State Parliament’s Committee on the Establishment of Adelaide University has now wrapped up with the Vice Chancellors from both the University of Adelaide and University of South Australia providing expert evidence on the final day of hearings.

The Committee is due to release its report on 17 October.

UniSA Vice Chancellor David Lloyd told the Committee both institutions had done their due diligence and decided it was the right decision.

“Our councils have integrated the pros and cons of progression, the risks, costs and benefits associated, and they have each independently determined that this is the correct course of action – preferable to the status quo and with significant benefit if executed to time and budget,” Mr Lloyd told the Committee.

University of Adelaide Vice Chancellor Peter Hoj said both institutions had thought long and hard about the merger and came to the belief that the creation of Adelaide University would benefit the State.

“Our domain of expertise is higher education, and we are proud that our two respective universities, after deep and long analysis, have concluded we can do more together than as separate and competing institutions in a relatively small economy,” Mr Hoj said.

Over the course of the hearings, the Committee heard the merger would deliver significant benefits to the state's economy.

Chair of the Productivity Commission, Adrian Tembel, told the Committee the merger would accelerate overdue reforms to the university sector.

“If a merger was competently executed, then that catalyst for change could accelerate the reforms that we were recommending,” Mr Tembel said.

Meanwhile, Andrew Kay, the chief executive of the State’s leading business group, Business SA told the Committee the merger would help to provide the skills required to deliver AUKUS and other major industry programs.

“Well, we're firmly of the view, whether it's AUKUS or other potential industrial impact, that a university that is more entrepreneurial and is driven by, as I said, the functions in this draft bill with more funding for productive research and that is highly motivated, incentivised to have local industrial impact will be positive,” he said.

UniSA’s Executive Dean of Creative told the Committee on the Establishment of Adelaide University the merger will forge an alliance between academia, the arts, tourism and the community which has never been seen before.

Mr Batty, who has previously worked in the UK and at Sydney University and Melbourne’s RMIT University, said the merger could create an integrated arts powerhouse to rival those in European cities such as Manchester in the UK.

He said it would help to project the State’s arts sector onto an international stage.

“What I see as real potential for the future is that if we were to obviously work with University of Adelaide to become Adelaide University, there's a chance, a real strong chance to take that scale that we've already developed to an even bigger level,” Mr Batty said.

Quotes

Attributable to Susan Close

Now that the Committee has wound up its hearings, and my fellow policy makers have had the opportunity to hear from the expert witnesses, I would encourage them, particularly those on the Opposition benches, to turn their minds to forming a position on this important issue.

The merger offers a once in a generation opportunitiy to improve education outcomes in South Australia, especially for those that traditionally have been locked out of tertiary education.

Experts have told the Committee a merged university will better synchronise education, business and the economy which will lead to more highly skilled and better paid jobs.

By 2034, the new university is forecast to contribute an estimated additional $500 million per year to the South Australian economy, educate more than 70,000 students – about 13,000 more than both universities combined today – and create an additional 1,200 jobs.

The recent drop in the University of Adelaide’s rankings highlights the difficulty in maintaining a top 100 position as a medium sized university. While rankings are often volatile, in Australia larger institutions have the advantage of more research capacity and a wider reach for students which is more likely to stabilise their position in the rankings.