Meet Australia’s leading universities in Bogota,” the universities of Sydney, Melbourne and UNSW suggest.  CMM had no idea that they, and apparently other less leading ones, had campuses in Colombia.

The trio are also touring, with recruiting events in Santiago on Saturday and Mexico City on November 11.

Research offices are anxious they make the most of everything that could be covered by the Australian Research Council’s new engagement and impact metric metrics, which are supposed to roll out as part of Excellence for Research in Australia ‘18.

At Macquarie U business and economics staff are told to ensure their publication record includes “written research output” commissioned by government or industry, which rate as “non-traditional research outputs”.

Engineering at the University of Sydney has created a new engagement role with robotics professor Salah Sukkarieh appointed associate dean industry and innovation.

Deans of Education got off lightly in the Productivity Commission’s five-year review last week, at least compared to university managements which got a stiff talking-to. The PC pointed to commonwealth and state government efforts to lift the quality of teachers but largely left teacher-education alone, for now. “It is critical that efforts by governments to improve teacher quality continue to be monitored and rigorously assessed for outcomes, the PC advised. But deans be warned; “tangible outcomes could be assessed in the next five years, possibly in the next Productivity Review.” You have five years.

Halloween used to be denounced as a US imposition of crass consumerism. But it seems that battle is lost, with Paul Harrison from the Deakin U business school saying Halloween is “simply yet another example of our country adopting an imported cultural ritual.” It’s all-good, as long as it does not become commercialised to the extent that low-income families feel excluded.

The Public Health Advocacy Institute of WA at Curtin U now sees Halloween in terms of damage, specifically sugar, control. “ Indulging in a treat every now and then is ok, but consider the stash your kids will bring home after trick or treating.”

The National Tertiary Education Union at UTS is asking members if they want to up enterprise bargaining pressure. Members will meet today to consider marking bans and protests at the university prospective student information day on December 16. Union members went out for 24 hours a fortnight ago. There are just two each bargaining meetings for academic and professional staff scheduled for the rest of the year.

The union’s log of claims reflects NTEU national agenda but is there a local emphasis on improved conditions for casual staff. According to the union 75 per cent of the university’s workforce are variously casuals or on fixed-term contracts.

The comrades at UTS still hold the best slogan of the EB round, “there’s no UTS without US.”

Labor’s Jason Clare says that in government the party will “pursue an agreement” with China to establish six-month internships there, “to help build the Asian business capability of young Australian professionals.” Trade spokesman Clare says the French have had a reciprocal internship deal for two years. Good idea, one that universities would monetise into masters degrees, within weeks of a Labor win.

Graduate employment is the emerging image-issue for universities. Rebekha Sharkie pointed to it when announcing the Nick Xenophon Team would block the government’s higher education package. Astute universities are throwing resources at teaching employment skills, internships and placement programme. And extra effort is essential to help international students, who really do make an investment in education they need to pay a dividend. Which makes the case for going Glocal.

The Innovative Research Universities excellent case studies  resource National Innovation Case Study Collection provides a Flinders University report on Glocal, created at Malmo University in Sweden. “International programs face challenges in providing affordable work-placements that can effectively develop students’ soft skills and life experience, as well as foster global employability skill sets appropriate to students’ intended careers in an international context,”

Malmo, partnering with Swinburne University, created a six-hour simulation replicating an international workplace where teams of students “collaborate across digital domains, challenging online and on-campus students to grapple with digital communication technologies and time differences while maintaining active collaboration.”