On August 16th, UWAASA sponsored a forum on the question of University mergers in WA as a potential outcome of the WA State’s University Sector Review. The forum included WA Chief Scientist, Prof. Peter Klinken, UWA Professor Ray da Silva Rosa and current UWA DVC(Research) Prof Anna Nowak.
The viewpoints varied, there was discussion of the specifics effects on rankings, motivations to merge, and other outcomes – not only to the science disciplines but to the larger academic body. It was a spirited discussion, and the Q&A indicated a high level of engagement with the issues at hand.
On the website, for the convenience of those of you unable to attend, or as an aide memoire for those who were there, we have posted the part of the forum that we can present. For various reasons, we cannot post the entire recording and, unfortunately, Prof Nowak’s microphone was not turned on. You can view the recording below.