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15 June 2005
The University of Newcastle upon Tyne, UK, and Monash University have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to establish close collaboration and cooperation on teaching, learning, research and community development.
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| University of Newcastle vice-chancellor Professor Christopher Edwards with Monash senior deputy vice-chancellor Professor Stephen Parker. |
The two universities have also signed an agreement to establish collaboration and cooperation in health science, particularly in regenerative medicine, stem cell sciences, healthy ageing, neurosciences, paediatric psychiatric illnesses and developments in medical and health sciences education.
The University of Newcastle upon Tyne began as a School of Medicine and Surgery in 1834 and in Armstrong College, which was founded in the city in 1871 for teaching physical sciences. It has more than 17,000 students and, in the year ending July 2003, received A$137 million in research grants and contracts.
Senior deputy vice-chancellor Professor Stephen Parker, who exchanged agreements with University of Newcastle vice-chancellor Professor Christopher Edwards, said the MOU signalled Monash's second strategic partnership in the UK. The first was with King's College London.
"We expect to collaborate on several levels with the University of Newcastle," Professor Parker said. "In management terms, we will benchmark some processes and exchange information.
"Newcastle has improved its research performance markedly and will help us make preparations for a research quality exercise, with senior staff almost certainly coming to Australia in the near future. In February, Professors Ed Byrne, Merran Evans, Graham Webb and Alan Trounson visited Newcastle, following my exploratory visit last year, and they returned enthusiastic about the possibilities for collaboration."
The MOU supports:
- research collaboration in areas of mutual interest
- joint teaching and the development of joint courses of study to be conducted in Australia, Britain and elsewhere
- exchange of academic and teaching materials
- exchange of scholars in the course of academic development
- sponsorship of conferences, seminars, workshops and other academic meetings, and
- cooperation in institutional benchmarking exercises.
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