent to Marcus Oldham Farm Management College. Located an hour away from Melbourne, it has over 1,000 staff and over 13,500 students with more than 9000 studying in the off-campus mode.

The campus offers programs in Arts, Biotechnology, Commerce, Communication and Media, Computer Science and Software Development, Engineering, Forensic Science, Games Design and Development, Government and Community Studies, Information Systems, Information Technology, International Studies, Law, Medicine, Public Relations, Psychology, Science, Social Work, Teaching and Wine Science.

Victoria's third medical school will be opened on the campus in 2008. The government's final decision was given by the Prime Minister of Australia - Mr John Howard who, in his speech delivered at the Victorian Liberal Party State Council in Melbourne on 8 April 2006, said: “I am particularly pleased to announce the medical school at Deakin University which will ensure the development of a strong rural and regional medical workforce throughout western Victorian region.” [4] The medical school will be known as Deakin Regional and Rural Medical School (DRRuMS) and will provide 120 Commonwealth supported places to successful applicants.

[edit] Geelong Waterfront

Deakin University Waterfront campus in Geelong, Victoria. Cunningham Pier is in the foreground.
Deakin University Waterfront campus in Geelong, Victoria. Cunningham Pier is in the foreground.

The Geelong Waterfront campus is located in a structurally superb set of refurbished woolstores directly opposite the city's waterfront on Corio Bay. The renovations, which were undertaken throughout the mid-1990s, retained most of the original internal elements. The Alfred Deakin Prime Ministerial Library[5] and Costa Hall, a world-class and state-of-the-art, 1500 seat concert auditorium are located here. Many public events take place in this Hall including graduation ceremonies and concerts.

Around 1500 on-campus students study programs in Architecture, Construction Management, Nursing and Occupational Therapy.

[edit] Burwood

Deakin University Burwood Campus buildings
Deakin University Burwood Campus buildings
Deakin University Burwood Campus central forecourt
Deakin University Burwood Campus central forecourt

The largest campus of the university is in Melbourne's eastern suburb of Burwood, on Burwood Highway. Located alongside Gardiner's Creek parklands between Princess Elizabeth Junior School for Deaf Children on the North-West border and Mount Scopus Memorial College on the East border, it is Deakin's metropolitan campus, attracting more than 13,500 undergraduate and postgraduate on-campus students. The campus is well served by public transport and is about 45 minutes by tram (route 75) from the city centre.

In terms of area, the campus is relatively small but the campus layout manages this well with many multi-story buildings. The campus is based around Mutant Way which acts as a giant centralised courtyard which is enjoyed by students on sunny days.

For several years, the campus has undergone major capital works with the construction of many buildings. Recent developments include the construction of Building P (Arts) and Building T (Science) for the students who transferred over from the closed Rusden campus. Recent works on a new building precinct, including a new gymnasium, classrooms, lecture theatre and food outlets has been opened.

In addition to these facilities, Motion.Lab, an $800,000[6] 24-camera motion capture studio, was opened in September 2006[7]. It is utilised by four courses offered by the University: Interactive Media, Contemporary Arts, Information Technology, and Multimedia Technology, but its commercial activities are managed by Melbourne based animation-house, Act3animation.

The campus offers programs in Arabic Studies, Arts, Biological Science, Biomedical Science, Chinese Studies, Commerce, Computer Science, Dance, Drama, Exercise and Sport Science, Food Science, Health Science, Indonesian Studies, Information Technology, International Studies, Law, Media Arts, Nursing, Nutrition and Dietetics, Psychology, Science, Sports Management, Teaching, Visual Arts and Wildlife and Conservation Biology.

[edit] Toorak

The Toorak campus is located in Malvern. The campus is home to Deakin Business School, the Deakin University English Language Institute, and the Melbourne Institute of Business and Technology. The historic Stonnington mansion is located amongst traditional gardens, with the Stonnington Stables art gallery and the University's contemporary art collection are located here. The site has recently been sold and its resources will be relocated to two new buildings at the Burwood campus in November 2007.

[edit] Warrnambool

The Warrnambool campus is situated on the Hopkins River in the coastal city of Warrnambool. The 114 hectare site is approximately 5 kilometres from the CBD. The university's Marine and Freshwater Sciences Research Program is undertaken here, and students of Medicine will undergo training at this campus when the Medical program becomes operational in 2008.

Programs are offered in Arts, Commerce, Communication and Media, Environment (including Marine Biology and Freshwater Science, Fisheries Management and Aquaculture), Law, Nursing, Psychology, Teaching, Tourism Management and Hospitality and Visual Communication.

More than 3600 students are enrolled here. More than 2000 of the students studying at Deakin are styduing in off-campus mode

[edit] Off Campus

Off campus students study via distance education through the Geelong Campus. These students take exactly the same units as on campus students except instead of attending lectures and classes they receive course and study material via post and the internet. Off Campus students also have access to study methods which include online conferencing, tutorial and tele-tutorial groups. Deakin also offers the iLecture facility which enables students to download selected lectures in audio or video format. They also have access to Deakin's library services, which enables students to search the library database online and have books sent to their residence. Weekend schools at selected campuses are also offered. For those living far from Deakin campuses they are able to sit examinations in their local region at a venue approved by the institution. Deakin has a large number of approved rural and remote towns where exams can be sat at approved venues. There are a large range of Undergraduate and Postgraduate courses available for study in off campus mode, though not all courses and units are available off campus. Approximately 40% of the students enrolled at Deakin University study in off campus mode.

[edit] Organization

[edit] Chancellors

[edit] Vice-Chancellors

[edit] Notable Associates of the University

[edit] Academics

[edit] Awards and Achievements

Deakin has twice been awarded the Good University Guide's University of the Year.

