Universities can prosper only by joining together

In today’s world the competition is from outside New Zealand, not within. Enhanced government investment into this environment would yield rapid and substantial gains for the universities and the country.

There are two international models that are worth looking at in order to achieve these benefits:

Dutch law required the entities to retain their legal identities, but regulations were passed that enabled them to integrate their governance and management system. WUR has a single supervisory board, a single executive council, centralised administrative groups, and their teaching and research groups with common interests are managed as integrated science groups.

The outcome of this arrangement 20 years on is that WUR is a highly successful institution with a THE ranking of 64 and the top ranking for an agricultural university. Almost one-third of its students are international students.

Rather than wasting time and resources looking at patches like name changes for Victoria or support partners for Lincoln, we need a fundamental review of the structure and funding of universities in New Zealand to ensure they are fit for purpose and the future. To start the debate and process I suggest the following:

■ A move from the competitive multi-university system to a collaborative integrated one. Formation of a single legal entity – the University of New Zealand (UNZ) with a single council and consolidated administrative hub. An alternative option would be to leave the University of Auckland as a separate entity (it is big enough, and doing this would provide a bit of internal competition). An intermediate step in this process that could capture economic efficiencies but not the naming benefits would be to leave the current legal identities but integrate the governance and administrative functions (WUR model).

■ Campus groups retain their current special character, are defined geographically and adopt the location name or retain their current one (UNZ Canterbury or UNZ Victoria).

■ Government funding (including research) is reviewed to ensure the funding process generates the skills and capabilities required and enables recruitment of top academics and researchers.

■ As part of the review the relationship between universities and the Crown research institutes be looked at. Have no doubt that as a small, distant and unique economy, our future is intimately linked with the success of our university system. It is unacceptable to let it drift and change in an unco-ordinated way.

STUFF There can be little doubt that if current university funding and institutional arrangements are left in place, universities will follow polytechs in needing a bailout, says the writer.