A new research report from the Australian Centre for Student Equity and Success (ACSES) highlights emerging opportunities for universities, amid intensifying demands for sensitive student equity data across the sector.
Centring equity in data and digital governance: Informing policy to empower practice looks at how Australian universities are managing challenges around the governance of equity data, which tracks how students from underrepresented backgrounds enrol, study, and succeed in higher education.
This question is explored in the context of the rapid digital transformation of the sector, alongside major reforms to privacy laws driven by the Australian Universities Accord’s call for expanded equity data collection.
ACSES Equity Fellow Dr Bret Stephenson conducted the research while at La Trobe University, drawing on interviews with equity practitioners and senior leaders at institutions nationwide.
He said while student equity data was essential for understanding and addressing disadvantage, it was important to ensure it is appropriately managed.
“Without clear safeguards, sensitive information students provide when needing support might be missed, shared more widely than necessary, or used in ways students do not expect or understand,” Dr Stephenson said.
Funded via ACSES’s Equity Fellowship program, the report provides practical recommendations for governments, universities, and practitioners to improve the collection and reporting of student equity data.
ACSES Research and Policy Program Director Professor Ian Li said Dr Stephenson’s study was among the first of its kind in Australia.
“This research shines the spotlight on the perspectives of those tasked with navigating the tensions between institutional demands, professional ethics, and student trust,” Professor Li said.
Read the full report here: Centring equity in data and digital governance: Informing policy to empower practice.
