Australian public universities’ response to COVID-19

Abstract

Purpose
The purpose of this study is to explore the COVID-19 responses of Australian public universities, specifically the actions and measures taken to assist staff, students, and the wider community.

Design/methodology and approach
The study uses widely used content analysis to investigate the measures taken by these universities to support staff, students, and the broader community, based on data from 37 Australian public universities' published websites.

Findings
The findings show that during the COVID-19 pandemic, Australian public universities provided immediate assistance to students, faculty, and the community. As part of their unanticipated COVID pandemic, they implemented online teaching, financial assistance, mental health support, and COVID-19-related initiatives. In comparison to non-Go8 universities, the Group of Eight (Go8) universities demonstrated greater resources in delivering these initiatives.

Practical implications
Given the integral role of universities in the Australian economy and society, this research contributes to our understanding of how these institutions navigate unprecedented COVID 19 situations while considering the needs of staff, students, and the broader community.

Originality/value
Universities in Australia have played an important role in the economy and society of the country. This paper is one of the first to look at how Australian universities were dealing with the unprecedented COVID-19 situation while taking into account all stakeholders, including staff, students, and society.

Rights

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/

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Identifiers

Repository URI

https://research-portal.uws.ac.uk/en/publications/31d170df-0782-40c4-9ac0-45afd7a4c482