Deakin University

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Deakin University
Deakin University Logo
Established: 1974
Type: Public
Endowment: 0
Chancellor: David M. Morgan
Vice-Chancellor: Prof. Sally Walker
Faculty: 1,236 (2008)
Staff: 2,661 (2008)
Students: 34,495 (2008)
Undergraduates: 24,963 (2008)
Postgraduates: 9,080 (2008)
Location: Geelong, Melbourne, Warrnambool, Victoria, Australia
Campus: Suburban and Regional
Colours:  BLUE  GOLD 
Affiliations: ASAIHL, DETC, Australian National Business Schools (ANBS) Limited,[1]
Website: www.deakin.edu.au
Source: Deakin Pocket Statistics

Deakin University is an Australian public university with 34,495 higher education students as of 2008. It has campuses in the coastal cities of 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 and the Federal Government of Australia in 1973 to establish Victoria's fourth university in regional Victoria. Three locations at Geelong, Ballarat and Bendigo 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 declaration 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 university was officially opened in 1977 by the then Premier of Victoria Sir Rupert Hamer at the original campus at Waurn Ponds, Geelong.

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

Upon establishment, Deakin took over the Waurn Ponds campus of the Gordon Institute of Technology (now the Gordon Institute of TAFE), and that institution's higher education courses. It also absorbed State College of Victoria, Geelong (a teacher's college). 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 in December 1991.

In the 1980s and early 1990s, debate ensued in Geelong about the fate of the city's historic waterfront woolstores, known as the Dalgetys Woolstores, which were dilapidated amidst an area undergoing major development.[4] 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 amalgamations and developments created a large multi-campus university spanning 300 kilometres covering six campuses: three in Melbourne in the suburbs of Burwood, Clayton (Rusden campus), and Malvern (Toorak campus); two in Geelong at Waurn Ponds and Geelong Waterfront; and one at Warrnambool.

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

On 8 April, 2006 the then Prime Minister Mr John Howard announced that a new Medical School would be establised at Deakin University. In his speech delivered at the Victorian Liberal Party State Council in Melbourne on 8 April 2006 he 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.” [5]

In 2007, the Toorak Campus in Malvern was closed and sold. Its resources and courses were relocated to new facilities at the Burwood campus. At this point, the Burwood campus became known as the Melbourne campus.

On 1st May, 2008, Victoria's third Medical School was officially opened by the Prime Minister of Australia Mr Kevin Rudd and the Victorian Premier Mr John Brumby.[6] The medical school commenced with 120 Commonwealth supported medical students. There are now three Medical Schools in Victoria with the first being established at The University of Melbourne in 1862, and subsequently Monash University in 1958.

In 2008, at the instigation of Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic) Professor John Rosenberg,[7] Deakin introduced a trimester system replacing the dual-semester system. Although controversial, it reflects Deakin's mission as an innovative and progressive university.[8]

[edit] Campuses

[edit] Geelong, Waterfront

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

The Geelong Waterfront campus is located in Geelong's Central Business District and it comprises a structurally superb set of refurbished woolstores buildings directly opposite the city's waterfront on Corio Bay. The refurbishments, which were undertaken throughout the mid-1990s, retained most of the original internal elements. The Alfred Deakin Prime Ministerial Library[9] and Costa Hall, a 1500 seat concert auditorium (named after philanthropist Frank Costa), are located here. Many public events take place in this Hall including graduation ceremonies and concerts.

The campus has 2000 full-time and part-time on-campus students.

[edit] Geelong, 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. The site also contains part of Gordon Institute of TAFE, and is adjacent to Marcus Oldham College. The campus is serviced by the Princes Highway and is approximately 5 kilometres from the Geelong Central Business District and is in close proximity to the Great Ocean Road. The campus has 4,300 full-time and part-time on-campus students.

Deakin's medical school opened on this campus in 2008 with 120 full-time graduate students.

[edit] Melbourne

Deakin University Burwood Campus buildings
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 has 16,600 full-time and part-time on-campus students. The campus is well served by public transport and is about 45 minutes by tram (route 75) from the city centre.

For several years, the campus underwent major capital works with the construction of many new buildings including a gymnasium, classrooms, lecture theatre and food outlets.

In addition to these facilities, Motion.Lab, an $800,000[10] 24-camera motion capture studio, was opened in September 2006[11]. 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.

[edit] Warrnambool

The Warrnambool campus is situated on the Hopkins River in the coastal city of Warrnambool. The 94 hectare site is approximately 5 kilometres from the CBD serviced by the Princes Highway. The university's Marine and Freshwater Sciences Research Program is undertaken here and the university's law school began offering the first two years of its Bachelor of Laws degree there in 2007.

The campus is located in an area in close proximity to the Great Ocean Road and the The Twelve Apostles. The buildings are all low-rise constructions of modern design. The sporting facilities includes a football oval and a 9-hole golf-course.

The campus has 1060 full-time and part-time on-campus students.

