Ernst and Young (EY) Oceania education leader Alison Cairns told Campus Review their student surveys have shown digital transformation – using new technology to improve learning and teaching experiences – needs to be led by vice-chancellors and boards. (You can read a summary of EY's survey results here.)

"It is absolutely about leadership. The difference between transformations that are successful and transformations that fail is around leadership and bringing people on that journey," she said.

"The ones that don't do so well are the ones that are purely technology transformations, and then they follow up with change management and it's a little bit challenging."

"[Then staff] say, 'Well actually I'm not sure I signed up for this'. Or 'I don't like the way this works'. Or, 'this doesn't really suit my faculty, doesn't really suit how I want to do it,'" she said.

EY recommends university leaders put humans at the centre of any tech or digital learning upgrade, instead of placing new online resources to 'tick a box'. Their approach is to ask different questions of the different humans who will be benefiting from the tech transformation.

Ms Cairns said universities that have used this style of digital learning innovation have seen an uptick in student enrolments and engagement, along with higher staff and researcher satisfaction.

She explained one of the most important aspects of university study for students is quality of teaching. If students can pick which format best suits them, they are likely to think the quality of teaching is much higher.

Students also care about career outcomes – what is going to get me the qualification I need, for the least amount of money, in the shortest amount of time?

What are the tech innovation limitations?

Layers of leadership in bigger universities might be a reason for slow change, some education thought leaders say, but EY says it hasn't found a difference in the ability to adapt between small and large unis.

"I think our universities are very positive about change. They're very positive about what the education sector does for our country," she said.

"Some of these businesses and universities have been around for 500 years, so they do something right."

She said universities have already shown what they're capable of, through the rapid switch to online learning in 2020.

"Universities did a fantastic job of moving from classroom teaching to emergency response teaching [during the Covid-19 pandemic]," she said.

"I just want to be really clear, that's not digital learning. It was emergency response teaching. And they did that so swiftly with just the resources that they had just so that students could keep learning.

"But that took leadership from the top, right? Obviously there was technology involved in that, but we had staff leaning in, we had academics leaning in, we had research leaning in and the students had to lean in as well."

For example, posting recorded lectures and tutorial slides fits into 'emergency response' online learning, but doesn't represent learning operations that reflect digital competency.

Asynchronous education, where students access course material on their own time, is the required next step.

"I might be an under-served learner, you might be a particularly bright student. I might need my learning slightly different," she said.

"So I might be someone who does well in case studies, gamification or video as opposed to text. And you might be someone who actually prefers text.

"[Asynchronous education] means that we can have all of that information and we can actually consume it as students in a manner that suits us best."

This approach is a real asset to universities, Ms Cairns said, because it promotes lifelong learning and attracts different cohorts, something all education sectors are looking to achieve.

"[Students] need to have the option of being able to consume in the manner that maximises their learning because a lot of them have either got care responsibilities or they have to work," she said.

"Or if you look at people who are career changes or job upgraders or lifelong learners, they might have family commitments.

"They cannot commit to being onsite on campus all of the time, even if that's their preferred method.

"If you think to the Universities Accord report and the under-served learner, and making sure there are plenty of opportunities for everyone to go through higher education, this is actually having a significant change."

How can universities put people at the centre?

The ones who are doing it well "are consulting, bringing people in from the faculties, bringing people in from executive, bringing people in from their council and actually saying, what is our 10-year vision? Where are we going to focus first?" she said.

"We've actually seen great acceleration in learning, and we've been able to see the fantastic content that the universities have being able to be shared to a much wider audience."

However, some university staff say they don't want to teach to half empty classrooms, and if students choose a more digital learning method where they don't have to show up to class, that might become the reality.

But, Ms Cairns said, a drop in class numbers could actually result in more engaged students, and called on universities to track that engagement.

"If you are replacing [face-to-face classes] with engaging learning and personalised learning and things that you like to learn in a manner that you like to consume, you're actually going to get increased engagement," she explained.

"It's not one or the other, right? It is not classroom or online, it is now hybrid," she said.

"Some things will still be in classroom, some things will be online, some will be asynchronous, some will be deep engagement.

