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SA merger
Mixed staff reaction to South Australia ’ s plans for a ‘ super university ’.
By Eleanor Campbell
Plans to merge the University of Adelaide and the University of South Australia in 2026 has both raised new prospects for research opportunities and drawn concerns around job security .
The University of South Australia and the University of Adelaide signed a statement of co-operation in December last year to form a ‘ super university .’
The agreement follows months of back-and-forth discussions between the two institutions .
SA Premier Peter Malinauskas , who championed a merger prior to his 2022 election , said the agreement was “ a historic moment for our state ”.
“ The combined university would make South Australia a magnet for domestic and international students and a global leader in research , unlocking incredible benefits for our economy ,” he said .
The proposed university would be called Adelaide University and open during January 2026 .
State Deputy Premier Susan Close said if a merger was to happen “ there would be no net job losses as a consequence of creating the combined university ”.
National Tertiary Education Union state secretary Dr Andrew Miller said after speaking to dozens of stakeholders from both universities , the claim of no net losses did little to rebuff anxiety .
“ People are concerned about what this could mean for discipline , research and teaching diversity ,” Dr Miller told Campus Review .
“ In other words , a new university might do away with some departments and disciplines and grow others .
“ There ’ s also great concerns about job security because we ’ ve seen restructures in the past where there ’ s been hundreds of job losses .”
Under new legislation , the combined university would initially operate under a “ co-leadership ” model , headed by two “ co-vice-chancellors .”
Dr Miller said staff and students felt both universities had been working at “ arm ’ s length ” and wanted to be more involved in planning .
“ In a way , all conversations to date have happened between the government and the two respective councils in the absence of students , staff , alumni and the greater community ,” he said .
“ Staff and students want meaningful and genuine consultation , and want to be coauthors of the proposal moving forward .
Efforts to merge South Australia ’ s two largest universities have been ongoing over the past several years .
In 2018 , UniSA and the University of Adelaide abandoned merger plans after they were “ unable to reach agreement on the threshold issues and strategic risks ”.
If a merger was successful , the university would home the largest number of domestic students in Australia , overtaking The University of Sydney and Melbourne ’ s Monash University .
UniSA epidemiologist professor Adrian Estermann said a merger would give South Australian academics a competitive edge in securing research grants .
“ We have complementary faculties , for example , Adelaide has medicine and dentistry , UniSA has allied health and nursing disciplines ,” Professor Estermann said .
“ Although Adelaide does have a small nursing school , it is tiny compared to UniSA ’ s .
“ The philosophies of the two unis are very different , but I believe a merger could combine the best of each .”
In a joint statement , University of Adelaide chancellor Catherine Branson and UniSA chancellor Pauline Carr said they were “ delighted ” at the prospect of joining .
“ With appropriate government support , we believe this is all possible and through our feasibility phase we hope to show that it can be realised ,” they said .
“ We believe that through a union of equals and combining the best of our present institutions , a future institution could deliver teaching of the highest quality .” ■
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