Committee of Deans Meeting 1-1994

Meeting No. 1/94 of the Committee of Deans was held on Tuesday, 18 January 1994, in the Faculty of Arts, Room S703, Humanities Building, at the Clayton campus, between 2.15 and 4.10 pm.

There were present:

Professor I.W. Chubb, Acting Vice-Chancellor and Dean, Faculty of Business and Economics, in the Chair

Professor R.J. Pargetter, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic Projects)

Professor P.LeP. Darvall, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) and Dean, Faculty of Engineering

Professor J.L.C. Chipman, Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Gippsland Campus)

Professor G.C. Clark, Acting Dean, Faculty of Arts

Professor C.J. Bellamy, Dean, Faculty of Computing and Information Technology

Professor R.T. White, Acting Dean, Faculty of Education

Professor C.R. Williams, Dean, Faculty of Law

Professor R. Porter, Dean, Faculty of Medicine

Professor C.B. Chapman, Dean, Victorian College of Pharmacy

Professor I.D. Rae, Dean, Faculty of Science

Apologies were received from Professor Logan and Professor West

In attendance were:

Mr R. Burnet, Acting General Manager

Professor R.McD. Anderson, Campus Director, Frankston

Ms O. Cornelius, Academic Registrar

Ms C.E. Anderson, Advisor to the Vice-Chancellor

M I N U T E S

1. Minutes

The minutes of Meeting No. 15/93 held on 7 December 1993, copies of which had been circulated, were confirmed and signed.

2. Matters Arising From the Minutes

Nil.

3. Report of the Acting Vice-Chancellor

3.1Strategic Plan

MIL IWC

The Committee received preliminary notice of a Deans' retreat to be held over the afternoon of 21 March and all day 22 March 1994. The retreat will provide the opportunity for Deans to consider the University's draft strategic plan and associated policy issues. A similar retreat was planned by the Vice-Chancellor for Council and the Executive for 27 March to further develop proposals, prior to their referral to the University community for input, with finalised proposals to be referred to Academic Board on 4 May and to Council on 16 May 1994.

OC

The Acting Vice-Chancellor advised that papers which would assist in focussing deliberations on key policy issues in the areas of personnel, research and education were to be circulated to Deans prior to the retreat, together with relevant statistics. They would not be detailed papers but would allow, and encourage, discussion and development.

Following discussion, the Committee agreed that additional issues relating to the roles of deans and the Committee of Deans in the organisation, together with the issue of devolution, were also to be considered at the retreat. Deans were invited to refer suggestions for a suitable venue for the retreat to Professor Chubb.

3.2 Quality Review 1994

The Committee noted that the Quality Committee was to meet shortly to develop recommendations for the allocation of funds to institutions on the basis of the 1993 review process and that the University had been invited to comment on that process.

Discussion focussed on the 1993 review team's queries about measures the University had in place to ensure accountability of faculties in an institution which emphasised its diversity and had adopted a devolved organisational structure.

The Acting Vice-Chancellor outlined proposals which sought to address the issue of accountability, including a proposal under consideration by the Education Committee which would provide for Deans to report annually to the Academic Board on such matters as continuation and completion rates, numbers of honours degrees awarded and evaluation of teaching. Students were to be asked to define their expectations of a Monash degree, with attitudes, perceptions and expectations to be measured by a longitudinal study. It was anticipated that outcomes of such a study would impact on course reviews and other reviews undertaken by faculties.

4. Urgent Matters

4.1 Berwick

The Committee noted the Acting Vice-Chancellor's advice concerning the Berwick campus to the effect that:

. the State government had now purchased the site;

. while the University did not propose to transfer load to the campus in the first instance, some load may ultimately be transferred if demand was high;

. the University's total load included 250 EFTSU for Berwick; this component may prove to be a buffer against any reduction in the University's load that may be proposed by the federal government.

4.2 Sale of schools by State Government

IWC

The Dean of Medicine suggested that the University may wish to consider a joint purchase, with the Monash Medical Centre, of a school site located near the Centre.

The Acting Vice-Chancellor advised that he would look into the matter and advise the Dean accordingly.

4.3Selection Information Day The Committee received a report on the University's Selection Information Day tabled by the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic Projects) and noted that comments were invited.

Deans

4.4 Course Information

Deans

The Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic Projects) advised that the 1995 edition of `Courses at Monash' (undergraduate course information) was currently in production and invited suggestions for content from Deans.

Deans also noted that `Graduates at Monash 1994' (graduate course information) had recently been released and that they were invited to submit suggestions for change and for an appropriate publication date for future editions.

4.5 Undergraduate Admissions 1994

Deans

The Committee noted that the selection process was under way and that offers were to be dispatched in the following week. Also noted was the suggestion by the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic Projects) that, because the method of marking of VCE language courses may have disadvantaged non-native speaking candidates, Deans may wish to give special consideration to borderline applicants whose secondary school record included a language acquisition course.

4.6 Credit for Open Learning Courses

IWC RJP

The Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic Projects) advised Deans that a proposal was under consideration by universities to impose a charge on international students who had completed open learning subjects in Australia and who then sought credit for those subjects towards a university award. Under the proposal, which was to be in place for one year, the crediting institution would be able to charge up to $100 per semester for each credited subject.

Deans expressed some concern about the proposal and the Acting Vice- Chancellor undertook to discuss the matter further with Professor Pargetter.

5. Research Matters

The Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) advised that applications to the 1994 Research Initiatives Fund were to be invited shortly.

6.1994 Undergraduate Enrolments

IWC JLCC

The Committee noted previously circulated advice from the Selection and Enrolment Processes Committee (D1/94) and that Mr Burnet, Mr Vernon and Mr Harris were to contact Deans the next day to negotiate school leaver targets. The Committee also noted the advice of the Acting Vice-Chancellor concerning the University's objective to meet school leaver targets and total commencing load targets and that it would be difficult to meet those targets without over-enrolling unless measures were taken to define faculty school leaver targets before other commencing load targets were determined. It was anticipated that, unless specific measures were taken, intakes of non-VCE (E-type) applicants were likely to be reduced.

PBW RB

During discussion, the issue of late re-enrolment by continuing students and the consequent implications for achieving intake targets was raised. In response to a suggestion from the Dean of Science, the Acting Vice-Chancellor advised that he would:

. seek the University solicitor's advice about a proposal to impose a significant late fee on students who sought to re-enrol after the first round of offers had gone out; and

. discuss with the General Manager a suggestion that late enrolment and other fees collected by faculties should be paid into faculty accounts.

Following a report by the Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Gippsland Campus) on demand trends for courses, the Acting Vice-Chancellor undertook to discuss further with him strategies to address the decline in demand for Business courses and options to redistribute load across courses, including those offered through Distance Education.

7. Other Business

Nil

8. Next Meeting

The Committee noted that the next meeting was scheduled for 12 noon on Wednesday, 2 February 1994 in the James McNeil Room, Clayton Campus, prior to the meeting of the Academic Board.