"And if you think in Australia [there's] remote and rural; it's not practical, particularly with cost of living for some students to have to come to the city or come to a big regional campus in order to learn.

"They need that flexibility."

Even if universities are large and established institutions, the education leader said, they should be looking to set themselves apart through tech learning.

"We don't want any university to be homogenous. We actually want them to have their uniqueness and differentiation," she said.

"We're at the end of the industrial revolution, which was about mechanising labour. We're at the beginning of the information revolution. Where does information live? It lives in universities.

"How do we take the best of that into transformation and use the best and brightest minds to take education forward into the next century?"

Lecturers, tutors, academics, administrative staff and other National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) members will strike from 12.30pm for four days to protest failed negotiations for a decent pay rise, more job security, and reduced workloads.

Some students have reported receiving emails from teachers informing them classes may be impacted as “many staff will be joining colleagues across the university … to protest the lack of progress in negotiating an Enterprise Agreement”.

Secretary of the NTEU Victorian division Sarah Roberts described the week-long period of industrial action as “unprecedented for RMIT”, but said staff have “upped the ante” in hope of finally coming to an agreement with university management.

“I’ve been bargaining since 2001, and I can’t recall a longer period of time since the expiry of an agreement,” she said.

“There’s been this absolutely intolerable delay in getting bargaining done [at RMIT] and that’s why we are at this extreme point of taking this week-long industrial action.”

Monash University students were also told to prepare for cancelled classes and reduced support services last Wednesday when hundreds of staff walked off the job for 24 hours.

Monash NTEU members were on strike from noon, following 18 months of failed negotiations for a 4.5 per cent pay rise, more job security, a cap on academic workloads, and the right to work from home.

Sarah Roberts said a “significant number” of staff participated in the Monash industrial action.

“We’ve been bargaining for 18 months and people are getting sick and tired of it,” she said.

“The university management decided to spend over $127,000 on a farewell party for [outgoing vice-chancellor Margaret Gardner,] yet at the same time there’s been more than $10m in wage theft from casual employees.

“This is nothing short of a governance failure. It certainly fails the pub test from the staff’s point of view.”

The industrial action included staff rallying outside the University Council’s Chancellery Building at Monash’s Clayton campus on Wednesday afternoon before they engaged in other strike activities.

The union members then picketed at the Clayton campus bus terminal from 8.30am on Thursday before returning to work at noon.

“We don’t take the decision to embark on industrial action lightly,” Ms Roberts said.

“We only do so if there’s no other choice. There will be an impact on students but we’ll be open to calling it off anytime if the university is open to shifting [an agreement] forward.”

A Monash University spokesman said management remained committed to reaching a fair and equitable agreement “as quickly as possible”.

“We believe all remaining matters can be resolved with continued goodwill and openness to compromise on both sides,” they said.

Since late 2022, the university has had 42 meetings with the NTEU over the dispute.

"You are a spokesperson, not an answer person. You're there to answer questions and deliver your key messages."

Theresa Miller

How can academics excel in media interviews, gain success in grant applications, and better communicate at conferences or on panels?

Media and presentation skills trainer Theresa Miller and Campus Review education editor Erin Morley sit down to discuss how academics can best represent their research to the media.

Theresa Miller is the director of TM Media Training and has over 30 years experience in media. She is passionate about helping academics and subject matter experts share their stories and research with audiences, and wants to encourage more women to step up to the microphone, too. As an MC and panel moderator, author, former journalist and former media advisor, Theresa feels she has the experience to help academics and business leaders master their message and promote their cause. 

Mr Grant, 60, had only been in the role for six months after signing up to lead the university’s Constructive Institute Asia Pacific in the Faculty of Arts, which is devoted to media integrity.

He has since joined The Saturday Paper, owned by Schwartz Media, as a columnist, with his first column being published on March 9.

Monash University Faculty of Arts Dean Katie Stevenson confirmed Mr Grant had made the “difficult decision to step down from his role” at the university and “remains passionately committed” to what the Institute is trying to achieve.

