Home > Contents > Chapter 5 - Outcome 2: Post-school education and training

Outcome 2: Post-school education and training

Section 1 – Description
Section 2 – Our strategic priorities
Section 3 – other activities that broadly support Outcome 2
Section 4 – Summary of the achievements against this Outcome

Outcome 2 – Post-school education and training providers assist individuals achieve relevant skills and learning outcomes for work and life

Section 1 – Description

In an increasingly knowledge-based economy and society, investment in post-school education and training is the basis of improved individual welfare, national competitiveness and economic development. Individuals benefit from post-school education and training by acquiring a range of skills and attributes including those that lead to better quality employment, lower rates of unemployment and higher levels of lifetime income. Society benefits from an increased supply of skills, a more competitive economy and a better-informed, adaptable society.

The Commonwealth plays a national leadership role in post-school education and training. It works with States and Territories, education and training providers and industry to promote a system that is nationally consistent and coherent, responsive to needs and recognised as promoting high quality outcomes.

Through the Education, Science and Training portfolio, the Commonwealth contributes to the total national investment in post-school education and training. This includes targeted funding provided for a range of specific purposes, including income support for students under programmes such as ABSTUDY.

Vocational education and training

The Commonwealth supports the national vocational education and training system through the Australian National Training Authority Agreement between the Commonwealth and State and Territory Ministers responsible for vocational education and training. It provides the framework for the Australian vocational education and training system and also creates the basis for a joint partnership between governments and industry.

The Australian National Training Authority Ministerial Council endorsed the Australian National Training Authority Agreement 2001-2003 in August 2001. The Agreement takes forward agreed national reforms and includes enhancements to the accountability framework. The Agreement reinforces the commitment of States, Territories and the Commonwealth to a strong national industry-led vocational education and training system to benefit the nation, its industries and its people.

The Agreement focuses on quality assurance under the National Training Framework, flexibility in training delivery using Training Packages, New Apprenticeships and innovation. In 2001 all States and Territories developed innovation strategies, which outline State and Territory approaches to meeting the skill needs of emerging and innovative industries.

Commonwealth funding is provided to each State and Territory through the Australian National Training Authority, upon approval by the Australian National Training Authority Ministerial Council of the State’s or Territory’s annual Vocational Education and Training Plan. The Plans focus on the total level and type of training to be delivered using Commonwealth and State and Territory funds and the actions that States and Territories plan to take to address agreed national priorities. State and Territory training authorities allocate funds for the delivery of education and training to individual registered training providers including institutes of Technical and Further Education and a range of community-based and private providers.

The Australian National Training Authority Agreement 2001-2003 provided a substantial funding boost. The extra Commonwealth funding included $230m for growth, to be matched by the States and Territories, plus an estimated $120m for indexation. It brings Commonwealth funding for training to over $1 billion a year for the first time. The Commonwealth has also allocated an additional $15m to vocational education and training under the Australians Working Together – Helping People Move Forward package in the period covered by the Australian National Training Authority Agreement.

The States and Territories are responsible for quality assurance of vocational education and training providers and their programmes as well as New Apprenticeships regulation. Information about national activities in relation to quality assurance and national consistency is provided later in this chapter.

Higher Education

The Commonwealth provides the bulk of public funding for Australia’s higher education system. Universities receive operating grants and other assistance directly from the Commonwealth. Australian universities receive the majority of their public funds (both recurrent operating and capital funds) as a single block operating grant for a specified number of student places within the context of an education profile that broadly details the institution’s teaching and research activities. Around three-quarters of Commonwealth funds are allocated on a rolling triennial basis, giving institutions some predictability for forward planning of their operations.

Australia’s higher education system currently comprises 43 statutory higher education institutions (39 universities and four others) and around 85 non-statutory providers. The statutory institutions are self-accrediting and typically under the control of a governing body that is responsible for all aspects of the institution’s operations, including academic standards. The non-statutory institutions are not self-accrediting but have their courses accredited by State and Territory accreditation authorities.

All but three of Australia’s statutory higher education institutions are established under State or Territory legislation. The exceptions are the Australian National University, the Australian Maritime College and the Australian Film, Television and Radio School. These are established under Commonwealth legislation.

The recognition of new universities and the accreditation of courses delivered by non self-accrediting institutions is undertaken in accordance with the National Protocols for Higher Education Approval Processes, to ensure consistency and the maintenance of high standards.

The Higher Education Contribution Scheme is a distinctive feature of the higher education system. For Commonwealth funded places, the Scheme secures a contribution from students, as direct users and beneficiaries, towards the costs of tuition. It also provides a lending mechanism for students to overcome up-front financial barriers. The Higher Education Contribution Scheme enables students to defer the payment of their contributions until their income reaches a minimum threshold. The loan is indexed to maintain its real value but is otherwise interest-free. A similar arrangement is available for students studying through Open Learning Australia, under the Open Learning Deferred Payment Scheme.

The recently introduced Postgraduate Education Loans Scheme extends the income-contingent loans arrangement to fee-paying postgraduate coursework students, though without the Commonwealth funded component of the place. As with the Higher Education Contribution Scheme, the loan is indexed to maintain its real value but it is otherwise interest free. It ensures that all prospective postgraduate coursework students are able to pursue postgraduate study, regardless of their capacity to pay upfront fees, and promotes the upgrading or acquiring new skills.

