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The Australian Centre for Student Equity and Success acknowledges Indigenous peoples across Australia as the Traditional Owners of the lands on which the nation’s campuses are situated. With a history spanning more than 60,000 years as the original educators, Indigenous peoples hold a unique place in our nation. We recognise the importance of their knowledge and culture, and reflect the principles of participation, equity, and cultural respect in our work. We pay our respects to Elders past, present, and future, and consider it an honour to learn from our Indigenous colleagues, partners, and friends.

Universities For All

The Australian Centre for Student Equity and Success (ACSES) is on a mission to ensure that everyone, regardless of their background, has a fair shot at success in university.

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Lowering barriers to higher education

As a What Works Centre, we are committed to assisting all universities in implementing evidence-based student equity programs, contributing significantly to the shared goal of improving outcomes in higher education for everyone.

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Collaborating with and supporting universities in conducting trials of various sizes, aimed at translating research findings and testing interventions for student equity.
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Offering a range of grants for trials, scale-up projects, and impact evaluations in student equity.
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Delivering a national evaluation capability building program for both equity professionals and university leaders.
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Developing a Higher Education Equity Database HEED incorporating trials and evaluation data.
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Partnering with higher education institutions to enhance their data collection and systems related to higher education equity.
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Offering a range of research grants, including Equity Fellowships, First Nation Fellowships, Small Research Grants and Large Research Grants.
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Providing research exchange opportunities such as Visiting Fellowships and Higher Degree by Research (HDR) Scholarships.
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Conducting forums, webinars, and communities of practice dedicated to disseminating trials and evaluation results and facilitating the exchange of best practices in student equity evaluations.
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Organising policy symposiums aimed at advancing research and evaluation outcomes to provide insights for policymaking regarding student equity.
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Director’s welcome
Welcome to the Australian Centre for Student Equity and Success website

Australian universities are central to the nation’s future prosperity, social cohesion, and place in the world. So, it is vital that everyone who can pursue higher education is given an opportunity to do so. This is the primary reason for the Australian Centre for Student Equity and Success (ACSES).

Established at Curtin University since 2013 and funded by the Australian Government Department of Education, ACSES provides national leadership in student equity in higher education, connecting research, policy, and practice to improve higher education participation and success for marginalised and disadvantaged people. Above all, our role is to harness practical insights from robust research that can make a real difference to the way in which universities are run so as to ensure that they are places for learning for all Australians.

ACSES plays a central role in producing, collating and disseminating research and recommendations to stakeholders, from policymakers and practitioners, to students and parents. The Centre’s many activities are geared to helping all universities to place students at the heart of what they do, and recognising that disadvantaged students frequently have distinct needs which, when addressed, allow them to succeed.

The growing reputation and influence of the Centre has contributed to student equity becoming firmly incorporated into higher education policy in Australia and internationally.

In whichever way, on behalf of the Centre, I look forward to working with you. Please do not hesitate to contact us via email at acses@curtin.edu.au if you have a question or require any assistance in student equity in higher education research, policy, or practice.

Regards,

Professor Shamit Saggar Executive Director
Australian Centre for Student Equity and Success
ACSES: Universities For All

Hear from our directors as they share insights into how our work with universities across Australia will build a fairer future for students of all backgrounds.

Our values

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Integrity

Act with honesty and respect, and establish trust that will underpin successful initiatives.

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Fairness

Open to all, for the benefit of all.

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Collaboration

Partnering with underrepresented groups, equity practitioners, university leaders, and policymakers.

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Innovation

Welcoming and facilitating transformative educational initiatives and bold approaches to change.

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Impact

Harnessing evidence-based research and practical know-how to improve student equity experiences.