4,000 Additional University Places for AUKUS Workforce

Students walk through The Quadrangle at the University of Sydney in Sydney, Australia, on May 8, 2013. AAP Image/Paul Miller

The Albanese government is investing $128.5 million (US$82.8 million) to fund an extra 4,000 Commonwealth-supported places (CSP) for graduates in university STEM courses.

From Sept. 1, universities are able to apply for additional CSPs for more students in engineering, mathematics, chemistry, and physics courses that are designed to meet the AUKUS (Australia, United Kingdom, and the United States) submarine program’s needs.

One thousand places for bachelor-level courses will commence each year from 2024 to 2027.

The AUKUS submarine program supports the delivery of advanced conventionally-armed nuclear-powered submarines to the Australian Defence Force, strengthening the combined industrial capacity between Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States, with increased cooperation and robust trilateral supply chains.

Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles said Australia’s nuclear-powered submarines’ success would be central to the people who build them.

“The Albanese government is committed to investing in young Australians and skilling our future workforce,” Mr. Marles said.

Anthony Albanese (C), Penny Wong (L) and Richard Marles (R) walk out of Government House after being sworn in as prime minister, foreign minister, and deputy prime minister respectively, in front of the Governor-General, His Excellency General the Honourable David Hurley AC DSC (Retd) in Canberra, Australia, on May 23, 2022. David Gray/Getty Images

About 800 of the 4,000 places are going to South Australian universities as part of the Cooperation Agreement to support the construction of the submarines in Adelaide.

The Albanese government said the South Australian University places will increase the STEM workforce supply and develop the advanced technical skills needed to work on nation-changing projects.

Meanwhile, the Department of Education said growing a qualified and experienced STEM workforce to support Australia’s nuclear-powered submarine enterprise was a national priority.

“The scale of work required to support the enterprise will be unlike any previous shipbuilding program in Australian history and will deliver career and job opportunities for generations,” the department said.

However, only certain higher education providers listed in the Higher Education Support Act 2003 would be eligible to receive an allocation of places. Outstanding higher education providers would not be eligible to apply.

Engineering Advocates Call for 60,000 Engineering Graduates

Meanwhile, peak engineering advocates applauded the government’s commitment to investment in AUKUS engineering education and for recognising engineering’s significant role in Australia’s future.

“AUKUS is one our nation’s most significant engineering endeavours since the Snowy Hydro project and the [engineering] profession will be a critical voice in regulation and oversight, as well as the operation and maintenance required to support this program,” Engineers Australia CEO Romilly Madew said on Sept. 6.

An undated image of what an SSN-AUKUS submarine might look like underwater, released on March 13, 2023. BAE

Ms. Madew said “urgent action projects” such as AUKUS and Snowy Hydro are necessary to achieve net zero before 2050; however, the “ever-growing demand for engineers” requires further interventions.

“Engineers Australia is calling on the government to adopt the target of producing 60,000 additional engineering graduates by 2033. This will help cater to our nation’s engineering needs and ensure that Australia continues to thrive in an increasingly complex and interconnected world,” she said.

“We remain committed to working alongside policymakers to ensure Australia’s engineering potential is fully realised.”

Meanwhile, defence was a cornerstone of the federal budget. Over ten years, $4.2 billion was set aside to establish the Australian Submarine Agency, $3.4 billion to establish the Advanced Strategic Capabilities Accelerator, and $7.9 million to establish the Australian Nuclear-Powered Submarine Safety Regulator.

However, leaders in long-term sustainable national higher education and research policy said more work should be done to support research in the defence sector.

High Education Leaders: Research Capability Neglected

Leaders in the national’s higher education, Group of Eight (Go8) comprises of Australia’s leading research-intensive universities—the University of Melbourne, the Australian National University, the University of Sydney, the University of Queensland, the University of Western Australia, the University of Adelaide, Monash University, and the University of New South Wales.

An undated visualisation of what an SSN-AUKUS submarine might look like at sea was issued on March 13, 2023. BAE

Go8 Chief Executive Vicki Thomson said although funding for 4,000 additional university places in STEM disciplines would help generate a highly skilled defence workforce, “there is some concern that the vast research capability, which is equally as critical to AUKUS, was not considered a priority worth inclusion.”

Ms. Thompson said ensuring Australian students retain the ability to attend a world-class university “gets a big tick,” but there are “two aspects to our future defence capability, and research goes hand in hand with a highly skilled workforce from world-class university training.”

However, Ms. Thompson said the budget needed careful balance given the present cost of living and health pressures, and Go8 “certainly supported the government’s obvious commitment to those areas.”

“We will continue to work with the government to ensure Australia’s required sovereign capability can be realised and on time—including the AUKUS Pillar 2 advanced capabilities that can only come through research and development,” she said.

AUKUS Pillar 2 focuses on developing advanced capabilities to share technology and increase computer information systems between their armed forces, whereas Pillar 1 is Australia’s first conventionally armed, nuclear-powered submarine fleet.

CSP applications opened on Sept. 1, 2023, and will close on Sept. 28, 2023.