University of Southern Queensland

University of Southern Queensland

Former names
 University College of Southern Queensland (1990–1992)
Motto Per Studia Mens Nova
Motto in English
 "Through study the mind is renewed"
Type Public
Established 1967 (see Darling Downs Institute of Advanced Education)
Chancellor John Dornbusch
Vice-Chancellor Jan Thomas
Administrative staff
 1668 total staff FTE (2013)
Students 27337 (2013)
Location Toowoomba, Ipswich and Springfield, Queensland, Australia
Campus Urban
Affiliations Regional Universities Network
Website www.usq.edu.au

The University of Southern Queensland (USQ) is a medium-sized, regional university based in Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia,[1] with three university campuses at Toowoomba, Springfield and Ipswich.[2] It offers courses in law, health, engineering, the sciences, business, education, and the arts.[2] USQ has been a leader in distance learning by leveraging technology since the 1970s, which has allowed it to serve rural Queensland and international communities[1] through its on campus, off campus, and online programs.[3]:41 In 1998 it was named World’s Best On and Off Campus University by the International Council for Open and Distance Education[4][5] and was winner of the Australian University of the Year Award in 2000-2001.[6]

It operates three research institutes and seven research centres which focus on a wide range of business, agricultural, scientific, environmental, and technological issues.

The institution was established in 1967 as the Darling Downs campus of the Queensland Institute of Technology. In 1971, it became the Darling Downs Institute of Advanced Education, then the University College of Southern Queensland in 1990 and finally the University of Southern Queensland in 1992.

History

Queensland Institute of Technology (Darling Downs) opened on 2 February 1967 in Toowoomba. It had 140 foundation students.[7] In 1971, the institute became the Darling Downs Institute of Advanced Education (DDIAE), an autonomous multi-purpose college. DDIAE, managed by its own College Council, began offering distance education in the mid-1970s. By 1980, there were more distance students than those on campus and DDIAE educated 75% of the country's international students in the 1986-1987 school year.[7] From 1980 to 1990, DDIAE grew significantly from 1,000 to 8,000 full-time student equivalents (EFTSL).[7] It became the University College of Southern Queensland (UCSQ) in 1990,[7] under the sponsorship of the University of Queensland.[8]

In 1992, the institution became the University of Southern Queensland (USQ) when it gained full university status.[7] USQ was a founding member of the Regional Universities Network that was launched in 2011.[9]

Campuses

Hervey Bay campus

USQ ensures that, as a regional university, its curriculum serves local and regional employment needs, it engages in regional social and economic development, and serves the regional community.[1]

Toowoomba

About 4,000 students attend the Toowoomba campus,[10] It is one of Australia's most well-equipped and modern campuses, having Harvard style lecture theatres and syndicate rooms in the School of Business Phoenix Building. In addition to its campus library holdings, it has extensive online databases.[11] The campus has Olympic standard basketball courts, high tech gymnasium equipment, an aerobics center, and netball courts at the Clive Berghofer Rec Center. It has the country's largest, most traditional Japanese garden.[10] Three co-educational residential colleges located on its Toowoomba campus: McGregor, Steele Rudd, and Concannon. Together, they accommodate more than 400[12] or 450 students.[11] Housing includes meals, internet, phones, and weekly cleaning service.[13]

Springfield campus buildings, 2014

Springfield campus

USQ's Springfield campus is located at Springfield, a suburb of approximately 30 kilometres (19 mi) southwest of Brisbane CBD. The campus has an auditorium, on campus accommodation, and a tavern. Phoenix Radio is its online community radio station serves the Greater Ipswich region and also provides training for students enrolled in the Bachelor of Applied Media program.

Ipswich campus

University of Southern Queensland, Ipswich campus.

USQ Ipswich[lower-alpha 1] is located in the growing region of south east Queensland, 55 minutes from the Brisbane CBD. USQ Ipswich offers degrees in nursing and paramedicine as well as tertiary preparation programs. The Campus features an award winning library complete with a rainforest garden and water feature designed to increase air quality and provide an ideal learning environment.

Organisation

Faculties and academic departments

Business, Education Law and Arts (BELA)[15]

  • School of Arts and Communication
  • School of Commerce
  • School of Law and Justice
  • School of Management and Enterprise
  • School of Teacher Education and Early Childhood
  • School of Linguistics, Adult and Specialist Education

Health, Engineering and Sciences (HES)[16]

  • School of Agricultural, Computational and Environmental Sciences
  • School of Civil Engineering and Surveying
  • School of Health and Wellbeing
  • School of Nursing and Midwifery
  • School of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering
  • School of Psychology, Counselling and Community

Academic profile

Flexible educational programs

It provides on-campus education that serves Darling Downs, Wide Bay, and Southern and Western Queensland.[3]:41 as well as flexible learning programs, through online learning or via off campus and overseas education partners[2][3]:41 in southern Africa, Fiji, South-east Asia, Sweden, Norway, and The Emirates. It operates the European Study Center in Bretten, Germany.[3]:41

