From the Vice-Chancellor - Alumni Newsletter, December 2016
Alumni newsAs we all gear up for the end of another momentous year in Australia and in most parts of our world with the US elections dominating, Brexxit playing its part and the distressing violence and refugee crises in many countries, its timely to reflect on Deakin’s achievements for 2016.
Love them or loathe them, international rankings are an important measure of a university’s reputation and quality nationally and internationally. You’ll be pleased to note that Deakin now ranks 214 in the prestigious Shanghai Jiao Tong Academic Ranking of World Universities, taking a stellar leap of 182 places in a single year. Your university is now in the top 2 percent of the world’s universities in each of the major global rankings and ranks 39 in the Times Higher Education ranking of the world’s universities under fifty years. This is a remarkable achievement, and testament to the quality and commitment of our Deakin staff, students and alumni.
Deakin has integrated its research growth into the University’s overall strategy of service to its communities, developing its base in advanced manufacturing which has been so critical for Geelong, and IT and energy which is strong in metropolitan Melbourne.
Teaching will always be the core focus for Deakin, and in this digital age, Deakin continues to drive the digital frontier in the use of new and emerging technologies to ensure our teaching is personalised and innovative. We’re the first Australian university to adopt the Inspark courseware, powered by Sydney start-up Smart Sparrow. InSpark’s Habworlds and BioBeyond programs are multidisciplinary and interactive, teaching core scientific principles in visually engaging and exciting ways. Deakin is also the first university to introduce digital Hallmarks – developed with industry bodies, the Hallmarks are closely tied to skills such as communication and problem solving, which are so important for employers. We’ve also been busy refurbishing our campuses – including our Cloud Campus – to be attractive, innovative and engaging places to learn.
Deakin continues to grow; with over 53,000 students (including almost 9,000 international students) Deakin is Australia’s 7th largest university. For the third successive year Deakin was awarded the Governors Export award for Education and Training, but the most important measure for Deakin now and into the future is what our graduates think of us, and I am delighted to report that Deakin has been rated first in Victoria (fifth in Australia) for student satisfaction for SIX consecutive years.
You’ll soon be receiving this year’s edition of the dKin magazine, which will give you a taste of the work some of our leading researchers and teachers are doing. This year’s dKin theme is ‘facing disruption’, a challenge relevant to all of us wherever we live and whatever business we may be in. There are articles on new terrorism, the power of sport for kids with autism, the impact of climate change on sea turtles, rethinking our morals and ethics and blue carbon – I’m sure you’ll agree it’s an excellent read.
Can I ask you to consider contributing to Deakin’s Humanitarian Scholarship Fund Open Minds Open Possibilities? Your gift large or small, will support students from disaster prone countries to access courses at the Centre for Humanitarian Leadership, a partnership between Deakin and Save the Children. The Centre is delivering education, innovation and research for the humanitarian sector and is changing the way the world responds to humanitarian crises.
In closing I wish all of you in the Deakin Alumni Community an enjoyable festive season and a safe and relaxing holiday. Thank you for choosing Deakin. We look forward to staying connected with you in 2017.
Jane den Hollander
President and Vice-Chancellor