[edit] Distance Education

Deakin University is a major provider of academic programs by distance education. Students undertaking their courses in this mode are generally classified as off-campus students, but many on-campus students also study off-campus units as part of their course. Students enrolled in off-campus units may study through one or more of the university's campuses at Geelong, Melbourne and Warrnambool. Many full-time and part-time students are able to tailor their courses to meet their needs and circumstances. Nearly 10,0000 students enrolled at Deakin University study in the off-campus mode. Students enrolled in off-campus units study the same units as on-campus students except instead of attending lectures and classes, they receive course and study materials by post and online via the internet. Many courses have a residential component which provides opportunities for networking with other students and staff face-to-face. Deakin University is one of two Australian universities to be accredited with the The Distance Education and Training Council of the United States.

[edit] Former Campuses

The Rusden campus was closed in 2003 and all courses were transferred to the Burwood campus. It was subsequently acquired by Monash University for its student accommodation purposes.

[edit] Toorak

The former Toorak campus is located in Malvern and was sold in 2007 as the university considered the campus surplus to its requirements. The courses and resources were relocated to the Burwood campus in November 2007.

As a Deakin campus, it was home to Deakin Business School, Deakin University English Language Institute, and the Melbourne Institute of Business and Technology.

The main building on the site is the 116 year old historic Stonnington Mansion and is located amongst traditional gardens. The Stonnington Stables art gallery and the University's contemporary art collection were located here.

The sale of the campus provoked public outrage as it involved the mansion which was at risk of redevelopment by property developers.[12]

[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.[15]

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".[16]

[edit] Notable Faculty

[edit] Research

Deakin is Australia's fastest growing research university.[17] Its combined research funding had increased from $4.5 million in 1997 to $22 million in 2005.[17]

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.[18]

[edit] Research Centres & Institutes

[edit] Rankings

In 2008, the Graduate Management Association of Australia (GMAA) awarded Deakin's generalist MBA course the maximum score of five stars, placing it in the top rank of Australia's MBA courses. The MBA International was given a score of four marks placing it in the second of five bands[28]

In 2007, Deakin University was placed for the first time in The Times Higher Education-Quacquarelli Symonds World University Rankings. The list of the top ranked universities was expanded from 200 in 2006 to 400 in 2007. Deakin was placed at equal 374th. Four other Victorian universities were ranked in the top 400: University of Melbourne at 27, Monash University at 43, RMIT University at 200, and La Trobe University at 205[29]

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[30] 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007[31]
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:[32]

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:[33]

Deakin has not yet been ranked in the world rankings produced by Shanghai Jiao Tong University[34]

[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 such as the The Coles Institute and CPA Australia.

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.[35] This was published in the Spring 2005 Edition[36] 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.[37]

[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. ^ Dalgety Destruction, 'The Story of Geelong', p.9 retrieved 23-11-2008
  5. ^ Prime Minister's announcement
  6. ^ Official Opening of Deakin Medical School
  7. ^ Trimester Triumph
  8. ^ Teaching and Learning
  9. ^ Alfred Deakin Prime Ministerial Library
  10. ^ "New Digital Motion Lab Bringing Animation to Life". Multimedia Victoria. 2006-09-26. http://www.mmv.vic.gov.au/NewsNewDigitalMotionLabBringingAnimationtoLife26September2006. Retrieved on 2007-07-29. 
  11. ^ "Deakin Motion.Lab Media Release". Deakin University. 2006-09-26. http://www.deakin.edu.au/motionlab/media-release.php. Retrieved on 2007-04-09. 
  12. ^ Save Stonnington!
  13. ^ Philosophical Fox on Philanthropy
  14. ^ Research
  15. ^ First University of the Year award
  16. ^ Second University of the Year award
  17. ^ a b Deakin University Research
  18. ^ 2007 ARC Research Grants
  19. ^ Australian Centre on Quality of Life
  20. ^ Centre for Business Research
  21. ^ Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology
  22. ^ Centre for Health and Risk Behaviours and Mental Wellbeing
  23. ^ Centre for Health through Action on Social Exclusion
  24. ^ Centre for Leisure Management Research
  25. ^ Centre for Material and Fibre Innovation
  26. ^ Centre for Physical Activity and Nutrition Research
  27. ^ WHO Collaborating Centre for Obesity Prevention
  28. ^ Deakin's top ranked MBA 2008
  29. ^ Deakin's World Ranking Breakthrough
  30. ^ THE AGE: The Good Universities Guide, 2001 edition
  31. ^ The Hobson Guides to universities: The Good Universities Guide, 2007 edition and previous editions
  32. ^ Melbourne Institute rankings
  33. ^ Deakin's Webometric ranking
  34. ^ Institute of Higher Education, Shanghai Jiao Tong University.
  35. ^ Mirko Bagaric paper extract - When torture is permissible, retrieved 9 May 2006
  36. ^ University of San Francisco Law Review - Spring 2005 Edition, retrieved 12 May 2006
  37. ^ Deakin University statement regarding paper on torture, retrieved 9 May 2006
  38. ^ Carolyn - from Uni' to Unicef
  39. ^ Miss India Australia

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

v • d • e
Universities in Australia
v • d • e
Universities in Victoria, Australia

Australian Catholic • Ballarat • Deakin • La Trobe • Melbourne • Monash • RMIT • Swinburne • Victoria
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deakin_University"
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