Moving from Campus to Community

Victoria University is one of the few Australian dual-sector institutions that offers vocational, further, and higher education programs. The University offers short courses, apprenticeships, certificates, diplomas, degrees, and postgraduate studies to 40,000 students. The campuses are primarily located in the western region of Melbourne (Australia) but include Sydney and international sites. The predominant student cohorts come from low socio-economic backgrounds and are the first in family to attend a university.

This chapter reports on the joint partnership between local councils and Victoria University in the development of collaborative learning hubs that anticipate broader access to learning for community members whilst providing links back to larger campus locations. The intended aim of these partnerships is to increase tertiary participation and completions, whilst engaging/reengaging local community members in the art of learning.

The University has embarked on a project to design and implement collaborative learning hubs that provide tertiary courses in a number of local councils. ¹ The project builds on the strategic directions of both the councils and the University, which sees itself as the University of Opportunity for people who would traditionally struggle to be successful in tertiary education. The two councils that Victoria University is partnering with are Hume City Council and Hobsons Bay City Council.