June 5, 2019
Employable graduates, diverse cohort
NSW Audit reveals pleasing growth in UOW’s Indigenous student base
There is an increasing demand for a university education among Indigenous Australians in NSW.
A newly-released state government report has revealed Indigenous student enrolments increased by 484 to 6256 from 2016 to 2017.
¾«¶«´«Ã½ of ¾«¶«´«Ã½ (UOW) has surpassed the state growth rate of 8.4 per cent. The Indigenous student base at UOW grew by more than 10 per cent from 2016 to 2017 – double the enrolment growth rate for non-Indigenous students at UOW.
The figures were released on 31 May by the NSW Audit Office in a .
Meanwhile, the report showed pleasing employment outcomes for UOW.
The proportion of Australian university graduates in full-time employment increased from 71.8 per cent to 72.9 per cent from 2017 to 2018.
¾«¶«´«Ã½ of ¾«¶«´«Ã½ alumni outperformed the national average.
Just under 90 per cent of UOW graduates who had completed postgraduate studies were employed in full-time work, and more than 75 per cent of those who completed undergraduate studies at UOW were working full time.
UOW Vice-Chancellor, Paul Wellings CBE, said equity and employability were critical to the ¾«¶«´«Ã½.
“We are proud to offer a valuable tertiary experience, especially to our Indigenous students,” Mr Wellings said.
“The more bright minds you bring together, the greater the problems you can solve.
“Our graduates can expect a secure future. We strive to anticipate the nature of emergent industries and future jobs, as graduates need to be ethical, mobile, technologically literate and ready for multicultural workplaces.”
Caption: Torres Strait Islander dancers entertain the crowd at a Reconciliation Week event at ¾«¶«´«Ã½ of ¾«¶«´«Ã½ on 29 May.