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Universities are being urged to block websites that sell essays, identify cheating "hot spots" and consider publishing data on breaches of academic integrity. As universities grapple with a rise in contract cheating – which involves students outsourcing assessments – Australia's higher education watchdog has unveiled new guidelines to tackle the issue. A recent survey by a University of South Australia associate professor who helped create the guidelines, found that 6 per cent of Australian students engaged in cheating.

Doctors, registrars and psychiatrists at some of Sydney's top hospitals have cheated in their medical exams through collusion and sharing illicit photos of examination papers. Documents obtained by Fairfax Media show that some former students of the University of Sydney's medical program have been colluding since at least 2009, with illicit materials such as photographs of examination papers still being shared with current students in the psychiatry, paediatrics and community departments of Sydney's most prestigious medical school.

Universities across Sydney are cracking down on cheating in tertiary assessment tasks, after Fairfax Media revealed chronic misconduct across the sector. The University of Sydney, University of Technology and the University of NSW have all implemented strict new policies on assessments, which include the reintroduction of closed-book exams, question and answer sessions after assessments, a shift away from take-home assignments and a ban on wristwatches in exams.

Federal Education Minister will direct the nation's top education panel to focus on university admissions after a Fairfax Media investigation revealed that the practice of admitting students with lower than the minimum ATAR into university courses was endemic. The move, due to be announced on Wednesday, will see the Higher Education Standards Panel examine options for improving the transparency of student admissions policies. The panel will have up to a year to work on a new university standards framework, which will take effect from January 2017.

Australia has been gripped by a national debate over how to fund our university education. But perhaps there's a more important question: what is it worth? A Four Corners investigation has unearthed alarming new evidence of a decline in academic standards at institutions around the country. Lecturers and tutors are grappling with a tide of academic misconduct and pressure from faculty managers to pass weak students. Many say commercial imperatives are overtaking academic rigour.