Pro Vice-Chancellor Education & Student Experience Portfolio

Welcome to our portfolio

Our portfolio is UNSW Sydney’s education and student experience hub, providing University-wide support and resources to staff and student communities.

Our purpose is to provide strategic direction and key services in the pursuit of a world-class student experience and our vision is to be among the very best in Australia and the world.

Our teams collaborate and partner with our UNSW staff and students, as well as through industry leaders, professional bodies and international alliances, to drive our strategic initiatives and priorities focused on exceptional education and student experience.

Note, between March and June 2023, Professor Louise Lutze-Mann is acting Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Education & Student Experience, and Professor Alex Steel is Acting Pro Vice-Chancellor, Education & Student Experience.

Professor Alex Steel

is the Pro Vice-Chancellor, Education & Student Experience

Alex Steel is a Professor of Law with research interests in both education and criminal law. Alex's education publications range across the pedagogy and regulation of legal education, curriculum design, assessment practices, student wellbeing and staff development. His criminal law research focuses on property and dishonesty offences. Alex has received numerous teaching awards including a Commonwealth Government Citation for Outstanding Contributions to Student Learning and the Vice Chancellor’s Award for Teaching Excellence..

Alex’s previous university positions include Acting Pro Vice Chancellor Education, Law Associate Dean Education and Law Associate Dean Academic. Most recently he was UNSW Director Teaching Strategy where he has led a major strategic initiative to develop and implement a university wide digital assessment platform. Alex is an inaugural member and former Director of the UNSW Scientia Education Academy. He has been a member of Academic Board since 2014.

Alex is a member of the Australian Law School Standards Committee, and previously co-convenor of the Legal Education Associate Deans (LEAD) Network (2012-16). He is on the Executive of the Australasian Law Teachers Association and the Editorial Committee of the Legal Education Review. Alex is a member of the NSW Bar Association Education Committee, and was previously a member of the Criminal Law Committee.

Our Pillars

We have strategically organised our portfolio into four thematic but interconnected pillars:

Education
Experience
Wellbeing
Educational Innovation

Learn more about each pillar below

Education

The Education pillar, led by Karin Watson, is focused on helping our students achieve the successes they deserve by suporting their academic skills, developing the capacity of our teaching staff to deliver educational excellence, and drawing insights from and engaging with all of our communities.

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Student Success

The Student Success team comprises staff delivering Equitable Learning and Academic Learning support and the strategic English Language Support initiative.

More information can be found below:

Equitable Learning Services

University Preparation Program

UNSW Prep Program

English Language Support initiative

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Academic & Education Focussed Development and Engagement

The Academic & Education Focussed Development teams works to develop the capacity of our teaching staff to deliver educational excellence by providing academic development programs and initiatives, and overseeing Education Focussed career pathways to recognise, reward and develop academics who make a vital contribution to the delivery of outstanding outcomes for our students and the broader community. The Educational Engagement team drive our outreach, communications and promotional activities, with a particular focus on the broad education community at UNSW. They also support portfolio-wide engagement strategies and activities through advice and guidance to other PVCESE teams, and active liaison with the Division of External Engagement.

Developing teaching

Education Focussed pathway

Teaching Gateway

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Educational Insights

The Educational Insights team is responsible for supporting our data-driven leadership through their delivery and evaluation of student surveys, in collaboration with UNSW Divisions, Faculties, staff and students.

Meet the Education pillar Director, Karin Watson

Karin is the Director, Education at UNSW Sydney, a Scientia Education Academy Fellow, and Senior Lecturer in the Faculty of Arts, Design & Architecture. She is also Director of the UNSW Education Focussed Program and a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (UK).

Karin’s teaching expertise focuses on the student experience, particularly the role of student feedback and creating a sense of belonging in the first-year educational context. Her education leadership experience extends to building capability and community amongst peers in higher education environments through mentorship and leadership programs. Karin has worked and studied in London, Cape Town and Sydney and received several international and national awards, citations, accreditation and fellowships for teaching and education excellence.

Karin has developed Professional Development programs such as the Learning to Teach Online Project, created numerous Open Educational Resources (OER) and initiatives, and has led or project managed several competitive grants and multi-institutional projects such as OnTask.

Experience

The Experience pillar, led by Professor Leanne Piggott, drives the UNSW student experience strategy to ensure every student is able to optimise and personalise their university journey and is supported in achieving their career and life aspirations. Our work is underpinned by the core belief that we exist to serve the needs of our students.

We support students with their transition into and through their university journey; we cultivate students’ personal and professional development to ensure they are well-rounded and wholistically job-ready graduates; and we administer our flagship Co-op program.

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Student Life

The Student Life team supports, engages, and enables our students to succeed. We help connect students to their UNSW community from the point of acceptance, we provide practical support if life becomes challenging, and we take care of compliance needs for our international students.

Student Life Support Services

Student Engagement: getting started at UNSW

Supporting international students

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Employability

UNSW Employability comprises Work Integrated Learning (WIL), Partner Engagement, Careers, and Co-Curricular (accredited through AHEGS) teams. The mission of UNSW Employability is to enable each student to Discover, Launch, and Grow their graduate futures.

Employability services and support

Work Integrated Learning

WIL Central’s courses

UNSW Advantage Program (AHEGS accreditation)

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Co-op

The Co-op team manages our industry-sponsored scholarship program that includes industry placements, professional development and training, mentoring, networking, and financial support. Co-op also offers stand-alone internships for non-Co-op students, and the Co-NNECTIONS program, which supports students from diverse socio-economic and cultural backgrounds to measurably improve successful academic and workforce transition rates.

