This paper represents the second of a 2 part series designed to interpose a manufacturing workers’ union view into the debate about the future of Australia’s vocational education & training (VET) system. The debate comes at a time when crucial ...
More »The skills we need for the future we want: Part 1 – Opinion
The future we want will not fall from the sky. Like any period of great challenge that we have had to confront, it will take careful planning, sound strategy, leadership, and a clear sense of purpose if we are to ...
More »Will Omicron devastate Australian vocational education and training in 2022? Opinion
Now is the time to start planning for re-engagement of vulnerable and disadvantaged VET learners; both our economy and our society depend on it.
More »Independent peak body calls Labor’s 2022 election announcement ‘TAFE-centric’, not ‘student-centric’
The peak body for the independent tertiary education sector has voiced disappointment with Labor’s $1.2 million skills and higher education package, labelling it TAFE-centric and saying it provides students with little choice over where they choose to study. The federal opposition’s ...
More »How students’ socioeconomic background could be turning them away from university study – podcast
Accessing a university education is nowhere near as competitive or elitist as it was in times gone by, with institutions taking into account a number of factors when assessing applicants' suitability for courses in the spirit of social justice and ...
More »Peak bodies issue joint statement, concerned about onshore international students turning to ‘low-cost’ training providers
A joint position statement has been released by the Independent Tertiary Council Australia (ITECA) and TAFE Directors Australia (TDA), with both peak bodies worried that onshore international students are increasingly turning to low-cost training providers that may not be satisfying ...
More »NT finalist in VET trainer of year awards explains the advantages of vocational studies – podcast
In this podcast Campus Review talks to Wendy Blight, A VET trainer and workplace assessor at Charles Darwin University (CDU) in Alice Springs. She recently learned she is one of the Northern Territory's four finalists competing for the Trainer of ...
More »Independent sector concerned Australia’s skills investment is not resulting in bang for buck
The Independent Tertiary Council Australia (ITECA) has raised concerns after a new report found declines in the number of students enrolled in government-funded vocational education and training (VET) courses in 2020, despite a multi-billion dollar skills investment. ITECA chief executive Troy ...
More »Vocational students dropping out of studies in 2020 blamed on COVID, new report
Vocational education and training (VET) providers have faced many of the same challenges as Australian universities, with COVID-19 international border closures and ‘stay at home’ orders responsible for plunging student numbers. Data provided by the National Centre for Vocational Education and ...
More »TEQSA approves Australia’s first new university in nearly a decade
Australian higher education students will be afforded more choice after one new university and three university colleges were approved by the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Authority (TEQSA). The NSW-based Avondale University College will be Australia’s first new university in ...
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