My first Grattan higher education report was released last night. The media coverage is mostly about the relationship between teaching and research, but the report itself is quite wide-ranging, covering

* the legal definition of higher education and universities
* the non-university higher education providers
* trends in student numbers, including what is being studied, and off-campus/on-campus
* who is studying – male/female, on campus/off-campus, low SES/high SES
* numbers of research staff and students, research fields of study, research spending and levels of research publications
* higher education finance; which institutions are eligible, total amounts spent, the HELP loan scheme, private spending
* micro issues in higher education funding: income per student, the demand-driven system
* the departments and ministers covering higher ed, including the Commonwealth takeover
* pass rates, student engagement and satisfaction
* graduate employment and income
* skills shortages, claimed civic and other benefits of higher education
* public confidence in universities

For people in Sydney, there is an event on Thursday 9 February.