Abstract
COVID-19-related public health measures have severely impacted the Australian higher education system (AHES). This paper examines the resilience of the AHES, particularly its past reliance on onshore international students to generate revenue that cross-subsidises operational and research expenses. By our measure, ten universities are at risk of financial default. With a different approach on the part of the Government and university leadership, surplus monies could have contributed to building a more resilient AHES. Our findings correct widely held misconceptions about the state of the AHES and aim to provide valuable learnings to individual universities and the sector more broadly.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 2203-2235 |
Number of pages | 33 |
Journal | Accounting & Finance |
Volume | 62 |
Issue number | 2 |
Early online date | 22 Sept 2021 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - Jun 2022 |
Keywords
- Accounting
- Australian public university system
- Business models
- Financial ratios
- Neoliberal
- New public management
- Resilience