The UNSW Co-op Program

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Learning Abroad

The Learning Abroad team provide quality and authentic learning opportunities for UNSW students to study abroad in-person or virtually through Exchange and Short Programs, and manages the inbound learning abroad programs for students studying at UNSW on Exchange and Study Abroad.

Learning Abroad (Outbound)

Learning Abroad (Inbound)

Meet the Experience pillar Director, Professor Leanne Piggott

Leanne is the Director of Student Experience at UNSW Sydney. She was previously the Education Director of the Centre for Social Impact at the UNSW Business School.

Before joining UNSW, Leanne held a number of senior leadership and management positions at the University of Sydney. Leanne’s decades of higher education experience in program development and teaching include expertise in online learning and WIL.

Leanne’s achievements in education and have been recognised locally, nationally, and internationally including an Australian College of Educators’ National Teaching Award. She is a Principal Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (PFHEA). Leanne is a graduate of The University of Oxford and The University of Sydney.

Wellbeing

The Wellbeing pillar, led by Neil Morris, supports all facets of student life outside of academic learning, development and career related activities. The teams focus on student health, promoting wellbeing and providing medical and mental health services, enhancing student life and communities through art, music and sport and university accommodation. They also lead engagement with our student societies and our student organisation Arc.

UNSW Health

Health

The Health team comprises of the existing University Health Services and a newly established Psychology & Wellness theme including specialised Wellness Support and Triage teams who joined our registered Clinical Psychologists and Psychologists focussed on delivering a more accessible, tiered and agile mental health service to students. Supporting these teams is the Health Promotions Team tasked with increasing health awareness and providing a supportive environment to thrive personally and professionally.

In 2021, a new UNSW Student Mental Health & Wellbeing Strategy was launched. To view the strategy and learn more about its implementation click here.

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Culture

Culture comprises elements of the UNSW community that bring people together through creative and cultural endeavours. The Art Unit, Music Performance Unit, and Religious Centre all work with student organisations and programs to make connections across the campus, reaching out into the local community, and forging networks and positive experiences for students, staff, alumni and community partners.

UNSW Sports

Sports

Sport at UNSW encompasses a wide range of physical activity beyond organised competitions and clubs; it includes all forms of exercise, fitness, active recreation and movement. It provides an essential component for students living a healthy life and maintaining positive mental health and wellbeing.

Within the UNSW Sport framework are a number of themes, steered and supported by the 2025 Sports Strategy, with three key objectives 1: Increase participation, drive equity and build campus communities; 2: Support excellence; 3: Strengthen partnerships.

Sport themes include The Elite Athlete Program; Fitness and Aquatic Centre; 40 Community and Student Sport Clubs; Sports fields and facilities on campus and external; Over 30 external sporting partnerships; Alumni engagement; Scholarship programs; and an Active Women Strategy.

Find out more

Accommodation at UNSW

Accommodation

The Accommodation team offers consistent service across UNSW Colleges and Halls, an integral part of the UNSW end-to-end student experience and incubator for long lasting friendships and memories for many UNSW students.

Meet the Wellbeing pillar Director, Neil Morris

Neil Morris is the Director Student Wellbeing at UNSW Sydney and has had a lengthy career within the University. Neil has held several senior positions including: Vice-President Campus Life and Community Engagement (March 2011 - April 2017) during which period he was also Chair of UNSW Global; Executive Director University Services (Feb 2009 – Feb 2011); and Director Human Resources (Jan 2004-Dec 2009).

His current portfolio encompasses a broad range of outside the classroom student engagement roles such as Sport and the engagement with local community; Student Health, Safety and Wellbeing including international student health; Psychology and Wellness; Student Cultural, Artistic and Religious Life; Student Accommodation and Residential Colleges. Neil manages the relationship with the UNSW Student Organisation, Arc and works closely with the 300+ student clubs and societies.

Educational Innovation

The Educational Innovation pillar, led by Professor Simon McIntyre, drives forward technological innovations that are key to student success in our physical and digital learning environments. Drawing on data insights, AI, and best use of emerging technologies, the teams foster an innovation culture that is helping to reimagine, uncomplicate, and improve the UNSW student experience.

Teaching Spaces

Physical and Digital Learning Environments

The Learning & Digital Environments team delivers on both physical learning spaces and digital learning capabilities, including media and immersive technologies, media and learning management systems and educational technology support. UNSW staff can learn more:

Learning environments

Educational media support

Immersive technologies support

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Educational Delivery Services

The Educational delivery team supports faculties and division in driving forward educational innovations, building capability and continuously improving the physical and digital learning environments for an enhanced student learning experience.

Visit Education Innovation SharePoint (UNSW staff only)

Meet the Educational Innovation pillar Director, Professor Simon McIntyre

Simon is the Director, Educational Innovation at UNSW Sydney, a Principal Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (PFHEA), and a member of the UNSW Scientia Education Academy.

He is a multi-award winning educator, passionate about improving the effectiveness, quality and relevance of the student learning experience, and about pedagogically driven use of technology to innovate learning and teaching practices. He takes a design led and data informed approach to the personalisation of learning, appropriate integration and evaluation of digital technologies, artificial intelligence, and immersive experiences into a balanced curriculum.

Simon is committed to continuing to innovate, uncomplicate, improve, and reimagine the UNSW student experience.

Office

The Office Team, led by Megan Day, provides the essential operational support across all of the teams in our portfolio.