The Australian National University’s Educational Fellowship Scheme (EFS) has recently celebrated its 500th ANU-based Fellow of the Higher Education Academy.
The ANU was the first Australian University to achieve accreditation, and since 2014, has been accredited to award professional recognition in all four categories of HEA fellowship within the Professional Standards Framework. This achievement has been supported by staff from across the organisation; notably, the University’s Vice-Chancellor Professor Brian Schmidt is a Senior Fellow, and the first Nobel Laureate to hold Fellowship.
Obtaining Fellowship is actively encouraged by the ANU through its Centre for Higher Education, Learning and Teaching (CHELT), which promotes and recognises excellence in University teaching and learning. CHELT is the driver behind the large number of Fellows at the ANU, and the Centre works tirelessly in assisting academic staff to gain international recognition for their teaching. While Fellowship through the HEA is the end goal, the application process is designed to be a developmental one. This personal and professional development is facilitated through an ongoing series of face-to-face workshops which assist applicants in acquiring skills in mapping their practices to the Professional Standards Framework, reflective writing, and developing a philosophy of learning and teaching.
While the ANU has awarded Fellowship to just over 500 of its own staff, it has also awarded 250 HEA Fellowships to staff from other institutions as part of its Global Membership with Advance HE. Over twenty Australasian universities, including other Group of Eight universities, are now members of Advance HE, with many institutions joining as members after working directly with the ANU.
Glen O’Grady, Director, Centre for Higher Education, Learning and Teaching (CHELT) at the ANU, said,
“We are proud to have achieved 500 Fellows at the ANU. Adopting HEA Fellowship has been a strategic part of our university’s work to develop and recognise our teaching staff, and we are delighted with the impact that this has had both within the ANU and across the Australian HE sector more widely.”
Kathryn Harrison-Graves, Director of Membership and Accreditation at Advance HE, added,
“The dedication to teaching shown by the ANU has been instrumental in their success. We look forward to continuing our strong relationship with them and welcoming more Fellows from the ANU in future.”
Advance HE works to improve higher education for all using expertise and by sharing best practice. Find out more about Advance HE’s support for higher education providers outside the UK.