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Financial health of the higher education sector. The Commonwealth monitors the financial position of higher education institutions as part of its prudential assurance responsibilities. A range of financial stability and liquidity measures as well as changes in the sources of total revenue and patterns of expenditure are monitored. Financial reports in 2001 show that higher education institutions generally retain strongly positive liquidity, low levels of borrowings and a significant level of assets. The sector operating margin, which measures operating surpluses as a proportion of revenue, reached 4.6 per cent in 2001, continuing the upward trend begun in 2000. It was 3.4 per cent in 2000 and 3.2 per cent in 1999. Revenue increased by more than $850m or nine per cent to exceed $10 billion in 2001.

Sector borrowing remains low compared to income and liquid financial assets. Although borrowings have been increasing since 1996, the total net assets for the sector were almost $21 billion, up from $20 billion in 2000. Reported cash and investments were $4.8 billion, more than eight times the sector borrowings of $590m. This indicates that in aggregate, current levels of borrowing can be maintained. The net capital expenditure, or capital expenditure less asset sales, was more than $1 billion in 2001.

Revenue from full-fee paying overseas students’ fees to institutions has been growing at an average rate of 18 per cent since 1995 and passed the $1 billion mark in 2001. This is $200m higher than the previous year, reflecting Australia’s success in attracting international students.

Revenue from non-overseas fee paying students has also been showing steady growth. The revenue from domestic postgraduate fee paying students reached $225m in 2001, up from $192m in 2000. Revenue from domestic undergraduate fee paying students was almost $44m in 2001, an increase of $8m.

More extensive details of the 2001 financial information will be published in the Higher Education Report for the 2003 to 2005 Triennium. However, details of the financial health of the sector based on 2000 financial statements can be obtained from the Higher Education Report for the 2002 to 2004 Triennium. It is available on the Internet at http://www.dest.gov.au/highered/he_report/2002_2004/html/default.htm

Statistical Overview – vocational education and training and higher education

In 2001, formal vocational education and training programmes receiving some government funding were provided by 87 Technical and Further Education (TAFE) institutes and other government providers, plus some 985 community based centres and 5645 other registered training providers. Approximately 74 per cent of students in this sector were enrolled in Technical and Further Education Institutes and Colleges, 13 per cent were receiving training from community providers and 13 per cent from other registered providers. During 2001, approximately 1.76m people undertook some vocational education and training.

In 2001, a total of 726 418 students were enrolled in undergraduate and postgraduate higher education courses at higher education institutions involved in the department’s statistical collection, up from 695 484 in 2000. Of these 112 342 were overseas students, up from 95 607 in 2000 (these figures are drawn from Selected Higher Education Statistics that are based on a point in time methodology and differ from those reported in Chapter 6 that are drawn from the department’s Overseas Student Statistics and based on a full calendar year). A trial data collection from 23 selected institutions not currently included in the department’s statistical collection indicates that there are more than 13 000 higher education students in other institutions.

By mode of attendance in 2001, 598 855 students studied on campus, 102 634 studied externally and 24 929 were classified as ‘multi-modal’. The largest single discipline was Management and Commerce with 180 853 students, followed by Society and Culture (168 571), Health (84 272), Education (74 409), Natural and Physical Sciences (61 187) and Information Technology (61 391).

Table 12: Resources invested in Outcome 2: Post-school education and training.

* Additional Estimates.
** Note: the departmental Outputs figures do not include resources provided free of charge.

Comments

Administered

The difference of $239m (four per cent) between the actual for 2001-02 and the budget for Administered Expenses is due mainly to:

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Contribution of Outputs to Outcome 2

The four Output Groups contributing to Outcome 2 during 2001-02 were:

Output Group 2.1 - Infrastructure funding for the post-compulsory education system;

Output Group 2.2 - New Apprenticeships;

Output Group 2.3 – Skill development and transition support; and

Output Group 2.4 – Opportunities for the engagement of young people with community activities.

Following the Administrative Arrangements Order in November 2001, the youth functions transferred from the former Department of Education, Training and Youth Affairs to the Department of Family and Community Services. These comprised the former Output Group 2.4 and, from Outcome Group 2.3, Job Placement, Employment and Training, and Services to Young People. These changes are illustrated in Chart 3 in Chapter 2. Performance against the functions transferred to the Department of Family and Community Services is included in that department’s Annual Report.

Infrastructure funding for the post-compulsory education system

Vocational education and training infrastructure funding includes funds provided to the Australian National Training Authority for allocation to the States and Territories to support the national vocational education and training system. These funds supplement those provided by State and Territory governments. State and Territory governments are responsible for their own training systems. The Commonwealth provides all of the funds allocated by the Australian National Training Authority and meets its operating costs. A total of $952 745m was legislated by the Commonwealth for recurrent and capital funding to the States and Territories and National Projects in 2000-01. In 2001-02 the Commonwealth also allocated $43.3m for Australian National Training Authority National Programmes to support activities consistent with national priorities. An Annual National Report on the vocational education and training system is produced by the Authority and is tabled in Parliament. The Report includes a wide range of information about performance at the State, Territory and national levels.

A sub-component of the Australian National Training Authority Infrastructure Programme assists in the provision of facilities for the delivery of vocational education and training to Indigenous people. In 2001 the Australian National Training Authority Ministerial Council allocated $4m to this component.

Higher education infrastructure funding includes Commonwealth operating resources provided to higher education institutions for general teaching and research purposes and capital projects. There are 42 institutions designated as eligible for Commonwealth operating grants. Eligibility for operating grants is determined by the Parliament listing an institution in the Higher Education Funding Act 1988.

In 2002 operating, research and other grants to universities from the portfolio will total around $6.1 billion, including payments from the Higher Education Contribution Scheme, funds provided in relation to Outcome 3 (see Chapter 6) and funding from the Australian Research Council.

