Campus Review Volume 28 - Issue 9 | September 2018 | Seite 14

policy & reform
campusreview.com.au
Made in heaven?
What’s behind the proposed merger between the
universities of South Australia and Adelaide?
David Lloyd and Peter Rathjen interviewed by Loren Smith
I
t could be the ‘super university’ that transforms the City of
Churches into the University City. Or, it could be a cost-cutting
exercise. These are the headlines surrounding the potential
merger of the University of South Australia with the University
of Adelaide.
Yet, it is much more complicated than these extremes suggest.
“To fully understand it, you need to go back to 1985,” explained
Peter Rathjen, UoA vice-chancellor.
“I used to work on a board with John Dawkins, who
restructured the higher education system in the mid-1980s. He
said to me that he thought the first thing that would happen
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as a result of his changes would be a merger in South Australia
between two universities.”
Over 30 years on, that merger is finally appearing likely, with
the release of a discussion paper examining the pros and cons of
the proposal. Drafted by consulting firm Nous Group, it is inviting
submissions until 5pm on 21 September 2018.
In the interim, Campus Review gauged the thoughts of the two
universities’ vice-chancellors. Do Rathjen and UniSA’s David Lloyd
personally believe in it? Why do it now? And does Adelaide’s third
major university, Flinders, feel sidelined?
CR: How did the idea for the merger come about?
PR: It’s been discussed off and on from about 1985. What’s
happened more recently is that the conversation has been
reignited at a time when both universities are travelling fairly
well. This time, rather than try to work this through in closed
sessions, we are openly asking what South Australia needs from
its universities.
I don’t think there’s a specific trigger, although there have been
changes to federal legislation that probably made it timely. Also,
the South Australian economy is changing, which is making people
question a lot of things.
Which changes in legislation are you referring to, and what are the
potential economic triggers?
There’s been a continual decrease in funding per student and
the like, and that’s brought certain kinds of pressures. There’s