LATEST ARTICLES

University taps into region’s unlimited potential

University taps into region’s unlimited potential

A bold economic plan to turbocharge Western Sydney’s economy includes tight collaboration between governments, industries and academia and leverages the region’s new airport as a springboard into a booming future. Based on wide-ranging research, Western Sydney University’s long-range economic blue­print draws on extensive con­sultation across the region.

Addressing the gender gap in STEM professions

Addressing the gender gap in STEM professions

A mathematical biologist specialising in evolutionary theory, Dr Xia Hua has forged an impressive career in a field long dominated by men. “I kind of see myself as a bridge between the maths department and the biology department,” she says. “When my colleagues in biology have a problem that needs maths for a solution, they contact …read more

La Trobe Uni transforms midwifery care for First Nations women

La Trobe Uni transforms midwifery care for First Nations women

A Victorian healthcare program has significantly improved the health of pregnant Indigenous women and their babies by providing continuity of midwifery care from the early stages of pregnancy through to labour, birth and the first weeks of a baby’s life.

CQUni program helps the disabled experience the joy of the sea

CQUni program helps the disabled experience the joy of the sea

The beach is an important part of life for many coastal residents; they swim, they surf, they play in the waves, they picnic, they fish, they sit, they relax. But Australians with a disability often find getting to the beach and navigating the sand and the water is almost impossible. Central Queensland University physiotherapist Sasha Job …read more

UniSA program aims to end suicide in rural communities

UniSA program aims to end suicide in rural communities

Many Australian farmers are troubled by issues outside their control: bad weather, falling commodity prices, disease outbreaks, ebbing demand for produce. These can lead to difficult streams of thought which are hard to ignore – especially because many farmers spend long stretches of time working in isolation. At the same time, cultural expectations can mean some …read more

La Trobe Uni’s Nexus program is transforming teacher education

La Trobe Uni’s Nexus program is transforming teacher education

Sophisticated career-changing professionals with bachelors’ degrees – vets, engineers, entrepreneurs, physicists – have signed up to study a master’s degree to head back to high school and help educate the next generations of Victorians. The number of disadvantaged schools in La Trobe University’s Nexus teacher education program jumped from 15 in 2020 to 80 by the …read more

Uni of Newcastle team invents a tiny lickable strip to detect disease

Uni of Newcastle team invents a tiny lickable strip to detect disease

Semi-conducting polymers look set to revolutionise many long-entrenched medical systems, from blood sugar monitoring for diabetic patients to testing for a range of diseases including Covid, and potentially even for detecting conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder. Paul Dastoor, physics professor and director of Newcastle University’s Centre for Organic Electronics, has spent his career researching these …read more

‘Transition phase’: Five steps to mentally prepare for retirement

‘Transition phase’: Five steps to mentally prepare for retirement

Seven months after her long-term career unexpectedly ended, Melbourne professional Carmel Murphy is coming to terms with retirement. “It’s very different,” she says. “You don’t get the thousand emails. You don’t get the calls. You don’t get the staff who require your assistance. It’s taking me quite a while to get used to that.” Now 65 and …read more

How to slash labour costs – and build 2000 per cent growth

How to slash labour costs - and build 2000 per cent growth

Almost eliminating the labour costs of on-site construction, Wild Modular has burst on to the accommodation scene in recent years with a range of speedy pre-fabricated accommodation. Taking just weeks to manufacture in a western Sydney factory, these pods can be erected and completed on site in a few days. Used in remote resorts and retreats, …read more

When it comes to reputation, Group of 8 dominate

When it comes to reputation, Group of 8 dominate

Australia’s oldest and most prestigious universities, mostly sandstone and clad in ivy, have topped the global reputation category in The Australian Financial Review’s Best Universities Ranking, despite faring poorly in measures of student satisfaction. The University of Melbourne ranked first for global reputation, followed by equal second for the University of Sydney, the University of Queensland …read more