“He will now focus on himself, his family and explore ways to support his community on country,” Ms Stevenson said in a statement.

“Stan Grant remains deeply supportive of the Constructive Institute Asia Pacific.

“The Institute remains dedicated to building on the University’s commitment to fostering greater integrity in journalism while countering misinformation in the media.”

Editor-in-chief of The Saturday Paper Erik Jensen said Mr Grant would be a welcome addition to the paper’s “intellectual life”.

“There are few people who write with Stan’s grace and erudition,” Mr Jensen said.

“He is one of the country’s sharpest journalists and he brings to his work a great store of intellect and feeling.

“He believes in the capacity of ideas to change society – and that is what his column will seek to do.”

Mr Grant said he was looking forward to contributing once more to the journalism landscape.

“The Saturday Paper is a writer’s paper and its readers want to engage with ideas. That’s where I want my work to land,” he said.

“I’ve been fortunate to have travelled the world over a 40-year career in journalism, covering the great stories of our time, and I want to bring that experience to understanding a world where far too often we speak across each other not to each other.

“Journalism has been part of the problem, but I still think words matter and my promise to readers is that my columns will look to a shared humanity, to a commitment to justice, and stand with the afflicted in generosity and love.”

Mr Grant’s latest career move comes after he walked away from hosting duties on the ABC’s Q&A program in May 2023, citing racist abuse as the reason behind his departure from the show.

During his final episode as host of the current affairs show, Mr Grant said: “I am down right now, but I will get back up”.

His appointment coincides with The Saturday Paper’s 10th anniversary.

Only 15 per cent of STEM jobs are held by women, and just 23 per cent of senior management, and eight per cent of CEOs in STEM-qualified industries are women, according to 2023 data.

This has resulted in a 17 per cent, or $27,012, gender pay gap in STEM industries.

Bias, stereotyping, and negative social experiences in STEM "begin early in life and have a significant impact on girls and women’s development of confidence and interest in STEM," according to the Advancing Women in STEM strategy from the Department of Industry, Science and Resources.

These experiences often lead to a belief that STEM 'isn't for women', reflected in data that shows young girls generally don't want to go into STEM careers because they're not interested in the subjects, or the subject matter doesn't relate to the career they want.

Low confidence in STEM starts in primary school, and, if social experiences don't improve, will lower with age, and accelerate a lack of interest in science and maths in young girls.

Girls make up a quarter of enrolments in year 12 information technology, physics and engineering classes, women make up 37 per cent of enrolments in university STEM courses, and 17 per cent of vocational education STEM courses.

It starts early

Seeing other girls participate in STEM and directing science and maths activities towards girls can help close the gap, Dr James Curran, chief of ed-tech charity Grok Academy, said.

"If a student has a great experience of digital technologies at school, and in the role models around them, in my observation there is no difference in the level of interest in boys or girls," he explained.

"If they don't have a great experience at school, it tends to have much more of an impact on whether the girls are prepared to continue studying it, and that starts from years five and six, [when] girls start making decisions about what they won't be."

Monash University associate professor Christen Mirth said her start in STEM in high school was supported by her parents, and inspired by her mother, who went back to university in her 40s to gain a masters and PhD.

"My mother is dynamite," she said.

"This, 'you don't frame yourself by your limitations' attitude was prevalent in my household.

"If I were having to battle gender stereotypes at home in addition to battle societal gender stereotypes, it would've been so much harder, so I recognise that I come from this really great position of privilege, and that my parents could afford to send me to university.

"In fact, when I chose biology, they sort of went, 'oh, that makes sense'. And then my dad said, 'are you sure you don't want to be a doctor?'

The scientist said she also had a friend in high school who's mother studied mushrooms and other fungi, which made her realise she wanted a career where she would get her hands dirty.

She also didn't know there were fewer women in STEM subjects until she stared at university.

"The powerful thing behind having a mother who goes back to do her master's and her PhD after her kids have gone off to university, is that it also demonstrates that there is no one correct path to get anywhere, that you can change your mind, that not everyone's trajectories are linear and that's okay," she said.

"I think a lot of those things contributed to where I'm right now."

