Universities Today

 There are 166 universities in the United Kingdom -  currently there are 3 Vice Chancellors in a British university with a South Asian background.

1.  Leceister Uni  - Nishan Canagarajah.

2.  Kings College London - Shitij Kapur.

3.  Canterbury Christ Church University  - Rama Thirunamachandran

The only VC in Britain with an East Asian background is Max Lu of the University of Surrey, who has recently been appointed by the University of Wollongong NSW in Australia as its new VC.

There are 43 universities in Australia.  No one with a South Indian background has been appointed a VC in this Antipodes nation.

No non ethnic Malays have served as VC of any university in Malaysia.

No non ethnic Chinese currently serve as a University VC in Singapore.

There are eight universities in New Zealand with no VCs of Asian origin.
Damon Salesa of Samoan origin is the current VC of the Auckland University of Technology.

In Canada, Mohamed Lachemi serves as VC of the Toronto Metropolitan Univsrsity.
Deep Saini is VC of McGill University and is of Punjabi origin.  There are around 100 universities across Canada.

Across the Australian university sector, there is an obvious under representation of females as Vice-Chancellors.

Are VC roles supposed to reflect the mores and uniqueness of each society?
Or are they increasingly chosen for abilities in corporate management, strategic leadership and financial
prowess, as higher educational instutitions become more of competitive
behemoths obsessed with research rankings, easy student revenues and corporate growth?

Universities do not pay tax and are inherently community entities to start with, originally meant to serve the ideals of education, inspiring thinking, academic growth and embedding benefits from society ideals.   They have now grown to be jaggernauts which can prioritise high level commercialisation over those of teaching, learning and student experience.

Universities are not accountable to shareholders and yet now operate like commercial entities.   The equivalent of a corporate Board can be in University Councils, whose members should be a broad based demographic but increasingly stacked with political aspirations and corporatised vibes.

There are universities burdened and yet enriched with historical traditions.   There are universities which carry the torch of enlightenment and innovativeness in ages of oppression, extremism and backwardness.   Universities are best when they develop the minds and behaviours of progress and reform for the larger society outside their campuses.
Our contemporary age has never seen so many numbers attending university.

Yet universities can be held captive by the overwhelming control of geopolitics.   Donations for such institutions are significantly important, whether in knowledge, finance or human effort.   Universities do not stand alone well by themselves, but are best to serve when they have a collective will and purpose to advance the course of continuing human civilisation.

#yongkevthoughts

Australian Universities - The Customer Perspective

It is reported there are currently 300000 university students from outside Australia studying in our nation's universities. 

This number of students is larger than the population of the greater Wollongong area, from Helensburgh down the coast to Shell Cove. Wollongong is ranked as the tenth largest conurbation in Australia.

These students pay full fees, do not get subsidised public transport in most cities but do contribute to the local economic areas in spending for accommodation, food and daily amenities. Several universities in the capital cities have a significant number of such students, like from China, India and south-east Asia. 

Do such International students socially mix with their local fellow students and vice-versa? Many are allowed to work for a capped ceiling number of hours, especially in retail outlets. Graduates of Australian universities are encouraged with bridging visas to continue staying on if they can find related work. 

International students are a critical part of the process of Immigration, property boom and skilled inflows affecting the socio- economic parameters in contemporary Australia. They are part of the spectrum of labour and knowledge supply chain that also involves tourist visa over stayers, 457 visa holders and the underground economy. 

With this waterfall of cash revenue for universities, is there a big risk of the quality compromised in the delivery of teaching and social support for students as customers? Are students increasingly seen as supplying funds to be used more by universities for research and securing commercial opportunities? 

Universities do not pay tax in Australia - but the threatened funding cuts from the Coalition Government in Canberra can still shake up budget restructuring imperatives for our higher tertiary institutions. Where are such cuts going to make an impact in the operations of our university sector? Administrative expenses have suffered cuts for many years - the next question is which other area is targeted for reduced spending and hence a deterioration in service and engagement levels.

Universities will increasingly wake up to competition for any cash cows they may have taken for granted for so many years. Alternative options in training, certification and accreditation can now challenge the traditional university route to a career. Employment prospects can be better if one does not go to university. Local students in Australia can also lower their risks for incurring a huge financial debt after graduation if they smartly choose other paths to what they really want to do after study. 

Universities in Australia do realise that they are not the only ones milking the study and career dreams of foreign students and markets. The source markets are also developing their quality centres of learning. Other suppliers off shore are challenging the attractiveness of coming to Australia to study, but may not provide the captivating migration options.