The WA Government is considering merging Curtin University, Murdoch University and the University of Western Australia into a single university.

This is not just an idea floating around. The Government established a University Merger Feasibility Study to look at restructuring WA’s university sector. That study has reportedly been handed to government, but it has not been made public.

That means decisions could be made before students and staff are given clear answers about what this would mean for our courses, jobs, campuses, services and university communities.

Why does this matter?

A merger would be one of the biggest changes to higher education in WA’s history.

For students, it could change what courses are offered, where they are taught, how degrees are structured, what services are available and what kind of university community they are part of.

For staff, it means uncertainty, restructures, changed roles, heavier workloads and the risk of job cuts.

This is not a small administrative change. It would reshape the future of WA universities.

What has happened elsewhere?

Other university mergers show how disruptive these changes can be.

The Adelaide University merger has involved major public funding, years of transition work and serious concerns about disruption to teaching, staff, student support and university identity.

WA students and staff should not be forced into the same kind of disruption without transparency, consultation or clear evidence that it would actually improve education.

What would it cost?

It is estimated that a WA university merger could cost more than $1 billion.

That money would not create a single extra dollar of research funding. It would not build a single affordable student home. It would not put food on the table for struggling students. It would not fund a single paid placement. It would not hire a single tutor, counsellor or student services officer.

It would be spent on a government pet project: consultants, restructures, branding, systems changes and years of internal disruption.

What is at risk?

Students could face fewer course choices, fewer pathways, reduced services and weaker campus communities.

Staff could face restructures, job cuts, changed roles and higher workloads.

That means teaching quality, feedback times, student support, research supervision and campus life are all at risk. Staff working conditions are student learning conditions.

Why join the campaign now?

Because this decision has not been locked in yet.

The WA Government is considering this merger now, and the time to stop it is before a final decision is made. Once a merger is announced, it becomes much harder to undo.

Students and staff need to make it clear that we do not want fewer universities, fewer courses, fewer jobs and less choice.

We can stop this billion-dollar mistake, but only if we build pressure now.

Sign up for campaign updates, follow Stop The Uni Merger on Instagram and help us show decision makers that WA students and staff will not stay quiet while our universities are put at risk.