Read our update on UNSW’s Academic Calendar Project

13 Aug 2024
Students walking on the University mall

Learn more about the project and the new website.

Following a review last year, UNSW is considering a new academic calendar – to be implemented in 2027 – to leverage the strengths and address the challenges of the current calendar as well as our future education needs. 

An Academic Calendar project team, established to work with students, staff and the wider UNSW community, has undertaken the considerable task of understanding the different aspects of our education model and calendar. They will explore solutions to cater to the diverse needs of our UNSW community, taking on board a range of perspectives. UNSW’s goal is to make decisions that achieve the most beneficial outcomes overall and to deliver flexibility for future needs. 

To date, the project team has been in an intensive phase of designing and testing various improvement ideas and calendar options. They are keeping an open mind, so as not to pre-empt what our future calendar will look like. 

A series of advisory groups and subject matter experts have provided guidance and feedback to help the team understand the impacts of different approaches. The project team is also undertaking key metrics modelling – considering many elements – to assess the feasibility of each option. 

Over the next few months, the University will engage more widely with students, staff and other stakeholders to explore the realistic options and gather insights to help inform decision-making. You are encouraged to participate and collaborate. The project team is also collaborating with other University-wide projects (e.g. Nexus, Lifelong Learning, Future Campus) to leverage improvements and maximise the benefits of any calendar changes. 

A decision on a final calendar design is expected in early 2025. This will allow time for the University to prepare and enable our people, systems, processes and policies to adapt to the new calendar, with a view to launch in 2027. 

Go to the new Academic Calendar Project website for more details and FAQs

We’ll update you soon on how you can get involved – in the meantime, register your interest via the website. 

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