In 2002 general operating resources consist of a base operating grant and a range of other grants provided for specific purposes. Purposes include: equity $7.7m; workplace reform $75.4m; teaching hospital grants $5.3m; superannuation grants $112.6m; and special capital funding, Capital Development Pool, $41.2m. The base operating grant includes components for teaching, capital and Indigenous Support funding.

In addition, the department administers the Framework for Open Learning Programme which supports a number of online and other technologically advanced education and training tools and services. Notable among these services is the free public Education Network Australia online web site at http://www.edna.edu.au, which has achieved substantial international recognition.

New Apprenticeships

A range of targeted initiatives and programmes supported access to, and participation in, New Apprenticeships. They were designed to maintain industry commitment to training and expand New Apprenticeship opportunities in priority industries in rural and regional Australia and assist job seekers who experience barriers to employment.

The Group Training New Apprenticeships Targeted Initiatives Programme established almost 1000 New Apprenticeships in critical, challenging and under-serviced markets in 2001-02. The Programme focussed on a range of clients that included disabled and Indigenous Australians. Projects operated in all States and Territories with more than 70 per cent supporting New Apprentices in rural and regional Australia.

The New Apprenticeships Access Programme helps job seekers who experience barriers to skilled employment. It provides them with pre-vocational training and other assistance so they can obtain a New Apprenticeship, or alternatively other employment or further education and training.

Other support for industry-based training was provided through the Industry Training Strategies Programme. The Programme supported the delivery of information by specialist industry groups and national peak industry employer bodies to their employer members, New Apprenticeships Centres and Registered Training Organisations, with the aim of increasing the numbers of New Apprentices in training.

Skill development and transition support

The Commonwealth provides funding for programmes to assist people with particular needs to develop skills to facilitate their transition to the workforce and their engagement with their community. These people include migrants seeking improved English language skills, job seekers needing improved literacy and numeracy skills, young people needing assistance in the transition from school to work, disadvantaged young people who may be homeless or at risk of becoming homeless, refugees, ex-offenders and Wards of the State.

The department has a broad range of initiatives administered by third parties in support of this output group including programmes to develop literacy and numeracy skills, career counselling and pathway programmes.

Details of actual performance against the performance indicators provided for each Output Group can be found at Appendix 9.

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Section 2 – Our strategic priorities

Priority One – Strengthen the responsiveness of the post-school education and training system to the needs of individuals and industry

Access and growth

Information on growth achieved under the Australian National Training Authority Agreement arrangements is not yet available for 2001. The Authority is projecting 1.478m enrolments in publicly funded vocational education and training for 2001 within the scope of the Agreement. There was a total of 1.475m students enrolled in 2000 under Australian National Training Authority Agreement arrangements, representing growth of 177 000 enrolments over the life of the 1998-2000 Agreement.

Over the decade, the number of people participating in higher education increased by 36 per cent, from approximately 534 500 students in 1991 to 695 484 in 2000 and 726 418 students in 2001. The increase is the result of a number of factors including the introduction of marginal funding for students enrolled above the Commonwealth’s target load for each institution, an increase in the number of overseas students and an increase in the number of postgraduate fee paying students.

There were a number of initiatives implemented in 2001-02 to improve access to Australia’s higher education and vocational education and training sectors. These initiatives are detailed below.

The Higher Education Review

The Higher Education Review commenced in April 2002 and will be completed by the end of the year. The Review includes a comprehensive consultation process, enabling all interested individuals and organisations to inform the direction of higher education policy reform. The goal of the policy reform is to ensure that Australia progresses into the coming decade with the best higher education system possible.

This Review covers all aspects of higher education. The overview paper Higher Education at the Crossroads and one of six issues papers, Striving for Quality: Learning Teaching and Scholarship were released by June 2002. The purpose of the papers is to encourage public debate across the full range of issues. Other issues papers will cover sector financing; sector diversity, specialisation and regional engagement; Indigenous issues; governance and management of universities and workplace relations; and the interface between higher education and vocational education and training.

A call for public submissions in April 2002 resulted in 354 submissions being received by the Review by the end of June. The initial meeting of the Review Reference Group, established to advise the Minister, was held in May 2002. Consultative forums are planned for the State and Territory capitals. A final two-day symposium in October 2002 will provide the sector with an opportunity to draw together key issues before the Government considers reform proposals.

Backing Australia’s Ability

The Government’s 2001 policy initiative Backing Australia’s Ability – An Innovation Plan for the Future included several measures to improve access to, and the responsiveness of, the higher education system. Overall, Backing Australia’s Ability will provide approximately $1.5 billion over five years directly to universities. A number of the measures relate to the achievement of Outcome 3 (see Chapter 6). The measures relevant to Outcome 2 follow.

New fully–funded places. The Commonwealth is providing 2000 additional fully funded higher education undergraduate student places each year. This will rise to nearly 5500 per year as students continue through their studies. These student places are targeted at the priority areas of information and communications technology, mathematics and science.

Institutions were invited to put forward proposals for the allocation of the places, with proposals assessed against a range of criteria such as the innovativeness of the approach and the potential for addressing the overall objectives of Backing Australia’s Ability. The new places were allocated during 2001 and commenced in the 2002 academic year.

Postgraduate Education Loans Scheme. This Scheme which commenced in 2002 is an important equity measure. It provides a loan that is indexed to maintain real value, but is otherwise interest free with deferred income contingent repayments. This Scheme is available for full fee paying students undertaking postgraduate coursework at eligible institutions.

There are early indications that the Postgraduate Education Loans Scheme has had a significant positive impact on participation in postgraduate coursework. For example, early estimates data shows a 20 per cent increase in postgraduate coursework enrolments in 2002 over 2001.

