Engagement @ CQUniversity

You will often hear me banging on about CQUniversity being (or at least aspiring to be) Australia’s most engaged university. But what does ‘engagement’ mean exactly? And what does it have to do with running a university?

The dictionary doesn’t offer much help; definitions for ‘engagement’ include “a pledge of marriage”, “a hostile encounter or battle”, and “a promise to be at a particular place at a particular time”!

For me, engagement is about partnership. To paraphrase an old saying, no university is an island. How can we hope to service the education and training needs of our local communities if we don’t engage them in a regular, ongoing two-day dialogue?

We’ve been putting our heads together at CQUniversity to find a definition of ‘engagement’ that applies to us – and we think we’ve found it. Here it is:

CQUniversity works hard to make a real difference in the communities it serves.

At CQUniversity, it’s not just about education; it’s about connecting, partnering and building relationships with local people to achieve great things.

Sometimes, it’s as simple as having a kick of the footy on the CQUniversity oval. At others, it’s far more than that – connecting CQUniversity researchers with small business and large industry to help solve complex problems; providing student scholarships so that people from all walks of life have the chance to go to university; and hosting community events that bring people together and contribute to the diversity of regional town and city life.

We pride ourselves on being open, responsive, approachable and easy to engage with. Whether you are a prospective student, a local business owner, a CEO, an MP, a charity worker or a school principal, you will find our door is always open.

That’s why we’re proud to call ourselves Australia’s most engaged university.

  

What do you think? Please leave a comment – I’d love to hear your thoughts as we continue on our journey of engagement. After all, that’s what engagement is all about.