About
Why we need the National Alliances
As Australia's national university, ANU has a mission to advance higher education and research for all Australians and for the national interest.
The National Alliances are an important way to create more learning pathways for people from remote, rural and regional Australia, as well as people whose socio-economic backgrounds have traditionally been a barrier to higher education.
ANU and its partner universities have distinct yet complementary histories, student profiles and capabilities in education and research.
The alliances will help meet the Commonwealth Government's equity and participation goals for higher education, as well as increasing the research capabilities of regional universities.
Increasing pathways
National Alliances are creating new opportunities for students from around Australia to do part of their studies at ANU, as well as enabling ANU students to do courses at partner universities. Similarly, students from ANU and its partners will benefit from virtual learning environments in which courses completed at both institutions will contribute to joint degrees.
Students from ANU and partner universities can access the Summer Research Scholarships programs between ANU and participating alliance partners. These two-way programs at ANU allow selected students to spend part of their summer break developing their collaborative research skills at universities with research strengths in fields that complement their home campuses.
Increasing education offerings
For undergraduates, ANU and its partners are developing new joint degree programs in areas including health, engineering and education. They are also developing pathways where early undergraduate study at a partner institution will be a basis for subsequent study at ANU.
For postgraduate coursework students, courses offered at partner institutions can form part of the Graduate Studies Select program at ANU. The National Alliances are also building on pre-existing sharing arrangements between ANU and its partners in areas like legal practice, as well as fostering new cross-institutional Masters programs in areas like contemporary science.
Increasing research opportunities
The National Alliances are extending research activities in areas of mutual interest between partner universities, as well as boosting the research capacity of some regional universities.
The alliances include early and mid-career Research Fellowships that allow scholars from partner universities to spend a period of time working on a research project at ANU. This and other initiatives will foster joint research and continued collaborations that can access external funding opportunities. These opportunities will be extended through participation in successful Collaborative Research Network initiatives.