Additional fully-funded places for regional Australia

The 2001-02 Budget committed $34.8m over four years for regional universities and campuses. This figure becomes $58.3m when the Higher Education Contribution Scheme is included. The funding is for an additional 670 new university places each year, which will increase to 1830 equivalent full-time places a year as students continue through their studies. This funding will increase access in regional areas to higher education and address increased demand due to demographic growth.

The places were allocated during 2001 on the basis of criteria established by the Minister and commenced in the 2002 academic year.

Language, literacy and numeracy skills training

From 1 January 2002 the Literacy and Numeracy Programme and the Advanced English for Migrants Programme were amalgamated to form the Language, Literacy and Numeracy Programme. Three streams of training are available under the new Programme: basic English language; advanced English language; and literacy and numeracy. Subject to specific eligibility requirements, assistance under the Language, Literacy and Numeracy Programme is directed to persons of working age (generally 15 to 64 years of age) who are registered with Centrelink as unemployed and looking for work (that is, a job seeker) and who are not full time students. The training, which is designed to lead to a measurable improvement in participants’ language, literacy and numeracy skills, is provided by a range of TAFE institutes, private, community and not-for-profit organisations. The development of language, literacy and numeracy skills is important in order to provide people with increased opportunities for employment, improve access to further education or training and improve their day-to-day lives.

Improved Access for Indigenous Australians

New Apprenticeships. The New Apprenticeships system provides a wide range of training opportunities for Indigenous people. Since the mid 1990s, the number of Indigenous New Apprenticeships commencements increased fourfold from 1320 in 1995 to 6435 in 2001. The increase in Indigenous New Apprenticeships commencements between 2000 and 2001 was 32.4 per cent. It rose from 4860 in 2000 to 6435 in 2001.

The Australian National Training Authority Ministerial Council has endorsed Partners in a Learning Culture; Australia’s National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Strategy for vocational education and training 2000-2005. The Australian Indigenous Training Advisory Council oversees implementation of this strategy, which is in the form of a blueprint. The department provided $1.91m to the Australian National Training Authority for the period 2001-2003 to support implementation of national activities outlined in the strategy.

During the year, State and Territory training authorities with responsibility for funding programmes for Indigenous people in vocational education and training were asked to report in their annual vocational education and training plans on progress towards achieving blueprint strategies. A mid-term review of progress in implementing the blueprint will be completed by the end of the 2002 calendar year.

Higher Education. University operating grants include allocations for Indigenous students under the Indigenous Support Funding Programme. They totalled around $23.7m in 2002. Monies under this Programme are distributed via a funding formula based on student participation, progress and course completion. Indigenous Support Funding helps to meet the special needs of Indigenous students and supplements the annual base operating grants with which institutions are expected to meet the needs of all of their domestic students.

Improved Access for Students with Disabilities

The Australian National Training Authority Ministerial Council has endorsed Bridging Pathways; the National Strategy for increasing opportunities for people with a disability in vocational education and training 2000-2005. The Australian Disability Training Advisory Council oversees implementation of the strategy, which is in the form of a blueprint. The department has provided funding of $1.98m to the Australian National Training Authority to implement national actions contained in the blueprint.

During the year, State and Territory training authorities with responsibility for funding programmes for people with disabilities in vocational education and training were asked to report in their annual vocational education and training plans on progress towards achieving blueprint strategies. A mid-term review of progress in implementing the blueprint will be completed by the end of the 2002 calendar year.

Funding under the Australians Working Together, Helping People to Move Forward – A Better Deal for People with Disabilities will help States and Territories to provide vocational education and training places for people with a disability. It will also support increased training by unemployed people who receive income support.

The Additional Support for Students with Disabilities Programme was announced in the 2001-02 Budget. It will provide supplementary funding to universities to help with the cost of providing support services and equipment to assist students with disabilities who have high cost support needs. Commencing in September 2002, two funding allocations will be made each year, one between 1 January and 30 June and the other between 1 July and 31 December. Funding will be provided to partially reimburse universities for costs incurred by them in the previous six-month period.

The Higher Education Equity Programme provides funding to universities to improve the participation of equity groups, other than Indigenous students. In 2002, $5.089m was allocated to the Programme. Universities generally direct these supplementary funds to seed innovations or other strategic equity initiatives. The Programme also supports a national network of nine full-time and two part-time Regional Disability Liaison Officers. The network was established to help improve the transition of people with disabilities from schools on to post-secondary education and training, and employment. In 2001, funding of $800 000 each year for 2002, 2003 and 2004 was allocated.

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Flexibility and choice

New Apprenticeships

User Choice allows employers and their New Apprentices to select their Registered Training Organisation, whether public or private, and negotiate key aspects of their training. Public funds flow to the chosen training provider. The States and Territories are responsible for implementing User Choice in accordance with a national policy agreed by the Australian National Training Authority Ministerial Council. The Authority estimated that in 2001 the amount of funding available through contestable arrangements including User Choice would have been $491.5m, an increase of about 12 per cent from 2000.

The New Apprenticeships arrangements provide opportunities for young people and others to gain industry recognised skills, national qualifications and a career path. The Commonwealth provides employer incentives, personal benefits, infrastructure and support services. The National Centre for Vocational Education Research estimated that there were 362 140 New Apprentices in training as at 30 June 2002. This is an all time high and represents a 15 per cent increase over the previous year.

In the 2001-2002 financial year there were 245 870 New Apprenticeship commencements under the New Apprenticeships Programme. Female New Apprentices made up around 35 per cent of the total commencements. Indigenous Australians made up approximately 2.6 per cent of total commencements. Information on the numbers of school-based New Apprenticeships can be found in Chapter 4.