Insidious behaviour

Small interactions that play into gender stereotypes started to creep into her career post-university, and, at first, she said it was a hard thing to pinpoint.

"It's those little tiny moments that you notice that your confidence gets a little bit eroded: being challenged in meetings, being challenged at conferences, being approached at conferences for not necessarily the right reasons," she said.

"That's the really insidious thing about everyday sexism.

"It's just when that thing feels slightly off and you're not quite sure if it was somebody treating you differently because you're a female and yet you've never seen it happen to a male colleague."

The biologist said she had to build a support network of friends and colleagues to cope with the "death by a thousand cuts" style of unconscious gender bias.

Now, she does what she can to support less-experienced women in STEM who aren't sure how to combat sexist microaggressions.

Doing it differently

She is the associate dean of equity, diversity and inclusion at Monash’s faculty of science, a committee that runs events and support functions for marginalised groups at the university.

"At some point I realised that things won't change on their own, unless I start stepping up," she said.

She said one of the things she can do for younger women is, if she is organising a conference or event, make sure that event has a code of conduct.

Universities have strict rules and reporting processes about harassment, but a large part of STEM work takes place at conferences or "in the field", where the lines of acceptable behaviour are often blurred.

"At this point in the game, I feel like I'm pretty good at shutting inappropriate conversations down, because I've developed the skills to say, "actually, that doesn't make me feel very comfortable."

"[But, there's still] that instinct of asking, 'do I need to be on the defensive here because I'm not sure what their intention is, it's [an evening conference] and everyone's had a bit of wine?'

"A code of conduct would say that everyone is worthy of respect, harassment of any type is not tolerated, and that the people that are present at the conference have a duty of care to call out behaviours.

"I also think it's really important that there be a 'safe person' at conferences or in workplaces."

We need them

Associate professor Mirth said if she could give advice to a young girl interested in STEM, she would tell her to not be deterred by negative social experiences.

"My advice would be that we need her, that we absolutely need her, and that if she loves what she's doing, the trick is only to surround yourself with the right people," she said.

"There are fantastic people out there and we all have our own little personal armies.

"I'd hate to see someone's passion be destroyed by a negative social experience.

"We need women to be involved in STEM. We need their unique perspectives and the joy and passion that they will bring to their job.

"We need the fact that their histories are going to be different from a lot of other people's that are more represented.

"Those voices are so valuable they help make science and innovation more innovative."

A survey by Griffith University found one in two women have directly experienced sexual harassment from a senior co-worker at an Australian tertiary institution, while 90 per cent of academics have been subject to sexism.

A total of 420 female and non-binary Australian academics contributed to the survey.

The university’s Institute for Educational Research director Leonie Rowan said the figures on everyday forms of sexism were also stark, after 86 per cent of respondents reported they experienced disrespect daily.

“Fifty-six per cent of respondents report being reprimanded and spoken rudely to by a male colleague, 92 per cent feel ignored … and 81 per cent endure the humiliation of being ‘put in their place’,” she said.

"Seventy-four per cent report negative impact on careers [and] 67 per cent say it has impacted a promotion or has had negative financial consequences.

“There were such high numbers of people who were just having these as everyday experiences … which are all precursors to worse behaviours.”

One respondent said the discrimination they faced was impossible to ignore, describing it as “death by a thousand cuts”.

“’They don’t want to sleep with you and you are not going to cook for them. So they ignore you,” another respondent added.

Professor Rowan said sexism can damage women’s careers by impacting the opportunities they’re given and how safe they feel in the workplace.

“It could shape whether or not [a staff member] wants to stay in academic environments,” she said.

Meanwhile, Professor Rowan said the health impacts were also concerning with 71 per cent reporting sexism affected their self-esteem, while 68 per cent have experienced poor mental health.

The survey comes after the National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) found incidents of sexual harassment at Australian Universities have increased in the past five years by almost 53 per cent, with one in three staff reporting they’ve experienced an incident.

NTEU president Alison Barnes said it was “hard to fathom” how widespread sexual harassment and sexism was across Australian universities.

