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MID-TERM REVIEW OF THE PHYSICS DECADAL PLAN
1.
What sector do you represent?
Industry
Government
Government research organisation
University
Secondary education
Other (please specify)
2.
This survey is formulated around four themes that reflect the structure of the Physics Decadal Plan. For each theme, please tick what you think are the top two or three priorities for achievement in a five year time frame. There is a final question asking you to identify any major changes (challenges and opportunities) in the landscape in which Physics operates in Australia.
Achieving a Physics-literate workforce and community
For industry stakeholders who employ physics trained staff, identify the skills that they value (discipline specific knowledge, abstract thinking, problem solving skills, quantitative skills).
Communicate to other industry stakeholders the values that physics trained staff can bring via generic skills (abstract thinking, problem solving skills, quantitative skills).
Facilitate opportunities for industry and government organisations to participate in networking events with soon-to-be physics graduates.
Promote more prizes to recognize science teachers – at discipline level rather than just the Prime Minister’s Science Teacher prize.
Provide a proposal for scalable professional development programs for teachers to complement existing motivational STEM programs.
Ensure physics is appropriately covered in K-12 syllabi and in special educational initiatives for science.
Coordinate a physics careers booklet/webpage which includes of order 50 individual case studies of careers of physics graduates (80% BSc, 20% PhD) as a substantial resource to show there are jobs for physics graduates in Australia.
Opportunities for industry to engage with physics high school teachers and students about career opportunities.
Other (please specify)
3.
Realising human capital in Physics (Select the top two or three priorities for achievement in a five year time frame)
Promote emerging structures such as SAGE (Science in Australia Gender Equity) to achieve gender balance in physics.
Promote activities for Early and Mid Career Researchers to ensure they are aware of career opportunities outside academia and have opportunities to develop generic skills appropriate for such employment.
Explore and promote opportunities for development of entrepreneurship skills in physics graduates, and links to opportunities for funding of start-up enterprises.
Contribute a strong voice to sector wide support for growing the number of satisfying STEM related jobs and careers.
Development of appropriate networking events to facilitate connection and mutual understanding between university educators/researchers and the government and industry sector.
Analyze successful models of work integrated learning as part of a physics degree within university courses in Australia and other countries with similar degree structures and develop strategies for implementation.
Training of PhD graduates is to ensure skills required by industry, rather than focus on a specific research outcome.
Other (please specify)
4.
Building on Physics research and investment (Select the top two or three priorities for achievement in a five year time frame)
Work with the Academy and the Office of the Chief scientist on a policy document to achieve a 3% of GDP investment in research (benchmarked to Israel) including improved transparency around research and development tax incentives.
Promotion of one or two “big ticket” physics research investments for the attention of government.
Encourage continued funding by the ARC for a broad range of “investigator led” (or “blue sky”) physics research with a view to long-term returns via new technologies.
Tie a proportion of ARC funding to a set of national research priorities with short to medium returns for society.
Direct physics research to “global challenges” (such as decarbonisation) via funding initiatives.
Provide a forum for communication of industry research needs to the physics research community.
Promote funding of interdisciplinary research that involves physics.
Develop a new model of University graduation based on Massive Open Online Courses.
Other (please specify)
5.
Engaging in the international enterprise of Physics (Select the top two or three priorities for achievement in a five year time frame)
Promote the need for funding sources for participation by Australian researchers in international collaborations, both large and small, including opportunities that arise at short notice.
Promote a funding mechanism for two-way exchange at the level of individual researchers for rapidly developing fields.
Seek to engage more fully with emerging research partners in the Asia-Pacific region.
Lobby to ensure there are no restrictions on mobility of researchers.
Encourage “Made in Australia” discoveries with an incentive to build “big physics” experiments in Australia and attract contributions from major international collaborations
Other (please specify)
6.
Changes and new opportunities: please identify any major changes in the past five years that have had an impact (positive or negative) on Physics in Australia or represent new opportunities – examples might include new scientific discoveries or collaborations, government policy, funding for research and teaching, industry initiatives, educational developments.
7.
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