The first award came in 1995-1996 for "Outstanding Technology in Education" in which the then Prime Minister of Australia, Paul Keating presented Deakin with the award and commended it on its success despite its lack of "sandstones" referring to its short period of existence as a university.[10]

On 25 August 1999, Deakin won its second award when it tied with the University of Wollongong to win the 1999-2000 prize. Deakin's success was for its "Outstanding Education and Training Partnerships". In presenting the award, the Federal Treasurer Peter Costello commended Deakin and Wollongong in stating: "These are two great institutions. They are the best of the best at what they do".[11]

[edit] Notable Faculty

[edit] Research

Deakin is Australia's fastest growing research university.[12] Its combined research funding had increased from $4.5 million in 1997 to $22 million in 2005.[13]

In its 2007 allocations, the Australian Research Council awarded Deakin $3.6 million in funding for research programs. A total of 15 discovery and linkage grants were awarded and will engage in issues such as the arts, citizenship, education, science, engineering and new materials.[14]

[edit] Research Centres & Institutes

This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.

[edit] Rankings

The Australian Good Universities Guide publishes an annual rating of the status and standing of Australian universities. The university's status and standing for each criterion was:

Criteria 2000 2001[24] 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007[25]
Prestige 3/5 N/P N/P*
Student Demand 3/5 3/5 3/5
Non-government Earnings 3/5 5/5 5/5
Research Grants 2/5 3/5 3/5
Research Intensiveness N/P 2/5 2/5
Total Score 11/20 13/20 13/20

Note: N/P - No publication available.

Research produced by the Melbourne Institute in 2006 ranked Australian universities across seven main discipline areas: Arts & Humanities, Business & Economics, Education, Engineering, Law, Medicine, and Science.

For each discipline, Deakin was ranked:[26]

Discipline R1* No. R2* No.
Arts & Humanities 17 35 17 35
Business & Economics 15 39 24 34
Education 6 35 8 32
Engineering 20 28 18 28
Law 20 29 20 28
Medicine** _ _ _ _
Science 24 38 27 31

.*R1 refers to Academics' rankings in tables 3.1 - 3.7 in the report. R2 refers to Articles and Research rankings in tables 5.1 - 5.7. No. refers to the number of institutions compared with Deakin.

.**As Deakin's Medical School will commence operations in 2008 there are no data available.

Deakin ranks 24 in Australia, 29 in the Oceania, and 609 in the world in the Webometrics Ranking of World Universities:[27]

Deakin has not yet been ranked in the world rankings produced by Shanghai Jiao Tong University[28] or the Times Higher Education Supplement.[29]

[edit] DeakinPrime

DeakinPrime is the commercial arm of Deakin University which provides education and development programs and services to corporates and industry groups.

Many large Australian and international organisations are associated with DeakinPrime's activities.

Approximately 65,000 students are participating in programs with DeakinPrime.

[edit] Controversies

In 2005, an academic article co-authored by two Deakin staff, including Professor Mirko Bagaric, Head of the School of Law, suggested circumstances in which torture is morally justifiable.[30] This was published in the Spring 2005 Edition[31] of the University of San Francisco Law Review, and led to some outraged responses in the press. Vice-Chancellor Sally Walker defended the academic freedom of university academics.[32]

[edit] Alumni

[edit] Deakin University Student Association

Main article: Deakin University Student Association

The Deakin University Student Association (DUSA4U) is the dominant student representative organisation operating across all campuses and courses. As well as representation, DUSA4U provides a range of services and benefits to members, and coordinates all other clubs and societies operating on campus.

[edit] References

  1. ^ Australian National Business Schools
  2. ^ Legislation
  3. ^ Cabinet Records
  4. ^ Prime Minister's announcement
  5. ^ Alfred Deakin Prime Ministerial Library
  6. ^ "New Digital Motion Lab Bringing Animation to Life", Multimedia Victoria, 26 September, 2006. Retrieved on 2007-07-29. 
  7. ^ "Deakin Motion.Lab Media Release", Deakin University, 2006-09-26. Retrieved on 2007-04-09. 
  8. ^ Philosophical Fox on Philanthropy
  9. ^ Research
  10. ^ First University of the Year award
  11. ^ Second University of the Year award
  12. ^ Deakin University Research
  13. ^ Deakin University Research
  14. ^ 2007 ARC Research Grants
  15. ^ Australian Centre on Quality of Life
  16. ^ Centre for Business Research
  17. ^ Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology
  18. ^ Centre for Health and Risk Behaviours and Mental Wellbeing
  19. ^ Centre for Health through Action on Social Exclusion
  20. ^ Centre for Leisure Management Research
  21. ^ Centre for Material and Fibre Innovation
  22. ^ Centre for Physical Activity and Nutrition Research
  23. ^ WHO Collaborating Centre for Obesity Prevention
  24. ^ THE AGE: The Good Universities Guide, 2001 edition
  25. ^ The Hobson Guides to universities: The Good Universities Guide, 2007 edition and previous editions
  26. ^ Melbourne Institute rankings
  27. ^ Deakin's Webometric ranking
  28. ^ Institute of Higher Education, Shanghai Jiao Tong University.
  29. ^ The Times Higher Education Supplement
  30. ^ Mirko Bagaric paper extract - When torture is permissible, retrieved 9 May 2006
  31. ^ University of San Francisco Law Review - Spring 2005 Edition, retrieved 12 May 2006
  32. ^ Deakin University statement regarding paper on torture, retrieved 9 May 2006
  33. ^ High Commissioner to Trinidad and Tobago
  34. ^ Miss India Australia

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

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Universities in Australia
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