MUSSE

The University has been placed top in Australia and 36th in the world by the Times Higher Education rankings of the world’s top 200 universities.

Melbourne was also the leading university in the Oceania region.

The University ranked top in Australia in Teaching (the learning environment), Research (volume, income and reputation) and Citations (measuring research influence); it was also second in Industry Income (innovation and knowledge transfer) and third in International (looking at the proportion of international staff and students).

The Times ranking followed last month’s affirmation of Melbourne’s research performance in the Shanghai Jiao Tong rankings of world universities, in which it jumped 13 places to be 62nd in the world.

The University was also placed 38th in the world in the recent QS World University Rankings table and was Australia’s leading university and 43rd in the world in the 2010 Higher Education Evaluation and Accreditation Council of Taiwan performance ranking of scientific papers.

Vice-Chancellor Professor Glyn Davis welcomed the news and said it was encouraging in that it affirmed the University’s new direction, while acknowledging the dedication and hard work of its staff.

“We have embarked on a landmark renewal of the University’s vision. This ranking announcement comes as another welcome validation of our efforts,” Professor Davis said.

“I would like to acknowledge the work of all our teaching staff and researchers, without whom this outstanding result and others would not have been possible.

“This excellent result continues the trend of improvements in our rankings over the past eight years,’’ he said.

Mr Jonathan Norton, Senator Claire Moore and Mr Matthew Brett

The University of Melbourne’s Mental Health Strategy has won the Gold Award at the 2010 Australian and New Zealand Mental Health Service Achievement Awards.

The Gold Award recognised the University’s “innovative university mental health care strategy incorporating aspects of care ranging from health promotion to individual therapy”.

The Mental Health Strategy outlines a range of activities relating to the mental health and wellbeing of students and staff at the University.

In particular, it is explicitly aimed at improved academic outcomes for students, arising from the recognition that mental health issues can have a severe impact on wellbeing, the student experience, academic engagement and performance in higher education.

Manager of the Counselling Service, and Chair of the Mental Health Strategy Working Group, Mr Jonathan Norton said it was gratifying to have received acknowledgment from outside the higher education sector that the University’s activities in mental health promotion and illness prevention was of a high standard.

“It is also great encouragement for all the academic, faculty-based professional, and student services staff who have contributed to the development and implementation of the strategy,” he said.

“I think the Gold Award reflects two things: the recognition of the attempt to take an integrated and comprehensive approach to promoting mental health within a large community such as ours, and the innovative nature of the strategy both as a whole and in its constituent activities.”

Mr Norton and Mr Matthew Brett (General Manager, Disability and Equity) accepted the award on behalf of the University from Senator Claire Moore, Chair of the Senate Community Affairs Committee.

The Gold Award, which comes with a cash prize, was conferred at the Mental Health Services Conference in Sydney last week.

The Achievement Awards are presented every year by the Mental Health Services Conference of Australia and New Zealand (The MHS) to recognise and encourage best practice, excellence and innovation in mental health service delivery. The Awards have been held annually since 1992.

Associate Professor Elizabeth Ozanne (Social Work), Vice-Chancellor Professor Glyn Davis, MA Social Work student Laura Kosta, the Hon The Hon. Lisa Neville MP, and Professor Jim Angus, Dean of the Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences

By Gabrielle Murphy

Key child protection and mental health workforce improvements are just some of the anticipated results of the partnership forged by the University with the Victorian departments of Human Services and Health.

The partnership between the University and the North and West Metropolitan Region of the Department of Human Services and the Department of Health was launched at a reception at University House on 1 September.

In front of a packed audience of staff from the two state government departments and staff and students from across campus, a memorandum of understanding was signed by the Vice-Chancellor, Professor Glyn Davis, the Department of Human Services’ North and West Metropolitan Region Director, Jan Snell, and Director of Health and Aged Care in the Region, Department of Health, Sandy Austin.

Lisa Neville, the Minister for Community Services said, “We are here today because we know that we live in complex times and our communities are becoming more complex too.

“The inherent complexity and challenges faced by human services and health professionals underline the importance of the partnership with the University.”

“Partnership with the University promises to deliver so much for vulnerable families in Melbourne’s northern and western suburbs,” Ms Neville said. “Making structural and cultural changes are not things government can do alone. Partnership is essential if we are to effectively improve our responses.”

