Professor Dawkins was appointed the interim Director of Jobs and Skills Australia in December 2022. In this role he is directly accountable to the Minister for Skills and Training, the Hon Brendan O’Connor. Peter is an Emeritus Professor of Economics at the Mitchell Institute for Education and Health Policy at Victoria University, where he was the Vice-Chancellor and President from 2011 until 2020. His career has spanned academia and the public service. His central area of expertise as an economist is in labour market economics, with his policy research and advice especially focussed on labour markets, education and training. Peter has a passion for the power of education and training to transform lives and for evidence-based economic and social policy.