Reflective Essay: Evaluating Effectiveness at Melbourne University

This essay provides a reflective comparison of Melbourne and Sydney Universities, focusing on the concept of effectiveness. It examines Melbourne University's purpose, scope, and criteria for evaluation, contrasting it with Sydney University. The essay explores stakeholder perspectives, including owners, employees, and students, to analyze the implications for a coherent approach to organizational effectiveness. It highlights the multidisciplinary approach of Melbourne University, its facilities, and the cost of living for students, ultimately concluding that Melbourne University offers a better educational experience. The essay suggests that incorporating multiculturalism and improving educational quality are crucial for Melbourne University to maintain its competitive edge. Desklib offers this essay and many other resources for students.

Running head: REFLECTIVE ESSAY ON MELBOURNE UNIVERSITY
Reflective Essay on Melbourne University
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author’s note:

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REFLECTIVE ESSAY ON MELBOURNE UNIVERSITY
Introduction
This study focusses on comparison between Melbourne and Sydney universities. A
reflection on effectiveness of educational system in Melbourne and Sydney universities will be
covered in this study. In this particular study, the concept of effectiveness has been discussed in
the context of Melbourne university. The purpose of Melbourne University as well as its scope of
operations has been explained here. In addition to this, the criteria for evaluating the
effectiveness of Melbourne University is discussed in this particular study. Apart from this, the
development of the coherent approach with respect to Melbourne University has been explained
in this particular study.
Discussion
Melbourne University is a public research university. It is situated in Melbourne,
Australia. It was established in 1853. This university is the oldest university in Victoria. About 4,
068 staffs work at the university. There are 45, 511 students who were pursuing their academic
career in this university(Topuniversitiesom,2018). The endowment of this university is about
AU$511 million Times Higher Education, 2018).
There are 3610 students continuing their study in this university. Its main campus is
located at Parkville, Victoria. Apart from this campus, there are 4 campuses, which are located at
Werribee, Southbank, Hawthorn and Burnley. The main purpose of this university is to build a
bright future for its students through offering them high-quality learning experience
(Unimelb.edu.au, 2018). On the other hand, Sydney University is a public research university,
which is headquartered at Sydney. It was established in 1850. In 2013, its endowment is AU$1.8

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REFLECTIVE ESSAY ON MELBOURNE UNIVERSITY
billion. In 2014, there are 52, 789 students continuing their academic career in this university. Its
main campus is located at Urban, Parks. Apart from this, Mallett Street Campus, Sydney
Conservatorium Campus, Cumberland Campus, Rozelle Campus, and Camden Campus. The
main purpose of Sydney University is to offers a transformative academic experience, which
helps the students to prepare themselves for a bright future (Sydney.edu.au, 2018).
In accordance with Sleeter (2014), effectiveness means the potentiality to produce an
expected outcome. It has been observed that multiculturalism exists in University of Sydney. On
the contrary, it is seen that University of Melbourne does not have such culture. I have
understood that multiculturalism enhances the knowledge of the students regarding different
cultures. I have realized that multiculturalism increases the cross-cultural skills of the students. I
believe that multiculturalism encourages the inclusion of the multiple perspectives. In the
opinion of Bulut (2015), Melbourne city is comparatively less expensive than the city of Sydney.
It has been noticed that average tuition fees are about US$ 22, 700 in Melbourne University. On
the other hand, the average tuition fees are about US$28, 600 in Sydney (Smh.com.au, 2018).
Therefore, I can share that the cost of living for the students would be higher in Sydney than that
of Melbourne city. I have observed that that University of Melbourne has undertaken a
multidisciplinary approach throughout its working environment whereas multicultural approach
is absent in the work culture of University of Sydney. Thus I can share that University of
Melbourne is far more effective than University of Sydney because it has adopted multi-
disciplinary approach in its work culture thereby enriching the learning experience of the
students.
I have seen that customers opt for studying at University of Melbourne because a variety
of foods are available at Melbourne which is found to be missing at University of Sydney. I have

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REFLECTIVE ESSAY ON MELBOURNE UNIVERSITY
observed that quality of food is good at Melbourne rather than that of Sydney. From my personal
experience, I have noticed that customers studying at Melbourne University enjoys the library
facilties at time of need. I have seen that customers and employees also can access libraries of
their faculties because all the faculties have their individual library. I have noticed that
employees working at this university can participate at professional development programs. On
the other hand, I have seen that employees working at University of Sydney do not get the option
to take part in professional development programs. Students of this university accessibility to
libraries of their faculties. I have also noticed that customers and employees of Melbourne
university can enjoy a better lifestyle because it is cheaper than Sydney. On the contrary,
customers and employees can lead an average lifestyle because cost of living is quite higher in
this city. Thus, I have understood that facilities of Melbourne university are far better than
University of Sydney.
After analyzing the effectiveness from the viewpoints of various stakeholders, I can share
that educational experience at University of Melbourne is better than University of Sydney. From
my experience, I can share that University of Melbourne has a better infrastructure in
comparison to University of Sydney. It has been noticed that the development of a coherent
approach will create a positive impact on the workflow of the respective university. In this
context, it can be stated that the coherent approach will make the educational system more
structured and organized that will improve the quality of education (Forsyth, 2014). Therefore, I
can share that this systematic approach will draw the attention of more students who were
interested to study abroad.

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REFLECTIVE ESSAY ON MELBOURNE UNIVERSITY
Conclusion
From the above discussion, it can be concluded that Melbourne university has
incorporated a multidisciplinary approach within its working environment. It would be better for
the respective university if it includes multiculturalism in its workflow. It has been noticed that it
is needed for the management to take necessary steps for improving the quality of education in
order to beat its close rival namely University of Sydney. It has been observed that infrastructure
of Melbourne University is good if it is compared with University of Melbourne. It has been
noticed that low tuition fees of University of Melbourne would increase the rate of influx of
students willing to study abroad. In this way, it is possible for this university to attract more
students of different countries. In other words, better infrastructure, low tuition fees, a coherent
approach, multiculturalism and adoption of multidisciplinary approach will help this university
to dominate the educational sector of Australia.

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REFLECTIVE ESSAY ON MELBOURNE UNIVERSITY
References
Armitage, C. 2018. Why has Melbourne University trounced Sydney in global rankings yet
again?. [online] The Sydney Morning Herald. Available at:
https://www.smh.com.au/national/why-do-university-rankings-rate-melbourne-higher-than-
sydney-again-20151001-gjyqh8.html [Accessed 20 Apr. 2018].
Bulut, Y., 2015. Multiculturalism and Education (Contemporary Issues in Education
Studies). Journal of Ethnic and Cultural Studies, 2(1), pp.55-57.
Forsyth, S., 2014. Curriculum for excellence and the Donaldson Report: a coherent approach
supporting teachers in the move towards evidence based practice. The Scottish Association for
Teachers of Physical Education On-line Journal, 1(2).
Sleeter, C.E., 2014. Multiculturalism and education for citizenship in a context of
neoliberalism. Intercultural Education, 25(2), pp.85-94.
The University of Melbourne. 2018. The University of Melbourne, Australia - Australia's best
university and one of the world's finest. [online] Available at: https://www.unimelb.edu.au/
[Accessed 20 Apr. 2018].
The University of Sydney. 2018. Home. [online] Available at: https://sydney.edu.au/ [Accessed
20 Apr. 2018].
Times Higher Education (THE). (2018). University of Melbourne. [online] Available at:
https://www.timeshighereducation.com/world-university-rankings/university-melbourne
[Accessed 23 Apr. 2018].