Dean of the Faculty of Medicine Dentistry and Health Sciences Professor James Angus agreed. “I can only endorse…that none of us can do this alone,” he said. “Such connections ensure the relevance of research while at the same time linking practitioners, policy makers to the latest developments in research locally and internationally.”

Working together, the University and the departments of Human Services and Health have already achieved significant developments to improve and tailor the services delivered, and the morale and expertise of the staff who deliver them.

The University and government partners have worked together to develop a more practical approach to the Master of Social Work so students become more work ready for a human service career. This has already increased the number of student placements to 14 this year, and been the impetus for an increased focus on report writing and preparation for court processes. The Department of Social Work has also introduced guest lecturers from the Department of Human Services.

Planning is underway to expose medical and allied health students to community health settings in addition to their acute experience, and to develop a new Population Health short course to improve the health-planning skills of decision makers and service planners.

“These are all practical, sensible, meaningful initiatives which will boost the quality of our workforce in both the medium and long term,” Ms Neville said.

www.knowledgepartnerships.unimelb.edu.au

Dr Michael Ewing, Deputy Director of the Asia Institute, addresses an enthusiastic audience of Year 9 and 10 high school students of Asian languages at an Asia Week 2010 event.

By Roger Nelson

A panel discussion on ‘Islam and the Politics of the Veil,’ a meet-the-director screening of Indian documentary films, a live performance of chart-topping Chinese pop songs, and a networking lunch of more than 60 academic staff and students who undertake Asia-related research; these were just some of the events held as part of Asia Week, from 5-11 September.

Asia Week is an annual festival which showcases the diversity of Asian cultures and related activities in and around the University.

It was presented by the Asia Institute, the University’s key centre for teaching, learning and researching Asia and the Middle East, which sits within the Faculty of Arts and offers a range of subjects in Asian Studies, Arabic, Chinese, Indonesian, Islamic Studies and Japanese.

Asia Week was first held in 2008 and this year’s festival was the most successful ever. Nine events held over seven days attracted about 1000 guests.

The Asia Institute worked with seven partner organisations, including the Asia Education Foundation, Asialink, the Australia India Institute, and the University of Melbourne Film Society.

Staff and students relished the opportunity to discover new aspects of Asian cultures, to discuss ideas about teaching, learning and researching Asian languages, and to debate topical issues.

A lunchtime ‘Chinese Pop Extravaganza’ explored the popularity of Taiwanese pop music in mainland China, and Dr Lewis Mayo explained how the rise of SMS spearheaded a revival of classical Chinese language use among young people.

The Indonesian Night Market celebrated the cultural interplay between Indonesia and Australia in Melbourne through diverse musical performances which ranged from traditional gamelan to hip hop.

A weekend conference for language learners forged links between Australian students, who worked hard in Asian language classrooms, and their compatriot international students who lacked access to native speakers of English.

Another event, ‘Opening a Door to Asia,’ saw more than 70 high school students visit the University to discuss the importance of Asian literacy over a range of hands-on activities. The enthusiasm of the Year 9 and 10 students was inspirational. Catherine, a Lorne-Aireys Inlet P-12 College student, enthused that learning Indonesian is ‘a great opportunity and I am grabbing it with both hands.’

More details about Asia Week 2010 can be viewed at www.asiainstitute.unimelb.edu.au/asiaweek.

Halcyon Macleod with Mrs Vicki Fairfax

The VCA has awarded more than $100 000 in scholarships and prizes to students and recent graduates of the Theatre, Dance and Production programs.

Among the recipients was theatre graduate Halcyon Mcleod, who was awarded the $20 000 George Fairfax Memorial Award.

The award assists and encourages young artists in the development of their professional career in the theatre industry.

Since she graduated in 2006, Ms Mcleod has worked mainly with the hybrid arts company she co-founded, My Darling Patricia, which combined performance, puppetry, film, sculpture and installations.

She wrote the original texts for the company’s critically acclaimed productions, Politely Savage (2005, 2006, 2007), Night Garden (2009) and was writer/director for Africa (2009).

Ms Mcleod will use the George Fairfax Scholarship to help orchestrate the presentation of the company’s works to an international audience.

“The Fairfax Award is a fantastic and rare opportunity for recent graduates to undertake professional development,” she said.

“This award will allow me to explore international contexts for my work with My Darling Patricia which would not be possible without this support.”