The New Zealand Universities’ Academic Workforce Planning Project
23 January 2012, by Kevin Seales
For a number of years, the eight New Zealand universities have shared concerns about the future viability of the sector’s academic workforce. Like other countries, as New Zealand moves towards 2020 there will be significant pressures on universities in maintaining an effective and efficient academic workforce. The international competition for top academics is on the rise and New Zealand staff are being attracted both out of the sector and out of New Zealand. During this same period members of the existing academic workforce will be retiring at a higher rate than ever before experienced. In addition, due to the changing ethnic mix in New Zealand, it is expected that this workforce will need to include a significantly greater proportion of Māori and Pacific peoples than at present.
Quality Assurance in Hong Kong Higher Education: An East-West Approach
19 January 2012, by Rosalind Chan
The higher education sector in Hong Kong is a relatively small and exclusive group comprising of eight publicly-funded institutions. These institutions cater to about 18 percent of the eligible age group within Hong Kong’s population of seven million. The University Grants Committee (UGC) was formed by the Hong Kong government to safeguard and promote quality among these publicly-funded institutions. Since its inception, the UGC has conducted a number of reviews of universities, such as the Management Review (1998-1999), the Teaching and Learning Quality Process Reviews (TLQPR) (1995-1997 and 2001-2003), the Performance and Role-Related Funding Scheme (2004) , and, most recently, the first round of Quality Audits (2008-2011).