UTS Student Representatives’ Submission on the Academic Change Proposal UTSSA Condemns Academic Restructure as Harmful, Unjustified, and Lacking Consultation
Over 80 student representatives from across UTS, including elected members of UTS Council and Academic Board, faculty board representatives, and leaders of the UTS Students’ Association, ActivateUTS, and more than 20 student societies, have issued a joint submission opposing the University’s Academic Change Proposal.
The submission strongly criticises the proposed restructure as a sweeping set of cuts that would reduce academic choice, erode educational quality, and fundamentally alter the nature of a UTS education.
UTS management's proposal would see:
● Over 100 courses and 1,000 subjects discontinued.
● A 31% reduction in the UTS subject catalogue.
● The elimination of degrees such as Public Health, Education, and International Studies.
● Mergers of distinct faculties including UTS Law, Business and the Transdisciplinary School into a new “Faculty of Business and Law.”
● The loss of electives focused on social impact, sustainability, and critical interdisciplinary learning.
“This is a fundamental contraction of the UTS academic landscape that will narrow student opportunity, reduce academic diversity, and weaken the University’s reputation for innovation and social purpose."
Students have raised five core concerns in the submission:
1. Loss of Choice: The proposed cuts remove unique and valuable learning opportunities, undermining student autonomy and specialisation. Degrees in critical areas such as Education, and Public Health would disappear entirely.
2. Disciplinary Harm: By merging or dissolving faculties and schools, the proposal would damage discipline integrity, weaken research capacity, and reduce the visibility of fields UTS has long championed, such as social justice and environmental sustainability.
3. Lack of Justification: The submission notes that many cuts are justified using vague criteria such as “strategic alignment” or “simplification,” without clear explanation. Even programs with strong enrolments and research success are being discontinued or merged without evidence of improved outcomes.
4. Lack of Consultation: Despite repeated claims that students were consulted, most elected representatives only learned the details of the restructure after it was announced. Major decisions appear to have been made behind closed doors, excluding both students and academic staff.
5. Student Impact: Although management insists current students will not be affected, the university’s own documents anticipate the opposite including larger classes, reduced student support, and limitations on subject access. Students in teach-out programs face unclear pathways and increased pressure to study full-time or transfer degrees.
“Ultimately, students must be seen as deeply valued members of the university community rather than passive consumers of education. They pay for, contribute to and uphold UTS’s public mission. They therefore deserve genuine consultation, transparency, and respect, not tokenistic engagement after decisions have already been made."
The submission makes the following demands:
1. That the current Academic Change Proposal be paused immediately.
2. That genuine consultation with students and staff be undertaken before further changes.
3. That any future changes are codesigned to protect the breadth, accessibility, and integrity of education at UTS.
