Alarm bells sounded in Australian university marketing departments four
years ago when they learned that one of America's largest for-profit education organisations was planning a dramatic expansion of its overseas operations.

This followed the purchase by the giant Kaplan company of the Singapore-based Asia Pacific Management Institute. The institute was founded in 1988 as a higher education provider that on-sold degree programmes in Asia provided by half a dozen universities, including at least three in Australia.

Kaplan, a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Washington Post company, contributes more profit to its parent than does the flagship newspaper in the American capital - an indication of the profitability of selling education services.

With Kaplan having its eye on the Australian and Asian markets, Australian universities faced the prospect of stiffly increased competition for foreign fee-paying students. Especially as Kaplan is a $US2.5 billion-a-year education services provider offering higher education, professional training and test preparation, plus services for K-12 schools and after-school learning programmes in some 600 locations more than 30 countries.

The former conservative federal government had enthusiastically backed the South Australian government's earlier move to persuade the US-based Carnegie Mellon University to set up a campus in Adelaide. The SA government committed the extraordinary sum of A$20 million to assist the private American institution by refurbishing a heritage building, providing start-up funding and meeting operational costs as well as the sponsored students' fees - all this to run two postgraduate programmes for an initial 75 students.

Vice-chancellors, however, were less enthusiastic and regarded the Carnegie Mellon and Kaplan moves with some trepidation. Yet late last month, the University of Adelaide - a member of the research-intensive Group of Eight leading universities - announced it had joined forces to establish a private Kaplan University in the city, the company's first overseas university campus.

A press release from Adelaide said the partnership would see both universities "working together to expand access to high-quality career-oriented educational programs". Subject to the Australian government's agreement and approval by the US Higher Learning Commission - Kaplan University's accreditor - the company would introduce "innovative e-learning technologies to deliver degree programmes across Australia, with students able to study at Kaplan's Adelaide-based campus or anywhere in Australia online".

Adelaide Vice-chancellor Professor James McWha declared: "Bringing together a world-class Australian university in the University of Adelaide with one of the world's biggest, most innovative education providers, Kaplan, will provide local and international students with a wider range of study options to fit their different needs."

Kaplan's first intake of students is expected in 2011with an offer of financial services and business programmes ranging from bachelors to masters degree. Once fully operational, the new university plans to enrol 5,000 domestic and international students on campus in Adelaide with more enrolled online.

"The primary mission of our partnership with Kaplan will be to expand access to higher education in Australia," McWha said. "Under-represented groups, including working adults, students from low socio-economic backgrounds and students in regional and remote areas, will be the big winners from this agreement."

Although the announcement caught many of the other Australian universities by surprise, Adelaide and Kaplan have had a long-standing relationship through Kaplan's Bradford College which offers pathway programmes to international students with the majority going on to study at the university.

Kaplan also has other operations in Australia including the Kaplan Business School, Kaplan Professional, Kaplan Aspect and the Murdoch Institute of Technology.

Creation of its Adelaide campus means it will become the fourth foreign private university to be set up in South Australia, following Carnegie Mellon, University College London and Cranfield University.

geoff.maslen@uw-news.com

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