Managing student access to university information networks ‐ the Australian experience

Demand by students for access to institutional computing and network resources is a management issue for universities throughout the world. A survey of the IT directors of Australian universities was conducted. The survey sought details of the provision of IT resources to students and particularly the management of network resources for access to institutional CWISs and to the wider Internet. The survey established that considerable investment has been made in the provision and quality of on‐ and off‐campus network access for students. At the same time, universities in Australia face rapid growth in demand for network access. The study reports institutional responses to this demand and the concerns of the management of the IT function in Australian universities.