“University bosses have failed to address this despite a mountain of evidence showing staff are being sexually harassed and discriminated against at appalling levels,” she said.

“The brutal combination of broken complaints processes and two-thirds of staff being in insecure jobs is fuelling harassment and sexism in universities."

The Action Plan addressing gender based violence in higher education was finalised last week, outlining what needs to be done to solve rife sexual misconduct in universities.

Professor Rowan hopes the results of the survey would further encourage universities to improve the workplace to make it more inviting and safe for female and non-binary staff.

“We really hope [these statistics] will make people feel comfortable to open up conversations and share stories of experiences they had,” she said.

“We want women to feel heard, want non-binary academics to feel heard, and want their voices to not be the end of the conversation.”

According to Charlie Hales, director at cyber security company Waterstons, CISOs in education environments experience high levels of stress due to institutional resistance to change, coupled with dealing with keeping the huge amounts of data universities store safe.

Australian universities are the fourth most targeted education sector in the world due to the amount of valuable research data they each hold.

Ms Hales said even though CISOs jobs are already high pressure, a lack of cyber culture in some universities are accelerating those pressures and preventing them doing their jobs.

Cybersecurity practices are relatively new in Australia, particularly in the tertiary education sector.

They include introducing new standards and protocols, such as DMARC, or Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting and Conformance.

DMARC is software that helps prevent spam or phishing content appearing in email inboxes.

Google recently upped its email authentication standards for all gmail users, especially domain owners who send emails to 5000 or more recipients.

Bulk email senders need to have particularly robust protocols, including an up-to-date DMARC policy and a one-click unsubscribe function.

Yahoo and Apple recently rolled out similar requirements, and other companies with email services recommend strong DMARC policies to users.

Proofpoint, a cybersecurity and data consultant, recently found 83 per cent of universities don't have recommended strength DMARC policies, and 24 per cent don't have one at all.

Ms Hales said resistance to other new processes like two-factor authentication, where users have to enter another code from a different device to log in to their accounts, stems from a lack of understanding about data breach prevention processes.

"Other industries are a little bit quicker to build the cyber culture, which a lot of universities are doing at the moment, but still, academics and students are seeing it as not their problem," she explained.

"They're seeing it as an IT problem. So [universities are] having to address that as well as all the cybersecurity worries that they've got at the moment."

When it comes to explaining the value of CISO's work to universities, Ms Hales said it's important that universities remember any change to processes benefits them and their work.

"Imagine if you did all this great research, developed this great product, and someone stole it," she said.

"We're recognising you have amazing work that you've got here, years worth of data in some instances, and you really want to make sure that's protected."

Having dedicated CISOs is a relatively recent change in universities, and many haven't worked in universities before.

"Historically they didn't even have them, but now they've then tried to do them in-house, some universities, but others have recruited experts externally that have got a lot of the cybersecurity experience, but they don't have the experience of working in higher education or universities in particular.

"To get everything across all the business units in a higher education institution is quite hard.

"[CISOs] need to get the business unit leaders to drive this for them. Because if it comes from them, there's less resistance from the other areas in the university."

The seven Shaping Australia winners, who were presented with their awards by federal Education Minister Jason Clare in Canberra on Tuesday night, were chosen from 18 finalists who have contributed to the nation in one of three areas of university endeavour: research, teaching or engagement with the community.

The awards, conceived by Universities Australia and supported by The Australian, were judged by an eminent panel chaired by former Education Department secretary Lisa Paul. They include a People’s Choice category chosen by popular vote in which more than 35,000 people participated.

Ms Paul said the awards showed “how universities are going the extra mile to make a difference to their communities, to Australia and indeed to the world”.

Other judges were former governor-general Sir Peter Cosgrove, GO Foundation chief executive Charlene Davison, Paralympian Kurt Fearnley, The Australian editor-in-chief Michelle Gunn, special envoy for Southeast Asia Nicholas Moore, and former Australian National University vice-chancellor Brian Schmidt.

University of NSW engineer Guan Yeoh said his fire-retardant paint, which won the People’s Choice award in the Problem Solver category for research projects, started in 2018 when a company approached the university looking for a “game changer” product to resist bushfires.

