BEc (Hons), DipEd, MEd, PhD Monash, FACE

Dr Phillip McKenzie was the Research Director of the Teaching Learning and Transitions program at ACER and a Director of the Monash University-ACER Centre for the Economics of Education and Training (CEET).

He commenced his career in education as a secondary school teacher before being awarded a fellowship for post-graduate studies in the economics of education at Monash University. His MEd thesis was on the efficiency and equity implications of recurrent education, and his PhD analysed the economics of secondary school size. At ACER and CEET, he has worked on a wide variety of commissioned research projects on the costs, financing and labour market outcomes of education and training, and education policy issues.

From 1984 to 1989, Dr McKenzie was Editor of the Australian Education Review series, and in 1991-92, was Executive Officer of the Strategic Review of Research in Education. He was a member of the Prime Minister’s Youth Pathways Action Plan Taskforce in 1999 and 2000.

From 1996 to 1998, and from 2002 to 2004, he was seconded to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in Paris, where he held the position of Principal Administrator in the Education and Training Policy Division. At the OECD, Dr McKenzie worked on major multi-country studies concerned with the Transition from Initial Education to Working Life (1996-98) and Attracting, Developing and Retaining Effective Teachers (2002-04). In 2002 and 2003 he was Editor of the OECD’s annual Education Policy Analysis series.