The grounds of Australian universities are filled to overflowing with students scurrying from class to class like crabs in shells of aspiration. The country’s top research universities, Melbourne, Sydney and Australian National University (ANU) are huge by world standards – typically enrolling 40,000 students, in comparison to American counterpart Stanford University with just under 16,000 filling their hallowed halls. With the Australian government’s budget cuts to higher education and plans to increase per-student contribution, some are concerned demand for degrees may drop and see the robust university sector fade to a skeleton.
Elise Eyears 