Monash’s welllaid plans a winner

MONASH University has moved to offset one of the most serious problems facing local government by creating a planning degree at its Berwick campus.
Local government has been struggling because of an inability to find not only qualified, but experienced, planners.
Many of those who do gain experience at council level are in keen demand from the private sector.
Casey mayor Neil Lucas once remarked that every planner coming from Monash would be sure to get a job, and this goes without saying.
The university is expected to take on 30 students in the first year of the course so we can expect a crop of new planners within four years.
Hopefully, many of these will be given some experience in the workforce during their studies through the university’s work placement programs.
Associate Dean of Academic Programs for the Faculty of Arts, Associate Professor Heinz Kreutz said Monash was delighted to add the course to its curriculum.
“It’s particularly appropriate that this course is offered at our Berwick campus which has a strong communitybuilding focus, and which was opened nearly a decade ago to service Victoria’s largest growth corridor,” he said.
He said graduates of the new course could expect to find careers in state and local government planning and policy, academia and research institutes, private planning consultancies and in specialist consultancies with allied fields such as architecture, engineering and surveying.
My view is that this course is a real winner for Monash.