Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Models of interuniversity collaboration in higher education — How do their features act as barriers and enablers to sustainability?

  • Article
  • Published:
Tertiary Education and Management Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

This study combines conceptual and empirical review of the literature around interuniversity collaborations to identify known models and applications, and enablers and barriers impacting on their sustainability, to inform development of a collaborative public health teaching programme in Australia. A range of literature was explored in this study, including commentary on appropriate theoretical frameworks, exploratory studies, descriptive analyses and specific case study investigations. There was a dearth of literature that compares the factors that ultimately lead to success or failure of the models of collaboration identified. Further research investigating how different types of collaboration affect particular barriers and enablers, and how certain types of collaborations are more sustainable than others, is required.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Anderson, B., & Whitford, E. V. (1997). Educational reform in hard times: Forging a collaborative partnership in teacher training. 49th Annual Meeting of American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education, Phoenix, Arizona.

    Google Scholar 

  • Australian Government. (2009). Transforming Australia’s higher education system. Canberra: Commonwealth of Australia.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bailey, D., & Koney, K. M. (1995). An integrative framework for the evaluation of community-based consortia. Evaluation and Program Planning, 18, 245–252.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bass, B. M. (1985). Leadership and performance beyond expectation. New York, NY: Free Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bennett, C. M., Lilley, K., Yeatman, H., Parker, E., Geelhoed, E., Hanna, E. G., & Robinson, P. (2010). Paving pathways: Shaping the public health workforce through tertiary education. Australia & New Zealand Health Policy, 7, 1–9.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bradley, D., Noonan, P., Nugent, H., & Scales, B. (2008). Review of Australian higher education: Final report. Canberra: Australian Government.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bradmore, D. J., & Smyrnios, K. X. (2009). The writing on the wall: Responses of Australian public universities to competition in global higher education. Higher Education Research & Development, 28, 495–508.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Burns, J. M. (1978). Leadership. New York, NY: Harper & Row.

    Google Scholar 

  • Carey, C. Smith, K., & Martin, L. M. (2009). Cross-university enterprise education collaboration as a community of practice. Education & Training, 51, 696–706.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Carter-Pokras, O., Bereknyei, S., Lie, D., & Braddock, C. H. (2010). Surmounting the unique challenges in health disparities education: A multi-institution qualitative study. Journal of General Internal Medicine, 25, 108–114.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cole, K., Sim, F., & Hogan, H. (2011). The evolution of public health education and training in the United Kingdom. Public Health Reviews, 33, 87–104.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Collins, S., Hiebert, B., Magnusson, K., & Bernes, K. (2001). Campus Alberta: A collaborative, multi-university counsellor training initiative (p. 12). Annual Meeting of the National Consultation on Career Development, Ottawa, Ontario. Retrieved from https://doi.org/www.contactpoint.ca/html/natcon-conat/2001 /abs/abs-01-03.html

    Google Scholar 

  • Cragg, C. E., Doucette, S., & Humbert, J. (2003). Ten universities, one program: Successful collaboration to educate nurse practitioners. Nurse Educator, 28, 227–231.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cutts, D., David, P. M., Mclntyre, M., Seibold, C., Hopkins, F., & Miller, M. (2003). Werna Naloo — ‘We Us Together’: The birth of a midwifery education consortium. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 41, 179–186.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dicenso, A., D’Amour, D., Kearney, A. J., & Sheps, S. (2008). University collaboration in delivering applied health and nursing services research training. Health Policy, 3 (May: Special issue), 80–95.

    Google Scholar 

  • Durham, G., & Plant, A. (2005). Strengthening workforce capacity for population health (phase III PHERP review 2005). Canberra: Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing.