“After three years, in 2021, there was a eureka moment. We managed to get a formulation which protected the wooden substrate. I said ‘wow, this is fantastic’,” Professor Yeoh said.

The resulting product, FSA Fire­coat, is rated to resist a bushfire attack level of 40 and is commercially available to protect buildings in bushfire-prone areas.

University of Newcastle scientist Paul Dastoor said the Problem Solver award to his team – for a technology that can measure sugar levels in the body by a user licking a plastic strip – is the result of nearly three decades of research. The technology is being commercialised through IBS, a Nasdaq listed company, and soon will undergo clinical trials.

La Trobe University’s Nexus program, which trains people in professional careers to be teachers in schools in disadvantaged areas of Victoria, was the judges’ choice for the Future Builder Award, which recognises excellence in university teaching.

The University of South Australia’s Arjun Burlakoti and his team won the People’s Choice in the Future Builder Award for a teaching program that has lifted students’ enthusiasm and interest in anatomy, a necessary subject for allied health students but often one they find challenging.

In the Community Champion Award judges chose joint winners: Central Queensland University’s program to give disabled people access to the beach and the University of South Australia’s ifarmwell project to improve mental health and end the epidemic of rural suicide.

CQUniversity physiotherapist Sasha Job said many of her patients were missing out on important events, such as weddings and birthdays, held at beaches because of their disabilities.

“Beach culture is extremely important where I live and I was finding more and more that some of my patients couldn’t attend the beach,” she said. The U-BEACH program gives practical help with equipment such as a special model of walker designed for sand and hoists to help enter the water.

UniSA psychologist Kate Gunn grew up on a farm and said that whenever she went home she saw serious mental health issues in farming communities with not much support available for them.

Dr Gunn launched a website with information, podcasts and five online 30-minute learning modules. After doing each module, people practice skills for a few weeks before doing the next one.

Curtin University’s tax clinic, in which students (under supervision) give tax advice to people without the resources to use a tax agent, was the People’s Choice as Community Champion.

Accountancy academic Annette Morgan started the clinic in 2018 and the concept was so successful that, supported by the Australian Taxation Office, there are now tax clinics in all states and territories with 14 universities involved.

Read more about the winners and finalists in the Shaping Australia magazine in The Australian on Wednesday.

The University of New South Wales launched its Nuclear Innovation Centre last Thursday, a hub where engineering, mathematics, physics, and chemistry students will research and design nuclear technology.

The centre will contribute to building the workforce required to operate nuclear submarines, although research and development will also be targeted at medical, mining, and space exploration industries.

AUKUS purposes aside, academics and students have put nuclear-powered climate-change solutions high on their list of priorities.

Centre director Associate Professor Edward Obbard said although the net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 goal is a start, longer term, Australia will need to find ways to de-carbonise its energy supply.

"I have two children, and they are seven and 13 years old. In 2050 they will be 33 and 39. If I was them, I would want every single technological option for the challenges they endure," he said.

"This includes nuclear energy and nuclear technology. That's why I'm a researcher in nuclear materials, striving to make this technology better."

Former UNSW mechanical engineering student Harvey Ling said his studies inspired him to join a student nuclear research project called AtomCraft, which he believes exemplifies the Centre's important job of building workforces.

"[AtomCraft is] planning to design, build and operate the first nuclear fusion device built and designed by undergraduate engineering students; the first of its kind, never done before," he said.

"The innovation centre brings together science, technology, engineering, policy, law; all those pillars Australia is propped up on ... it represents what nuclear is about, which is broad application."

Mr Ling is going on to study nuclear fusion for his PhD thesis to contribute to global warming solutions.

"It's a problem for my generation; I'll grow up in a world that's been impacted by climate change," the UNSW alumni explained.

"It seems like there is an obligation for me to contribute to a solution, which is what drew me to nuclear technology, [that's] improving and saving human lives.

"We don't have many nuclear linear people, or a nuclear workforce; if we are to find a solution for climate change, we need those people."

Minister for Defence Industry Pat Conroy said STEM studies and workforce development is of upmost importance.

