The Australian Universities Accord has been heralded as a once-in-a-generation opportunity to reshape our higher education system, and for Indigenous Australians, it holds particular promise.

The accord calls for ¡°First Nations to be at the heart of Australian higher education¡±, and education minister Jason Clare has where ¡°your chances in life don¡¯t depend on your postcode, your parents, or the colour of your skin.¡±

The government should be commended for taking reform seriously. It has responded to 29 of the accord¡¯s 47 recommendations and taken important first steps. These include extending demand-driven funding to all eligible Indigenous students, regardless of location, and repealing the punitive ¡°50 per cent rule¡±, which removed students¡¯ access to government subsidies if they failed half or more of their subjects, and which disproportionately harmed Indigenous students.

The accord¡¯s Indigenous higher education ambitions are clear: parity in participation and completion by 2035, Indigenous knowledge systems embedded throughout teaching and research, a strong Indigenous academic workforce, and a commitment to self-determination across the tertiary education system. These are not marginal goals ¨C they are central to building the inclusive, future-facing tertiary system the accord envisions.

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But while the government has made a promising start, we now need delivery on the accord¡¯s unaddressed Indigenous-specific recommendations. With the Australian Tertiary Education Commission (ATEC) now established, the next phase of reform must focus on Indigenous higher education participation, success and leadership.

The first priority should be dismantling the previous government¡¯s failed Job-ready Graduates reform. The accord confirms what students, universities and equity experts have long known: that increases to tuition fees in the humanities have increased student debt and created structural disincentives to participation by in effect privatising a humanities education in Australia.

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Indigenous students ¨C many from low-SES, regional or first-in-family backgrounds ¨C are disproportionately affected. In 2024, 46 per cent of Indigenous undergraduates at the University of Melbourne were enrolled in arts degrees, compared with 23 per cent of low-SES students, 40 per cent of students with a disability and 35 per cent of students from regional and remote areas. Because Indigenous students are also represented across these other equity groups, their participation contributes to the higher proportions recorded there.

This data shows that Indigenous students are particularly concentrated in humanities and social sciences, reflecting both community priorities and the structural barriers that limit access to other fields, such as science and health. Fields such as public policy, Indigenous studies, psychology and law are frequently chosen by Indigenous students in direct response to the needs and aspirations of their communities.

The government has tasked ATEC with designing a fairer funding model. But as higher education expert , reform may not come into effect until 2027. That¡¯s too long to wait. ATEC must act now on course pricing.

The accord also rightly identifies the fragile and underdeveloped Indigenous academic workforce as a structural weakness. Without targeted investment ¨C in PhD scholarships, postdoctoral fellowships and Indigenous-led research ¨C the sector will continue to struggle to attract, retain and support Indigenous researchers across a broad range of disciplines. This investment is also critical to advancing the government¡¯s newly announced on elevating First Nations knowledge systems, which cannot be realised without a strong and sustainable Indigenous research workforce.

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Programmes like the University of Melbourne¡¯s professional certificate in Indigenous research and its graduate certificate in Indigenous research and leadership are already helping to develop this workforce. With government investment, these could be scaled nationally to accelerate progress.

We support the accord¡¯s recommendation for a First Nations-led review of higher education, recognising the importance of policymaking done in partnership with Indigenous peoples. This would build on the legacy of the of Higher Education Access and Outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People, some of whose recommendations were never implemented. However, the new review must not delay the urgent adoption of proven, effective solutions.

After all, the accord¡¯s headline target of 80 per cent of the workforce having a tertiary qualification by 2050 cannot be achieved merely by trying to funnel more students through the system as it currently operates. We need action not merely on Indigenous access, but also on completion, success, leadership and self-determination.

For instance, we need to think differently about pathways into tertiary education. One example could be improving the conditions of the many Indigenous teacher aides in regional and remote schools. Often bilingual, highly skilled and doing vital work, they are nevertheless locked out of accreditation pathways that would provide better pay, conditions and professional development.

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The was also clear that better credit transfer and recognition of prior learning (RPL) arrangements are central to building a more flexible and equitable tertiary system. For instance, proper recognition of mature applicants¡¯ capabilities would unlock the potential of experienced workers by supporting lifelong learning at scale ¨C creating transformative opportunities for individuals and communities while also helping to address acute workforce shortages.

Urgent progress on key accord recommendations, alongside long-term investment and reform through genuine partnership with Australia¡¯s First Peoples, will create a more equitable and economically inclusive future for all Australians. As senior Indigenous leaders from Group of Eight universities, we stand ready to help.

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is deputy vice-chancellor Indigenous at the University of Melbourne.? is deputy vice-chancellor Indigenous at the UNSW.? is deputy vice-chancellor (Indigenous engagement) at the University of Queensland.? is deputy vice-chancellor (Indigenous) at the Monash University.? is pro vice-chancellor, Indigenous (academic) at the University of Sydney.