Federation University has welcomed a new 10-year strategy to help bridge the divide between the number of young people in rural and regional Australia who have a university degree compared to those in the city.
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Federal education minister Dan Tehan launched the National Regional, Rural and Remote Tertiary Education Strategy on Wednesday, which contains seven recommendations and 33 actions to try to increase access to tertiary education for rural and remote students.
Fewer than half of young people living in rural and regional Australia have a university degree compared to their city counterparts.
"Just in about every measure in education there is a gap between the city and the country and that has to be overcome," said former Victorian premier Denis Napthine who led the review on which the new strategy is based.
As a regional university we know the challenges many of our students face in accessing higher education and then completing their studies, as well as the enormous benefit a skilled and educated workforce provides to a regional community and nation building
- Fed Uni vice chancellor Prof Helen Bartlett
Fed Uni vice chancellor Professor Helen Bartlett met with Mr Tehan after the launch to discuss how the actions of the Napthine Review would be implemented.
"As a regional university we know the challenges many of our students face in accessing higher education and then completing their studies, as well as the enormous benefit a skilled and educated workforce provides to a regional community and nation building," she said.
"We welcome the federal government's recognition of this and its commitment to ensuring people living in rural and regional areas have the same opportunities for higher education as those living in capital cities.
"In particular, ensuring Federation University is appropriately supported under the regional loading model and that regional universities are assisted to upgrade their ageing infrastructure so our students have access to the very best facilities and technology."
Among the recommendations is the introduction of a commissioner responsible for regional, rural and remote areas, greater financial support for students, more regional study hubs, better student support services to help with transition, and strengthening the role of tertiary institutions in regional development.
Dr Napthine said the strategy's main aim was to improve access, affordability, and outcomes for students from rural, regional and remote areas.
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"We know a lot of young people in western Victoria take gap years because they want to get work and money behind them before they go and when they take the gap year they don't end up going to tertiary education," Dr Napthine said.
"If we can improve the affordability we will get more people not only taking up higher education, but also completing it."
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