There are more than 300 New Apprenticeships Centre sites across Australia. Approximately 200 of these are in rural and regional Australia. The role of the Centres is to simplify and streamline access support services for New Apprenticeships for employers and New Apprentices. They provide an integrated service that includes helping employers access the Commonwealth’s New Apprenticeships Incentives Programme. The department has contracted 35 organisations to support nearly 500 000 commencements in the period 1 December 1999 to 30 June 2003. A key aspect of the last tender round was to ensure that rural and remote regions have access to quality New Apprenticeships services.

New Apprenticeships have increased employment and training opportunities to over 500 occupations, including information technology, tourism and hospitality, rural, finance and other service industries. Entry-level training is now available in a wider range of occupations that are more reflective of the structure of the modern workforce.

In the rural industry, a cross-sector New Apprenticeship was developed and a two-year pilot started in June 2001. The New Apprenticeship recognises the specific needs of the industry arising from the seasonal and short-term nature of much of the work, and uses competency standards from several national Industry Training Packages.

Awareness of New Apprenticeships amongst employers continues to be high. Employer awareness is around 73 per cent nationally.

Training Package support material. In the first half of 2001, the department provided the Australian National Training Authority with an additional $13.5m to develop training materials to support the implementation of Training Packages and New Apprenticeships.

Learning strategies, assessment resources and professional development materials that are innovative and flexible have been developed for Training Packages covering over 30 industry areas. Practitioners are also benefiting from a series of resources for conducting assessments that were unveiled at workshops around the country and the delivery of Training Package qualifications in schools.

A new web–based library of customisable resources is beginning to change the way training organisations develop learning and assessment strategies for Training Package qualifications. Interactive multimedia and other Training Package resources designed to support New Apprentices, including Indigenous New Apprentices, have also been developed.

All the resources were developed in close consultation with key industry stakeholders including Industry Training Advisory Bodies and peak bodies, and a range of practitioners and students.

Higher education

Workplace Reform Programme. In November 1999 the Government announced the Workplace Reform Programme to provide additional salary funding for higher education institutions. The funding is conditional on improvements in management, administrative and workplace relations practices. The Programme has been operating since 1 January 2000.

During 2001-02 all 40 eligible institutions qualified for first-round assistance under the Programme. Assessment of second round applications is proceeding with several having qualified by 30 June 2002. Qualifying institutions will have two per cent of the notional salary component of their operating grants added to their base funding. Universities have made progress under the Programme, for example in enterprise agreements that allow flexible working conditions, revenue generation and performance management.

Building the national skills base

The National Industry Skills Initiative was developed in 1999 as a partnership between industry and government to address current and emerging skill needs in selected industries. The Initiative was established with industry-led working groups developing action plans to address their identified skills issues.

In 2001, six industry-specific task forces monitored the implementation of recommendations in their action plans. They were engineering, electrotechnology, retail motor, commercial cookery, building and construction, and sectors of the rural industry. Action under the plans included the development of careers education materials, flexible ways of recognising existing skills and improving career paths and options to retain skills. In July 2001 a further three industries: emerging technologies, retail and road freight transport, were added to the Initiative.

The National Industry Skills Initiative has proved to be a very effective way to facilitate industry and government partnerships to address skills-related issues. Further information on the initiative is available at http://www.skillsinitiative.gov.au.

Employability skills project. The department and the Australian National Training Authority provided funding to the Business Council of Australia to undertake research, in conjunction with the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, to analyse and report on current business requirements for ‘employability skills’.

The report of this work, Employability Skills for the Future, was released in May 2002 and is expected to improve understanding of what makes a good employee and stimulate further work in employability skills development in Australian education and training.

Views on the report were sought from the Ministerial Council on Education, Employment, Training and Youth Affairs Taskforce on Transition from School, the National Training Quality Council and the Australian Vice-Chancellors’ Committee. These views will feed into further work being coordinated by the Australian National Training Authority Employability Skills Cross Sectoral Coordination Group. This Group will report to the Ministerial Council on Education, Employment, Training and Youth Affairs and to the Australian National Training Authority Ministerial Council in 2003.

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Performance Information for Strategic Priority One

Two of the performance indicators for this priority, Student participation in post-school education and training and Participation of Indigenous students in post-school education are also broad measures of the overall effectiveness of the education and training system as a whole. They are included in Section 4 of Chapter 3.

Additional information on student participation in vocational education and training and higher education is provided in Table 13.

According to statistics from the National Centre for Vocational Education and Research, there were 1.756m participants in publicly funded vocational education and training during 2001.

Table 13: Student participation in vocational education and training and higher education, 1996 – 2001.

* Note: includes participants who are outside the scope of the Australian National Training Authority Agreement.
**An EFTSU (Equivalent Full-time Student Unit) represents a standard annual full-time load.
Source: Selected Higher Education Statistics – Students 2001.
National Centre for Vocational Education and Research, Australian Vocational Education and Training in Detail 2000, Australian Vocational Education and Training in Detail 2001.

Commonwealth operating grants are allocated to higher education institutions for an agreed number of fully-funded places. In 2001, the Commonwealth provided 390 270 EFTSU (Equivalent Full-time Student Units) fully-funded places (not including higher degree research places) of which 367 785 EFTSU were at the undergraduate level. In 2002 there will be 393 255 EFTSU fully funded places of which 371 500 EFTSU will be at the undergraduate level.

