Something is rotten in tertiary education – not in the classrooms, but in the boardroom. Every glossy announcement masks the same reality: cuts, closures and a hollowing-out of the very institutions meant to serve the public good.

I am a lecturer in education at University of Technology Sydney. My colleagues are outstanding, the students dedicated. And yet, despite newly developed and accredited teacher education courses and courses that have been delivered for 35 years, our education programs are being “temporarily” suspended from autumn 2026.

While the announcement avoids the term “closure”, in this sector that is what’s likely to follow. This means the suspension of secondary and primary education degrees, alongside teaching English to speakers of other languages (Tesol) and applied linguistics – the very programs designed to address teacher shortages.

And the justification? “Low student enrolments.” But these numbers come from auditors looking at spreadsheets, not classrooms. Education and........

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