Call to scrap hated group projects at Australian universities

Thursday, 26 February 2026 17:28

"There is always that student who does the work, and that student who reaps the benefit."

Group assignments at universities should be scrapped because students "hate" them, according to the shadow education minister.

It is an experience millions of Australians have had to endure during their education, and Julian Leeser says he has received such strong feedback from students that the projects should be banned.

"Unless there are compelling reasons or exceptional circumstances, I am calling on you to get rid of group assignments," he told the Universities Australia Solutions Summit today.

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Julian Leeser believes students will be better off without group assignments at university.

While a 2023 study from the Australian Catholic University in 2023 suggested "students perceive collaborative group work as beneficial in many ways", Leeser disputes this finding.

He believes individuals are more likely to suffer from the experience, and don't actually learn much from the assessment.

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Leeser claimed group assignments "cheapen" university degrees.

"There is always that student who does the work, and that student who reaps the benefit. It diminishes the role of the individual," he said.

Three in four international students in Australia said they had experienced racism.

"In most cases, there is no compelling justification."

He believes universities and students as a whole will benefit if they reframe the thinking and focus surrounding assessments to be on an individual basis.

"I am calling on you to rethink assessments by focusing on whether we are truly and fairly assessing individuals on the basis of their individual performance," he said.

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