Develop

What are the problems to which we seek solutions, and how does technology help us foresee and address them? How can we use existing technologies to shrink the gap between developing and developed economies? How do we integrate data and information on a global scale to solve issues such as security, health and the environment? What is the international research agenda and who is leading it? How can universities help their academic staff demonstrate the impact of their research commercially and to society? What threat does data terrorism pose to the global research agenda? How can the growing demand for higher education be met?

Technology and research are at the heart of higher education. The ACU seeks to help its members identify key issues and develop practical responses – from research in the humanities and social sciences to large international physics and medicine collaborations. We are leading the way in raising awareness of what the new data landscape means for academics and students. Breaking down barriers to greater use and critically examining access to electronic journals, we are working with publishers on the key issues around open access.

As research becomes more international, competitive, and project-based, our research management programme plays a leading role in the globalisation of the profession, and a new programme works with universities on their strategies for promoting research uptake. Through our Professional Networks, we examine how universities can meet the career aspirations of their students, the impact of growth on quality, and the role of distance learning and private universities in meeting ever-increasing demand.