USQ was voted the World’s Best On and Off Campus University in 1998 by the International Council for Open and Distance Education (ICDE)[4][5] The university or USQOnline, its "state-of-the-art" web-based learning platform,[6] was commended by the Australian University Quality Agency as a e-learning international leader,[6] and won the Australian University of the Year Award in 2000-2001.[6][7] It was the first learning institution to be granted an ISO 9001 Quality System Certificate of Registration in the world.[6]

It maintains high educational standards through a program of centralized, staff-driven decision-making, discipline-based management, and quality assurance practices.[3]:7 A 2002 audit found that its quality assurance program could be more effective with improved systems of central monitoring and reviewing.[3]:7

Rankings

University rankings
QS World[17] 701+
THE-WUR World[18] 601-800
Australian rankings
ERA National[19] 29=

Research

USQ's research institutes are
[20]
USQ's research centres are
[20]

The University of Southern Queensland has three research institutes[2] and seven research centres[20] which focuses on issues such as agricultural technology, rural health, environmental management, biotechnology, education leadership, web based services, and fibre composite materials.[3]:41

Based on competitive grants won, industry funded research collaborations, and Excellence in Research for Australia (ERA) ratings, USQ has significant and core research strength in the broad area of agriculture and the environment. This core research strength has generated over $10 million in new grant and industry funding during 2010-2012 and is the driver of USQ’s ERA "world class" ratings in Agriculture & Veterinary Science and Physical Sciences.

Student enrolment

It serves people that are generally under-represented in higher learning institutions.[1] Its student population included part-time working students, people from socioeconomically disadvantaged backgrounds, and from remote and rural areas.[7][1] USQ's student population includes refugees, Indigenous Australians, and have a periods of interrupted education, who have special needs completing their education.[1]

Total student enrolments in 2012 were 27,228, of which 19,976 students studied online/externally. The on-campus enrollments were: 898 at USQ Fraser Coast, 1886 at USQ Springfield, and 4,468 at USQ Toowoomba. It had 1,853 on-campus students and 3,969 external international students in 2012.[21] Based upon the results of the 2013 International student barometer survey, USQ was named the top university for international student satisfaction in Australia that year.[2]

Notable alumni

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ The University of Queensland (UQ) Ipswich Campus was transferred to USQ on 7 January 2015 following an agreement between the two universities. The decision to transfer the Campus was motivated by a desire to increase tertiary education opportunities in the region and to reflect the strategic objectives of each university.[14]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 OECD (28 July 2008). Higher Education Management and Policy, Volume 20 Issue 2 Higher Education and Regional Development: Higher Education and Regional Development. OECD Publishing. pp. 140–141. ISBN 978-92-64-04320-6.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 "University of Southern Queensland". University Profiles. Australia's Universities. 2 Feb 2015. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Report of the Audit of University of Southern Queensland" (PDF). Melbourne, Australia: Australian Universities Quality Agency. October 2002. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
  4. 1 2 Marie O'Sullivan (2003). Academic Year Abroad. Institute of International Education. p. 91.
  5. 1 2 "SEGi offers avenues for distance learning". New Straits Times. 10 August 2003. Retrieved 20 March 2015 – via HighBeam Research. (subscription required (help)).
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 Alison A. Carr-Chellman (13 December 2004). Global Perspectives on E-Learning: Rhetoric and Reality. SAGE Publications. p. 183. ISBN 978-1-4522-3697-1.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 "Institutional Profile: University of Southern Queensland". International Council for Open and Distance Education. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
  8. ↑ Alice Erh-Soon Tay (1990). Australian law and legal thinking between the decades: a collection of 33 Australian reports to the XIIIth International Congress of Comparative Law presented in McGill University Montreal on 18-24 August 1990. University of Sydney. p. 319. ISBN 978-0-646-01827-0.
  9. ↑ "Formation of Regional Universities Network Announced". run.edu.au. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
  10. 1 2 "Toowoomba Campus, USQ". atuni.com. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
  11. 1 2 "University of Southern Queensland". Australia's Universities. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
  12. ↑ "Residential Colleges: University of Southern Queensland". The National Education Directory of Australia. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
  13. ↑ "Southern Queensland". International Programs. Study Abroad, University of North Carolina, Greensboro. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
  14. ↑ "USQ to take over UQ Ipswich campus from today". Ipswich Queensland Times. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
  15. ↑ "Faculty of Business, Education, Law and Arts (BELA)". University of Southern Queensland. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
  16. ↑ "Faculty of Health, Engineering and Sciences (HES)". University of Southern Queensland. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
  17. ↑ "QS World University Rankings 2016/17". Quacquarelli Symonds Limited.
  18. ↑ "World University Rankings 2016-2017". TSL Education Limited.
  19. ↑ "Australian University Rankings". Australian Education Network.
  20. 1 2 3 "Research institutes and centres". University of Southern Queensland. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
  21. ↑ "University of Southern Queensland". Sydney, Australia: New Edge Consultancy Services. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
  22. ↑ https://www.usq.edu.au/news-events/news/2015/04/grad-jozef-borja-erece
  23. ↑ http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/meet-our-youngestever-solicitor-18yearold-whizkid-jozef-erece/news-story/e4aa1a41c4e6a67b014e811b6ffcbc4f

Coordinates: 27°36′15″S 151°55′55″E / 27.6042°S 151.932°E / -27.6042; 151.932

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