    Google Scholar 

  • Easterbrooks, S. R., & Laughton, J. M. (1997). Model of collaboration between two universities: Meeting the challenge (p. 7). Retrieved from https://doi.org/search.proquest.com/docview/626089097accountid=10910

    Google Scholar 

  • Eddy, P. L. (2010). Special issue: Partnerships and collaborations in higher education. ASHE Higher Education Report, 36, 1–115.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • El Ansari, W., Russell, J., Spence, W., Ryder, E., & Chambers, C. (2003). New skills for a new age: Leading the introduction of public health concepts in healthcare curricula. Public Health, 117, 11–11.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fleming, M. L., Parker, E. A., Gould, T., & Service, M. (2009). Educating the public health work-force: Issues and challenges. Australia and New Zealand Health Policy, 6. doi: 10.1186/1743-8462-6-8.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fox, J. W. (1978). The consortium in higher education: A second look. Journal of Educational Administration, 16, 219–225.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Harman, G. (2000). Institutional mergers in Australian higher education since 1960. Higher Education Quarterly, 54, 343–366.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Holden-Lund, C. Tate, E., & Hyde-Robertson, B. (1991). Consortium model for master’s education in nursing. Nurse Education, 16, 13–17.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Johnson, H. W. (1990). Baccalaureate social work education consortia: Problems and possibilities. Journal of Social Work Education, 26, 254–265.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kaganoff, T. (1998). Collaboration, technology, and outsourcing initiatives in higher education: A literature review. Santa Monica, CA: RAND.

    Google Scholar 

  • Keim, M. C. (1999). Educational consortia — A longitudinal study. College and University, 74, 30–36.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kost, M., Wildgust, B., & Woods, J. (2010). A model for utilization of academic resources: The Philadelphia area nurse anesthesia educational programs’ shared curriculum consortium. AAN A Journal, 78, 14–17.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lang, D. W. (1975). The consortium in higher education. Journal of Educational Administration, 13, 23–36.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lang, D. W. (2002). A lexicon of inter-institutional cooperation. Higher Education, 44, 153–183.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lepchenske, G. L. (1976a). Educational Cooperation: An examination of fourteen consortia. AZ: Mohave Community College, Lake Havasu City.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lepchenske, G. L. (1976b). Higher educational consortia organization: Functional structures of administration and management. AZ: Mohave Community College, Lake Havasu City.

    Google Scholar 

  • Long, B. (2010). Losing sight of Humboldt: A synoptic review of Australian government policy over the last 35 years. Journal of Further and Higher Education, 34, 451–465.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Louie, K., Campbell, M., Donaghy, C. P., Rice, L., & Sabatini, M. (2011). A successful academic collaborative to increase nurse faculty in New Jersey. Journal of Professional Nursing, 27, e108:113.

  • Lund, C. H., Tate, E. T., & Hyde-Robertson, B. (1998). Benefits and challenges of a graduate nursing consortium. Nurse Educator, 23, 13–16.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Marginson, S. (2002). Nation-building universities in a global environment: The case of Australia. Higher Education, 43, 409–428.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Martin, D. M. (1981). The academic consortium: limitations and possibilities. Educational Record, 62, 36–39.

    Google Scholar 

  • McKenna, L., & Rolls, C. (2007). Bachelor of midwifery: Reflections on the first 5 years from two Victorian universities. Women and Birth, 20, 81–84.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Moore, R. (1968). Consortiums in American higher education 1965-66: Report of an exploratory study. Washington, DC: US Department of Health, Education and Welfare. HE 000160.

    Google Scholar 

  • Moore, D. (2006). Veterinary school consortia as a means of promoting the food-supply veterinary medicine pipeline. Journal of Veterinary Medical Education, 33, 539–542.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • National Competition Council. (2007). National competition policy. Retrieved October 2012, from https://doi.org/ncp.ncc.gov.au/pages/home

    Google Scholar 

  • Oldenburg, B., Kelly, P., A. MacDougall, C., O’Brien, M., Zwi, A., Ritchie, J., Wilson, A. (2005). Building capacity to improve public health in Australia: Case studies of academic engagement. Brisbane: Australian Network of Public Health Institutions. Retrieved from https://doi.org/caphia.com.au/documents/Building-PH-Workforce-Capacity-Australia.pdf

    Google Scholar 

  • Patterson, L. D. (1970). Consortia in American higher education. Washington, DC: Clearinghouse on Higher Education.