In addition to fully-funded places, universities can offer undergraduate places that receive a marginal amount of Commonwealth funding (these places are Higher Education Contribution Scheme liable). Undergraduate and postgraduate places can also be offered on a fee paying basis, including to international students. The number of marginally funded and fee-paying places offered is at the discretion of universities. In 2001 the total number of higher education places was 588 204 EFTSU, compared to 486 977 in 1996 and 557 763 EFTSU in 2000 (see Table 13.) A breakdown of higher education places for domestic students only is provided at Table 14.

Table 14: Domestic higher education student places, 1996 to 2001 (EFTSU*).

*An EFTSU (Equivalent Full Time Student Unit) represents a standard annual full-time load.
Note: In 1996 to 1998 cross institutional programmes are counted under ‘other’. From 1999 onwards they are counted under the relevant level of course category.
Source: Selected Higher Education Statistics – Students 2001.

The Survey of Employer Views on Vocational Education and Training in Detail 2001, undertaken by the National Centre for Vocational Education Research, indicates the following satisfaction levels.

In 1999, 83 per cent of surveyed employers of a recent vocational education and training graduate reported being ‘satisfied’ or ‘very satisfied’ with the vocational education and training system. In 2001 the percentage in this category decreased slightly, to 80 per cent. The survey of employer views is conducted every second year.

In 2000, 66.7 per cent of surveyed vocational education and training graduates stated that they were satisfied with the overall quality of their course. In 2001, the percentage increased to 67.2 per cent.

• Satisfaction of higher education graduates with their courses

In 1995, 86 per cent of higher education graduates expressed ‘broad satisfaction’ with their higher education courses. In 2001, 89.4 per cent of higher education graduates expressed ‘broad satisfaction’ with their higher education courses. This is a marginal decline from the previous year. (See Table 15.)

Table 15: Graduate satisfaction, selected years (per cent).

*Final figure differs from the preliminary estimate appearing in the department’s 2001-02 Portfolio Budget Statements.
Source: Graduate Careers Council of Australia Destination Survey 2001.

A total of 73 per cent of vocational education and training graduates from 2000 were employed by June 2001. This is made up of 47 per cent of graduates in full-time employment and 25 per cent in part-time employment. A further 12 per cent were looking for work and 14 per cent were not in the labour force. Some equity groups were less likely to have found work by June 2001. For instance, 63 per cent of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander graduates were employed; 62 per cent of graduates from non-English-speaking backgrounds were employed; and 43 per cent of graduates with a disability were employed. Almost half (45 per cent) of graduates who were unemployed before a course were employed by June 2001. In addition, 39 per cent of those previously not in the labour force reported a positive employment outcome.

The major industries for employed graduates were retail trade with 17 per cent, health and community services with 15 per cent, manufacturing with 10 per cent, and property and business services with 10 per cent.

In 2001 the national survey of student outcomes found that 68 per cent of higher education graduates who had completed their degree in 2000 were in employment, five per cent were unemployed and a further 27 per cent were not in the labour force. Of those not in the labour force the majority were in further full-time study. (See Table 16)

Table 16: Employment outcomes for higher education graduates for 2000 and 2001 (per cent).

Note: Figures have been rounded up.
Source: Graduate Careers Council of Australia Destination Survey 2001.

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Priority Two – Promote quality at all levels of post-school education and training

The Commonwealth places a high priority on promoting strong quality assurance mechanisms to ensure that Australia's post-school education and training system leads to quality outcomes for both individuals and for industry. Underpinning this strategic priority are, for each sector, comprehensive quality assurance frameworks agreed to by all Commonwealth, State and Territory Ministers. In supporting the implementation of these frameworks the Commonwealth works to ensure that they remain robust and protect the integrity of the system while being sufficiently flexible to enable the uptake of new forms of delivery. The arrangements in place for quality assurance in the delivery of services to overseas students are discussed in Chapter 6.

Vocational education and training

Quality assurance and national consistency within the vocational education and training sector continue to be promoted by the Commonwealth through the National Training Framework, which features the Australian Quality Training Framework and Training Packages. The Commonwealth is also encouraging the development of a fully integrated national vocational education and training system and nationally consistent legislation, through the Australian National Training Authority Ministerial Council.

Higher education

A broad quality assurance framework, supported by Australian governments and universities, protects the Australian higher education sector.

Universities lie at the centre of the framework. They are responsible for their own academic standards and quality assurance processes. Industry bodies and professional registration boards also play an important role in accrediting courses in areas such as law, accounting, medicine and engineering. All Australian universities have signed a code of ethical practice and are monitored by the Australian Vice-Chancellors’ Committee. The code provides guidelines that aim to safeguard the interests of international students, and assure the quality of the information and educational experience provided by universities.

The Commonwealth Government plays a significant role in the monitoring and publishing of performance data, and in the provision of tools and incentives to enhance the quality of outcomes in the sector.

State and Territory Governments are primarily responsible for the recognition of higher education providers and the accreditation of courses delivered by non self-accrediting institutions. They are also responsible for approving courses to be offered to overseas students. The National Protocols for Higher Education Approval Processes, endorsed by Australian governments in 2000, are currently being implemented to ensure the accreditation and recognition processes used by the States and Territories are consistent.

The Australian Qualifications Framework maintains a public register of higher education providers and accreditation authorities that have been approved to operate by the Ministerial Council on Education, Employment, Training and Youth Affairs. As such, the register protects the integrity of Australian higher education.

The quality assurance framework includes an independent national agency, the Australian Universities Quality Agency, which:

Our quality assurance framework represents world’s best practice. However, it is subject to continuous review and improvement. There is no room for complacency in an environment where all national quality assurance arrangements are being challenged by fraudulent and illegal education providers taking advantage of new technology. The Commonwealth has begun to work with State and Territory authorities to deal with the sale of fake university degrees and to deal with unauthorised "degree mills" using the internet. Legislative arrangements have been strengthened, illegal operators pursued and more information has been provided to protect the public.

