my crusade to have the UniverIty of Western Sydney renamed

[RugbyFuture]

So basically I had an idea and everyone knows that UWS has a bad name and rep but otherwise is quite a decent uni. I am proposing to rename it APU, Arthur Phillip university. I don't care if its basically an unobtainable outcome. At the end of semester my crusade begins. Anyone have any non slanderous thoughts?

 

[DPK]

I was talking to some older guys at work about UWS and it's poor reputation and one of them told me that when he went to Macquarie Uni it had a similar reputation to UWS's current rep. Things will change eventually I guess.

I'll say this much, the UWS Parra campus is bloody well decked out.

 

[RugbyFuture]

oh, people are starting to realise its value as a uni, and i do understand that macquarie had a similar rep and so did UNSW when it was established (nicknamed kenso kindy) however, i conducted a brand analysis (just in my head, and using wikipedia) look at the other universities in australia, and even in the UK, and none of any good rep are actually named after a subregion of a city.

Furthermore Western Sydney is not the main problem, the main problem is what western sydney is described as, if the university was called parramatta university, or penrith university etc it wouldn't have a problem, but when is the words western sydney mentioned the most in the media? when it comes to a crime, poverty, slow development or bad people, simply enough, the brand could be better. also removing sydney from the name eliminates any mistaking it for USyd.

Arthur Phillip has no long term institution in australia named after him, even though he founded the colony and was the first governor, he also has a link to western sydney in that he was the one to first send out convicts and freemen to western sydney for agricultur, such as John Macarthur and James Ruse, he also lived at Rosehill at the first governors mansion.

Adopting this name would also take the university to close to the top of the list of any university list.

also, have you seen the UWS logo?

 

[RugbyFuture]

oh and i forgot to mention the fact that in a few decades time, UWS will no longer be in "the west" of sydney

i also have a logo which is very smart for it

 

[DPK]

oh and i forgot to mention the fact that in a few decades time, UWS will no longer be in "the west" of sydney

i also have a logo which is very smart for it

I think it's safe to say it will still be the Inner West in 30-40 years. No need to change the name now to reflect that.

 

[The_Brown_Hornet]

UWS is where that perma-bear and general grouch Steve Keen plys his trade isn't it?

 

[RugbyFuture]

I think it's safe to say it will still be the Inner West in 30-40 years. No need to change the name now to reflect that.

brands are about lengevity, best change it while still young, than having to change it and lose muchof its brand value down the track

 

[Jnor]

I go to Usyd so insert general snobbery here (although we do reserve most of it for UTS)

Otherwise I think you're onto something, but you will really need some impetus behind you to actually get this off the ground.

 

[RugbyFuture]

http://sphotos.AK (Andrew Kellaway).fbcdn.net/hphotos-AK (Andrew Kellaway)-snc4/hs404.snc4/46759_455839429364_569224364_6470171_1682861_n.jpg

had to block partials of the images out because of copyright issues regarding the internet, but its a parrallel logo anyways and you can piece it together if you're imaginiatve enough

bicone hat, blue mountains and rising sun

 

[RugbyFuture]

I think it's safe to say it will still be the Inner West in 30-40 years. No need to change the name now to reflect that.

The other thing DPK is the fact that whether they like it or not, a high percentage of enrolments come from the north shore, and people from there will immediately dismiss anything with western sydney in it, and they think macquarie is in the west...

 

[DPK]

I'd rather UWS didnt pander to the North Shore applicants. Instead of trying to entice them by targeting them, build a strong uni from the students applying from close to the various campuses (ie. Western Sydney).

 

[RugbyFuture]

they're a business with a large number of applicant from the north shore, just as UTS and USyd have a large number of applicants from the west and are trying to balance out their brands (much to their detriment)

im just trying to add prestige, interest, and relevance in the university.

i do admit i am a bit of a snob, but i understood from the beggining that the university was in the same situation as the others when they first started. however it is a very poor branding and is only named UWS because Chifley was rejected by the then Liberal Government. Arthur Phillip bridges divide across all political spectrums, needs more recogntion in this country, has a link to Western Sydney and was a lay person who went on to achieve great things, all positive aspects which in this case could be accentuated in the brand

 

[Gagger]

Why not give it more an international / tech flavour? Something that says "winner";

Steve Jobs University

 

[RugbyFuture]

the uni would be covered in sperm from all the wankers...

 

[RugbyFuture]

2 universities named after politicians of current political parties, 5 politicians altogether, 4 after explorers, 2 after governors with lasting influence (including victorias first), 1 man from the military, 1 academic, one businessman and 1 academic.
NSW
Charles Sturt- rural Explorer
Macquarie- Governor, developer
Vic
Deakin - founding father, politician, PM(Lib-fusion)
La Trobe - Governor of Victoria
Monash - military man, Head of the Australian corps, defender
Swinburne - engineer and politician, Australia party
QLD
Bond - private, Alan bond
Griffith - writer of the Australian constitution, high court judge, politician, premier of QLD
James Cook - Explorer, discoverer of Australia, science
WA
Curtin – PM (Labor), during war
Edith Cowan - first female politician, nationalist, philanthropist
Murdoch - academic, chancellor of UWA
SA
Flinders - Explorer, pioneer, science
NT
Charles Darwin - pioneer, Explorer, science
Out of all the people missing there is one that does deserve a university, particularly in Western Sydney, Arthur Phillip; Governor of NSW, the first lieutenant Governor of what is now Australia, Pioneer of farming and industry, and stabiliser of the colonies, friend of the Darug and Eora people and for sure, one who can be considered one of the founding fathers of Australia, often neglected and overseen for Captain Cook or Macquarie.

 

[Aussie D]

In these PC times in which we live what would the aborigines and do-gooders make of it? Not sure they would go for it as he led the 'invasion' of Australia by those nasty British types.

 

[Bowside]

As much as I think this is a good idea I cant see it going down to well with the Aboriginal community.

They should call it Keating University as he's a famous product of Western Sydney. Although it would be a tad ironic as he left school at 15 and did'nt go to Uni.

 

[RugbyFuture]

Arthur Phillip was the one who befriended bennelong and wanted a respectful "invasion"

the university was originally going to be called Chifley university, however it was rejected on the grounds it would link a famous Labor figure to a long term institution, so i don't think keating would get it.

 

[Scarfman]

I don't think you can call it APU. Arthur Phillip didn't have much to say about Western Sydney, plus it sounds like the guy from the QuikieMart. You need someone who had a connection with Western Sydney, like Macarthur University, which is what the South-West division of the old UWS was called.

There is already a Whitlam Institute at UWS, but I'm not sure you could get that or Keating U over the line. I think Chifley is the best suggestion. Got a quick logo for that one?

As far as reputation goes, we're a long way off the bottom. In the humantities, we're nearer the top, with our Humanities department easily outpointing English at Syd Uni. I think that perception will slowly change over time, as it has for Kenso and Macquarie.

 

[Scarfman]

They could call it Parkes University, but that might cause confusion about its location. No, I reckon Chifley is the go.