Illusions of accountability: the tertiary education quality and standards agency’s regulation of sexual violence in Australian university settings

Abstract

ABSTRACT The issue of sexual assault and sexual harassment in Australian university settings has received heightened attention in recent years. Despite efforts to strengthen institutional responses, national survey data suggests that efforts by the Australian university sector and the national higher education regulator, the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (TEQSA), have failed to reduce the incidence of sexual assault and sexual harassment, increase student awareness of university policies, improve reporting rates, enhance complainant satisfaction with university responses, or achieve institutional accountability and transparency in the management and prevention of campus-based sexual violence. These institutional and regulatory failings adversely impact on Australian university students’ right to education. Drawing on my doctoral research, this article examines the role of TEQSA in oversighting university efforts to prevent and respond to sexual assault and sexual harassment following the release of the Australian Human Rights Commission’s landmark 2017 Change the Course report. Reflecting on the agency’s regulatory interventions over the past six years, the article suggests that any ongoing role for TEQSA in relation to campus-based sexual violence needs to be carefully considered.