Mark Western

Background

About Mark Western

Mark Western is Research Director, The Queensland Commitment, Professor of Sociology at The University of Queensland (UQ), and a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences in Australia, and the Queensland Academy of Arts and Sciences. The Queensland Commitment is a 10-year initiative to address financial, geographic and circumstantial barriers to access, participation, attainment and success at UQ. From 2009 to 2022, Mark was Founding Director of the Institute for Social Science Research (ISSR) at UQ. Mark's research record includes academic publishing, commissioned and partnered research projects and larger initiatives with government, industry and the not-for-profit sector, and contributions to higher education and research policy. He led the development of evaluation frameworks for the multi-billion dollar Health and Hospitals Fund, and Queensland's 10-year domestic and family violence strategy and has contributed to state and federal policy evaluations, including Paid Parental Leave, and the Try, Test and Learn fund. His academic research spans social, economic and educational inequality, political behaviour, research methods and the public impact of the social sciences. He has published over 100 books, articles, and commissioned reports and held research grants and contracts worth over $120 million. Selected external activities - current and past Chair, Group of Eight Equity Working Group Member, National Research Infrastructure Advisory Group Member, Steering Committee, Academy of Social Sciences Research Infrastructure Decadal Plan Chair, 2021 ERA Benchmarking and Rating Scale Working Group, ARC Chair, Steering Committee, 2021 State of the Social Sciences Report, Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia. Deputy Chair, Australian Council of Learned Academies 2015 Review of the Australian Research Training System Deputy Chair, Steering Committee, 2014 Mapping the Humanities and Social Sciences in Australia Report Academies of Humanities and Social Sciences Chair and Deputy-Chair ARC ERA and Engagement and Impact Assessment Committees Member, ARC College of Experts Technical Advisory Group, Australian Census Longitudinal Dataset HILDA External Reference Group External Reference Group, Learning for Life Growth Program, The Smith Family Chief Investigator, ARC Centre of Excellence in Policing and Security Chief Investigator, ARC Centre of Excellence for Children and Families over the Life Course ATSE Working Group to Develop Research Engagement Metrics