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Performance information for Strategic Priority two

• Progress made towards achieving the priorities identified by the Australian National Training Authority Ministerial Council

In June 2001, the Australian National Training Authority Ministerial Council endorsed the Australian Quality Training Framework, which is a set of new national standards for registration and auditing of training providers and accreditation of courses. The standards apply to all training organisations seeking to deliver and assess recognised training and issue national qualifications.

The Framework replaces and builds on previous Australian Recognition Framework arrangements, and is a major achievement in assuring nationally consistent and quality vocational education and training delivery and assessment. The States and Territories progressively implemented it within the framework of their legislation. It will be fully implemented from 1 July 2002.

Work is under way on drafting ‘model clauses’ to give consistent national legislative underpinning to the Australian Quality Training Framework, and aspects of New Apprenticeship regulation. The Australian National Training Authority Ministerial Council considered a report on progress of the clauses in May 2002. It is intended that these clauses will be taken up in all State and Territory legislation if agreed by the Australian National Training Authority Ministerial Council at its meeting in November 2002.

The Commonwealth, through the Australian National Training Authority, has provided $4.5m to the States and Territories to assist with implementing national consistency initiatives, particularly the Australian Quality Training Framework. An additional $2.5m has been provided by the Commonwealth to progress national consistency work in areas supporting New Apprenticeships.

• Australian universities will be able to demonstrate the maintenance of rigorous quality assurance standards

Advancing the quality of the Australian higher education sector was an important priority in 2001-02. The Commonwealth, State and Territory governments continue to implement the quality assurance framework agreed by the Ministerial Council on Education, Employment, Training and Youth Affairs which is described above.

Most State and Territory Governments have now introduced, or are in the process of introducing, legislation to meet the requirements of the National Protocols for Higher Education Approval Processes. The Australian Universities Quality Agency began operating during 2001 with three trial audits to refine a draft audit manual to train auditors. The first round of audits commenced in 2002 and is being conducted in nine universities and one State accreditation authority.

The implementation of the National Protocols for Higher Education Approval Processes by States and Territories in 2001-02 will ensure consistent accreditation and recognition process in Australia.

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Priority Three – Help young people to contribute actively to their communities and make well-informed choices about their careers

The Commonwealth seeks to ensure that a wide range of options is available for the active engagement of young people with their communities so that they can develop their potential fully both as individuals and as citizens. The Commonwealth also seeks to ensure that young people can make effective choices about career opportunities available within their communities.

The department is progressing the development of a coordinated approach to a national career and transition system so that young Australians have the opportunity to access services and support to help them reach their full potential. The national career and transition system includes a suite of complementary initiatives managed by the department and funded under Outcome 1 and Outcome 2. The initiatives funded under Outcome 2 are detailed below.

The Jobs Pathway Programme continues to be a successful vehicle for assisting young people aged 15 to 19 to make a smooth transition through school and from school to further education, training or work. The services delivered through the Jobs Pathway Programme can include a needs assessment; job search preparation; career counselling; referral to vocational education and training programmes and New Apprenticeships Centres; and ongoing support and guidance. In the 2001-02 Federal Budget, the Commonwealth provided an additional $46.7m over four years to ensure that the Jobs Pathway Programme was maintained. This brought total funding for the Programme to $95m over four years. Jobs Pathway Programme services were delivered by around 70 organisations in 92 regions, and provided services to up to 70 000 participants from approximately 1600 secondary schools across Australia.

The Partnership Outreach Education Model pilots, which began in April/May 2002, help young people aged 13 to 19 who are disconnected from mainstream schooling to develop the education levels, life skills and employability skills needed for them to have every chance of reaching their full potential. Local support networks are formed around the pilot project and help to link disconnected young people with support services, other education providers, business and their communities. The pilots will prepare participants to re-engage with a mainstream education option when they become ready. Funding of $4m has been made available over 2002 and 2003 to support 21 projects across Australia.

myfuture.edu.au - Australia’s Career Information Service. In March 2000, the Ministerial Council for Education, Employment, Training and Youth Affairs agreed to establish a unique, comprehensive, online career exploration and information system. The Commonwealth, State and Territory governments jointly fund the system, which is named myfuture.edu.au. In 2001-02, the Commonwealth contributed $2m to build the system and $1m in recurrent funding. In total, the Commonwealth has provided over $4.4m to build the system and the Commonwealth, States and Territories will share the recurrent costs of $1.6m per annum.

myfuture.edu.au helps Australians interested in career exploration to make informed career decisions. It will also be a useful tool for those providing career advice. The service is available via the Internet at http://www.myfuture.edu.au.

The Real Game Series. Since 1999, the Commonwealth has invested approximately $1m to facilitate, in collaboration with State, Territory and non-government education authorities, the introduction of The Real Game series in Australia. The Real Game series, developed in Canada, consists of six innovative career education and life skills experiential programmes. The series enables students to understand and appreciate the value of work and the importance of ongoing education, adaptability and positive attitudes.

An Australian edition of The Real Game for 12 to 14 year old students is currently available through http://realgame.dest.gov.au/order.htm. Australian editions of two other programmes will be available after August 2002.

The department has contracted for the adaptation and evaluation of The Play Real Game and The Get Real Game. These programmes are the final two in the series aimed at school students.

The Career Counselling Programme helps jobseekers establish or redefine their employment, education and training goals. It also helps develop career management, research and decision making skills against a background of self-knowledge and a realistic understanding of the world of work. In 2001-02, 6061 people participated in counselling.

