Assessing the role of boom and bust economies on professional education: a British-Australian comparison

Project Description

This is a seedcorn application that will permit networking with a colleague in the Faculty of Health Sciences at Curtin University. Together, we will conduct some initial research and planning in order to put together a bigger funding bid. The larger study is a comparative project that seeks to examine how the existence of a resource economy based on extractive industries that experience a boom and bust cycle, affects recruitment, retention and motivations in professional education programmes such as social work, nursing and physiotherapy. At this stage, the project will involve the researchers conducting several in-depth interviews with social work, nursing and physiotherapy students in their respective universities, to ascertain the challenges presented by being a student in a time of 'boom and 'bust'.