| Overview of AEO | ||
| Mission and Vision | Governance | Staff |
| Chronology | Functions | Activities |
The Australian Education Office (AEO) was established in 1992 to enhance the bilateral relationship between Australia and the US and Canada by fostering all forms of education links as well as by supporting the study of Australia in North America. While the AEO is funded by twenty-nine Australian universities and six US-based study abroad programs, it is incorporated as a US non-profit corporation and is involved with generic promotion and not recruitment for specific institutions. Some of the services of the Office are outlined below.
The AEO was created to provide a source of information on Australian Higher Education for students, faculty and the general public. In achieving this goal, AEO staff respond to telephone and written inquires, produce publications and make institutional visits. Publications play a particularly important role, and at present they include Study In Australia, The Study Abroad Advisor's Guide, A Directory of Exchanges between North America and Australia , A Guide to Short Courses in Ausralia, and Study in Australia: Newsletter of the Australian Education Office as well as numerous information sheets on topics such as scholarships, professional schools and financial aid. In the near future, we also expect to establish a world wide web homepage. The AEO also supplements its own publications with information provided by Australian organizations and universities.
The AEO staff respond to both general and specific inquiries. Although we do not provide a credential evaluation service, we can often help to determine credit equivalencies, courses offered and specific details on institutions. Because the AEO reference collection includes an almost complete set of up-to-date handbooks from Australian universities, we are able to access the information you require or can request it from the appropriate institution or organization.
Another service provided by the AEO is assistance with study abroad programs, short courses and exchanges. The AEO is able to network with Australian universities to find the institution which will most appropriately meet your needs, and can also assist you in designing programs that will meet the needs of students. Our extensive database of inquiries also provides important information regarding student's interests. At present the AEO's services are provided free-of-charge to North American institutions in the interest of expanding student and faculty flow between Australia and North America. North American institutional visits and familiarization tours to Australia are also important activities in this area.
The support of Australian Studies is another of the AEO's activities. In 1997, the AEO received a grant from the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs & Trade to support Australian studies in North America. Activities, include coordinating a North American Speaker Series, developing a plan to support the study of Australia in secondary schools and providing logistical support to Australian Studies assocations in North America.
At present, the AEO comprises a staff of four (three in Washington and one part-time consultant in Australia), and although any person in the office can help to answer your questions, there are specific roles within the office. John Wells is the Executive Director, responsible for office management and liaising with North American education providers and study abroad organizations. Professor Robert H T Smith, the Senior Consultant and former Executive Director has experience in US, Canada and Australia as a professor and Vice-Chancellor, he is very well qualified to answer in-depth questions as well as liaising with Australian universities and peak governmental and non-governmental organizations. Professor Smith is located in Australia. Carri Kendrick, is the Senior Program Associate, responsible for assisting with publications, answering student inquiries, distributing literature, and answering your general questions. Lisa Murphy is the Australian Studies Officer, a position jointly funded by the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and the AEO. Lisa is responsible for the promotion of Australian Studies in North America which includes providing logistical support to Australian Studies organizations, administering the North American Speaker Series, and developing projects intended for students at the senior secondary level in North America. In addition, Lisa is able to answer any questions which may arise about study abroad.
The AEO is a not-for-profit organization established to promote Australian education and training in North America. Located at the Australian Embassy in Washington, DC, the AEO links students and faculty of all ages with Australia's higher education community, responds to education-related requests and provides information on existing programs in Australia.
While generic information on the higher education is available from the AEO, specific information (including application forms, etc.) on twenty nine institutions can also be provided on request.
The mission of the AEO is to develop and enhance the bilateral relationships between Australia on the one hand, and Canada and the United States on the other, by creating and fostering all forms of educational links. The realization of this mission will ensure the emergence of a generation of North Americans (citizens of Canada and the United States) and of Australians who have had research, teaching, learning or administrative experience in Australia and North America, respectively.
The AEO has a secondment program with Australian Universities, under which staff members from Deakin University, The University of New South Wales, and the Australian Vice-Chancellor's Committee spent two-month periods in the Office during 1994. There is also an internship program under which students in their junior or senior year spend three-month periods in the Office.
| April 1992 | Incorporated as a not-for-profit company in Delaware |
| July 1992 | Commenced operations in the premises of the Australian Education Consortium (AEC) in Minneapolis, MN |
| August 1992 | Inaugurated in the Embassy of Australia in Washington, DC by the Hon. Kim Beazley, then Minister for Employment, Education and Training |
| September 1992 | Transferred operations to Washington, DC |
| February 1995 | Commenced working with the Australian International Education Foundation (AIEF) |
| April 1997 | Received Grant to support Australian Studies in North America from Dept of Foreign Affairs & Trade |
| June 1997 | Concluded contract with the AIEF |
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