At the 2001 final Youth Roundtable meeting, an Indigenous representative suggested the department produce a guide to encourage Indigenous secondary students to consider a career in health. No Shame Job includes case studies of practicing Indigenous health professionals, details of courses and institutions, and other useful information for potential students. The guide will be launched and distributed to schools early in the 2002-03 financial year.

Performance information for Strategic Priority Three

• There are increasing numbers of young people accessing the National Career Information System and the web site Which Course? Which University?

The number of people accessing the Which Course? Which University? web site continues to grow. During the period March 2001 to February 2002 the average number of sessions per month was 14 267. For the period March 2002 to June 2002 there was an average of 21 453 sessions per month. A session represents one complete search inquiry.

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Section 3 – other activities that broadly support Outcome 2

Australian Awards for University Teaching

The department provides funds to the Australian University Teaching Committee for the promotion of quality teaching and learning in Australian universities, including the very successful Australian Awards for University Teaching. This highly acclaimed programme has completed its fifth year. The committee also presented a national Teaching Forum in Canberra in December 2001. The forum was part of a strategy to promote collaboration and exchange of information in teaching and learning both nationally and internationally.

Framework for Open Learning Programme

The Framework for Open Learning Programme supports implementation of the Education and Training Action Plan for the Information Economy, Learning for the Knowledge Society. The Ministerial Council on Education, Employment, Training and Youth Affairs accepted this Plan in March 2000. The Action Plan articulates the education and training industry’s response to the Government’s Strategic Framework for the Information Economy (1998).

Through the Programme, the Commonwealth supports collaboration in the education and training sector. This collaboration is intended to use information and communication technologies effectively and economically to improve learning outcomes for Australian students, notably through the Education Network Australia web site, http://www.edna.edu.au.

The Programme was enriched in January 2001 when the Prime Minister announced the Schools Online Curriculum Content Initiative as part of Backing Australia’s Ability. The Initiative, now known as the Le@rning Federation, aims to generate high quality, researched and evaluated online curriculum content which will be made available to school systems. The Commonwealth funding contribution is $34.1m over the five-year period 2001 to 2006. The States and Territories are matching the funding.

In 2001-02 the Commonwealth contributed $3.75m to the Le@rning Federation and $2.553m for other Framework for Open Learning Programme activities.

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Research and Evaluation

Research and evaluation continued to support Outcome 2. Over the financial year the department published 12 evaluations and investigations, covering important topics such as flexible learning and learning in different mediums, declining rates of achievement and retention in adolescent boys, and an investigation of the regulatory environment applying to universities.

The department also contributed to the work of the Graduate Careers Council of Australia, which provides a range of valuable information to help guide policy development and programme management in higher education.

The department substantially completed a major evaluation of the Literacy and Numeracy Training Programme in 2001-02. Most of the evaluation’s findings were taken up in the replacement Language, Literacy and Numeracy Programme.

The National Review of Nursing Education, which commenced in April 2001, continued through to June 2002. The purpose of the Review is to examine the effectiveness of current arrangements for the education and training of nurses and factors affecting employment and demand and supply in the nursing profession. Following a national consultation process, a discussion paper was released in December 2002 for public comment. A further round of consultations was undertaken in 2002 with key stakeholders to assist the writing of a final report. The Review will report in September 2002.

Work was done on factors inhibiting individual investment in education. Time, cost and the perceived lack of need for higher skills or qualifications predominate among the reasons individuals give for not investing in human capital. Institutional barriers, such as inappropriate courses or inconvenient schedules, were rarely cited. Most policies designed to promote lifelong learning often place a heavy emphasis on the need for a more flexible response by institutions, which would appear to only increase demand among those already convinced of the value of learning.

The Commonwealth also progressed a commissioned project researching innovative initiatives and practices which help young people to remain in school and make successful transitions from school to further education, training and employment, particularly in rural, remote and indigenous communities.

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Section 4 – Summary of the achievements against this Outcome

In August 2001, all States and Territories and the Commonwealth endorsed the Australian National Training Authority Agreement 2001-2003. The Agreement provides for an enhanced accountability framework, growth in New Apprenticeships and a focus on innovation.

The National Industry Skills Initiative is a genuine partnership between industry and government designed to identify and implement strategies to address current and emerging skill needs in selected industries. During 2001-02, a further three industries become involved in the initiative. They were retail, road freight transport, and emerging technologies. This took the total number of participating industries to nine.

The number of New Apprentices in training has grown to 362 140, as at 30 June 2002. New Apprenticeships have now opened up employment and training opportunities to over 500 occupations, including information technology, tourism and hospitality, rural, finance and other service industries. This makes entry-level training available in a wide range of occupations that are more reflective of the structure of the modern workforce.

A major review of the higher education sector was commenced. This is a significant initiative that will explore options for maintaining a strong and vital higher education sector into the future.

A number of initiatives were introduced during the year which have helped to strengthen the higher education sector’s ability to meet continuing high levels of demand and specific areas of concern. These initiatives include: the addition of 2000 fully funded places targeted to priority areas such as information and communications technology, mathematics and science; 670 additional places for regional areas to meet demographic growth; the introduction of the Postgraduate Education Loans Scheme to assist postgraduate coursework students and the provision of additional support to students with disabilities.

Through the Partnership Outreach Education Model pilot programme the department is testing non-traditional community learning approaches to re-engage young people who are disconnected from mainstream schooling. This innovative programme is helping these vulnerable young people see a future for themselves and plan for it, while linking them to the support of community partnerships.

National collaboration between States and Territories and the Commonwealth has resulted in the development of a world-class online career exploration and information system, myfuture.edu.au.

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