A Little Learning? Public Policy and Australian Universities

Abstract

The study of public policy holds out the - perhaps elusive - promise of better outcomes through better decision-making processes. To test whether policy studies can make a contribution to the practical world of government, this paper runs a typical problem through the first stages of a policy cycle. The issue in hand is diversity among Australian universities, and this case study recommends Minister Brendan Nelson find a more robust theory of cause and effect in higher education to achieve his goal of a spectrum of choice for university students.