    Google Scholar 

  • Patterson, F. (1974). Colleges in consort: Institutional cooperation through consortia San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

    Google Scholar 

  • PHERP Indigenous Public Health Capacity Development Project Reference Group. (2008). Feasibility study for a nationally accessible master of public health program specialising in indigenous health. Melbourne: Onemda VicHealth Koori Health Unit, The University of Melbourne.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pohl, J. M., Bostrom, A. C., Talarczyk, G., & Cavanagh, S. (2001). Development of an academic consortium for nurse-managed primary care. Nursing and health care perspectives, 22, 308–313.

    Google Scholar 

  • Prideaux, D., Teubner, J., Sefton, A., Field, M., Gordon, J., & Price, D. (2000). The consortium of graduate medical schools in Australia: Formal and informal collaboration in medical education. Medical Education, 34, 449–454.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Quiddington, P. (2010). The new politics of Australian higher education: Why universities get rumbled in the budget. Higher Education Research & Development, 29, 475–487.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Robins, K. (1994, March 23–26, 1994). Multi-university consortium for teacher training: A model for pre-service training in rural areas. Paper presented at the Rural Partnerships: Working Together. Proceedings of the Annual National Conference of the American Council on Rural Special Education (ACRES), Austin, TX.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rolls, C., & Seibold, C. (2005). The challenge of implementing an undergraduate midwifery course within a three university consortium. Contemporary Nurse: A Journal for the Australian Nursing Profession, 18, 273–278.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rowell, J. R., Jr. (1975). Consortium activities in higher education. FL: Center for Community Needs Assessment, University of Florida, Gainesville.

    Google Scholar 

  • Scott, H. V. (1977). Consortia in higher education: A sober reflection. Educational Record, 58, 429–433.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sheehy, B. (2010). Regulation by markets and the Bradley review of Australian higher education. Australian Universities Review, 52, 60–68.

    Google Scholar 

  • Short, P. M., & Stein, R. B. (1998). Collaborative doctoral education: Overcoming barriers, building coalitions, and achieving results. NCA Quarterly, 72, 457–461.

    Google Scholar 

  • Simpson, J. M., Ryan, P., Carlin, J. B., Gurrin, L., & Marschner, I. (2009). Training a new generation of biostatisticians: A successful consortium model. Journal of Statistics Education, 17, 280–284.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • van Soeren, M. H., Andrusyszyn, M. A., Laschinger, H. K., Goldenberg, D., & DiCenso, A. (2000). Consortium approach for nurse practitioner education. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 32, 825–833.

    Google Scholar 

  • Stein, R. B., & Short, P. M. (2001). Collaboration in delivering higher education programs: Barriers and challenges. The Review of Higher Education, 24, 417–435.

    Google Scholar 

  • Whittaker, R. (1993). Consortium evaluation in higher education. Assessment and Evaluation in Higher Education, 18, 205–219.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Williams, J. E., Wake, C., Hayden, L., Abrams, E., Hurtt, G., Rock, B., & Johnson, D. (2011) Building a model of collaboration between historically black and historically white universities. Journal of Higher Education Outreach and Engagement, 15, 35–55.

    Google Scholar 

  • World Federation of Public Health Associations. (2015). The working group. Retrieved from https://doi.org/www.wfpha.org/working-groups-pages/13-public-health-professionals-education-and-training#the-working-group

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences, Flinders University, Adelaide, Australia

    Leanne Coombe

Authors
  1. Leanne Coombe
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Leanne Coombe.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Coombe, L. Models of interuniversity collaboration in higher education — How do their features act as barriers and enablers to sustainability?. Tert Educ Manag 21, 328–348 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1080/13583883.2015.1104379

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/13583883.2015.1104379

Keywords

Search

Navigation