Education Focussed Careers

UNSW is Australia’s global university, improving and transforming lives through outstanding education. Our 2025 Strategy sets out our vision for educational excellence, including the development of Education Focussed (EF) roles to foster and reward educational excellence, nurturing a new generation of educators and recognising the vital contribution they make to student learning.

Formed in 2017, the EF community has grown to over 200 academics by the end of 2018, consisting of current full time UNSW academic staff. In 2019, the EF career model was opened to sessional staff and external academics – attracting the best talent within UNSW and beyond.

The EF career model is focussed on recognising, rewarding and developing academics who make a vital contribution to the delivery of outstanding outcomes for our students and the broader community.

The EF Career Development Team works directly with EF academics to develop and harness their educational capabilities, as well as advocate for their success individually and as a community. The team’s work includes:

• Professional Development

  Activities include the EF Lunch and Learn series, online learning modules, mentoring, career coaching, and writing retreats.

• Communities of Practice

  EF Communities of Practice are dedicated to improving the design, development and delivery of educational initiatives at UNSW. These provide a platform for EFs to work collaboratively across disciplines and contribute to educational excellence at the school, faculty and university levels. Projects include digital assessment, online education resources, and evaluating learning and teaching

• EF Retreat

  This annual event brings together the EF community to celebrate successes, identify and address challenges, and plan for the year ahead. It is also a unique opportunity for EF academics to build deeper connections within the community and engage in professional development activities.

• Grants and Fellowships

  UNSW offers grants of up to $5,000 annually to support individual EF academics’ career development (CD). CD activities include presentations at education and discipline-specific conferences, attendance at accredited CD courses, career coaching, and other activities that will generate evidence for promotion.

  EF academics are also supported in applications for teaching awards, discipline-specific recognition schemes, and Senior or Principal Fellowship of the Higher Education Academy UK.

• EF Lunch & Learn

The EF Lunch and Learn series is hosted by a different faculty on a monthly basis, designed to showcase the great work EFs are doing, as well as enhance their capabilities and career as an EF academic.

The sessions are open to all UNSW staff interested in learning and teaching.

            Upcoming

Past