Community focused
The University of Western Sydney sits in one of the most culturally diverse and economically dynamic regions in Australia. With 1.85 million people from more than 100 nations, Greater Western Sydney has the fastest growing population and the third largest economy in Australia.
Understanding this complex community and working in partnership with its people and organisations to build robust and mutually-beneficial relationships is a key University principle.
Building on its foundations as a community-based university, UWS has embedded strategies across all its teaching and research so that its students and staff interact in productive and meaningful ways with local, national and international communities in their day-to-day activities. These external relationships are known to improve and accelerate the learning experience.
Through the exchange of knowledge and resources with community partners the University has established a reputation as one of the most “engaged” higher education institutions in Australia, a model for relationship building considered to have national application. In recognition of its ground-breaking work in this area, UWS was selected as one of 20 international case studies being developed by the Talloires Network, a global network of universities committed to strengthening the civic roles and social responsibilities of higher education.
The University’s integrated approach to collaboration with external communities has led to hundreds of partnerships that enable students to develop academically, socially and culturally by learning on “live” projects in a community-based setting. In this way the relevance of skills and knowledge gained in the classroom is heightened as students apply this knowledge to real-world situations. It means they can adapt quickly to new environments with a high level of understanding of the context in which they will work upon graduating.
UWS has built a community-based component into all its subjects or units. More than 5000 students are now participating in some form of community-based learning or activity involving an external partner. These include internships, volunteering in areas such as literacy, youth mentoring, small business development and training, climate change awareness, environmental education and support for not-for-profit organisations.
The University has developed a rigorous tracking system to gauge and improve performance in this area. The tracking system comprises an online data collection used to monitor engagement activity so that the full benefits of these relationships to the University and its communities are realised.
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