"To deliver the AUKUS submarine programme, we need to train a workforce of thousands of Australians, and we're setting ourselves up for success by expanding the pool of young people who study engineering, mathematics, chemistry, and physics," the minister said.

"The Albanese government is funding an additional 4000 places on STEM courses across 16 universities to support the development of the nuclear workforce we need.

"I'm proud to say that UNSW is one of the top destinations for these students, with 340 places allocated."

Academics from all three AUKUS countries - Australia, the US and the UK - will share defence research and technology across borders as one of the pillars of the agreement.

The Group of Eight (Go8) contributes 53 per cent of Australia's defence research output.

An advisory body of former defence leaders and security experts will oversee the Go8's research, chief executive Vicki Thomson explained.

"This is about coming together as a group of universities with expert advice from those who actually know the other side of the fence," she told ABC Radio National.

Ms Thomson said the committee will provide streamlined communication from universities to the government, but also create a sense of trust between industries and academics from different countries.

"There's often a disconnect between the language of [the Department of Defence] and the language of universities," she said.

"All research is global ... but what's different about AUKUS is the three major parties will share very sensitive, very classified research in a trusted environment, but we need to make sure that trust is real."

A former chief of army, a former director of land capability, defence intelligence, and Australian defence institute leaders will sit on the advisory body.

"When I talk to any of our defence colleagues, and ask 'what is keeping you up at night?', it's not about the submarine going through the water, it's about the people [needed], and that's a big role for our universities," Ms Thomson said.

Donations and funding gifts have been received by the Nuclear Innovation Centre, including a $7.5m injection from the Tyree Foundation, announced by foundation chair Dr Peter Tyree at the launch.

Dr Obbard said the donation will help to provide an amazing opportunity for students of the centre because they can use their time there to form a career beyond their possible PhD studies.

"It actually provides a career path for these academics into research careers at UNSW or elsewhere as well," he said.

"And that's why it's really exciting, because normally funding just gets you a postdoc and then you're out."

Staff are unimpressed with the university urging them to “explore alternative modes of transport” such as cycling, carpooling and public transport.

It comes as the university has seen a return to pre-Covid campus attendance, with most car parks full during peak periods.

The prices during non-peak times are capped at $7.05 a day for red permit areas but peak pricing will see costs rise to $10.60 a day.

At peak times prices will double, surging from $107 for a normal 28-day permit to $212 for a peak permit.

The highest costs will be in the first four weeks of semester one and two and during Clayton campus May and September graduations.

The new 'Pay As You Use System' will take effect today on the Clayton, Caulfield, Peninsula and Parkville campuses.

According to an all staff email, the rise in fees is to “meet the increased operational and maintenance costs associated with parking”.

“We strongly encourage you to explore alternative modes of transportation whenever feasible. A shift from single-occupancy vehicles towards sustainable alternatives such as carpooling will contribute to Monash University’s Net Zero Transport Strategy by reducing greenhouse gas emissions associated with travelling to Monash campuses," the email said.

Social media posts made after the announcement directed towards Bradley Williamson, the university’s executive director of buildings and property, made it clear staff are not happy.

One noted that she would need “ an additional 1% pay rise JUST to cover this additional cost”.

Another said: “I am expected to be at work five days a week so I guess I am supposed to be ok spending $200 a (month) for parking at work in March”.

Others accused the university of “greed” and “price gouging at its best”.

National Tertiary Education Union Monash branch president Dr Ben Eltham said staff were not consulted about the price hike, which will also have an impact on students.

“The university has offered staff a three per cent pay rise this year - but these parking hikes are as high as 106 per cent. There’s been no consultation, just an email out to staff with the bad news.

“These charges hurt students and frontline teaching and administration staff the worst. Public transport to Clayton remains substandard and not everyone can easily get there on a train, plus a bus."

One source said staff “who have to be on campus for three weeks over O Week and semester will pay $300 for three weeks of parking”.

Many pointed out that taking public transport to the main Clayton campus adds an hour to the journey each way.

The university was contacted for comment, but did not respond before the time of publication.