Down under: Police education at the Charles Sturt University, Australia

Abstract

Policing and Higher Education in Australia have a long-standing and complex history. Whilst progress towards a full professional model has been made, levels of resistance are still evident in some quarters. This chapter focuses on the progress which has been made towards policing achieving a professional status and discusses some of the changes and enduring partnership which have evolved ‘down under’. In particular, the authors describe the collaborative recruit program between the New South Wales Police Service and Charles Sturt University which has endured for over 15 years with a new 10-year contract recently signed. This program has stood the test of time whilst other such initiatives have failed to thrive. This chapter explores the features of the collaboration in an effort to identify the factors that may have led to the ongoing resilience and success of this model for police recruitment within a higher education program. In addition, the author explores the patterns and trends of serving officers engaging in continual professional development within higher education throughout Australia.