The Scan – The Scan

The Scan 28 June 2016 #181

28/06/2016 by intermediatescan

Apprentice numbers slump 28 June 2016 | The number of apprentices across Australia has plunged since the Coalition took office, government figures show, with some of the steepest falls occurring in high-unemployment marginal seats still up for grabs at Saturday's election. Western Sydney has lost 10,642 apprentices and western Melbourne 4782, while the national total fell 28 per cent from 383,562 to 278,583, between December 2013 and December last year, documents obtained under Freedom of Information and NCVER data reveal. Labor claims the falling take up of apprenticeships is a direct result of the $1 billion stripped from trades support programs since the change of government, … [Read more...]

Filed Under: ACPET, AiG, ALP policies, Budget, Coalition policies, Education policy, Greens, Group of 8, Higher education policy, Regional, Schools, TAFE, The Scan, universities, Universities Australia, University budgets, University reform, VET, Vocational education & training Tagged With: apprenticeship commencements, Election 2016, Fee deregulation, Gonski Review, Higher Education and Research Reform Amendment Bill 2014, Higher education fees, Schools funding, TAFE appointments, TAFE funding, University budgets, University funding, VET, VET FEE-HELP, VET funding

ACPET – Election 2016 – Statements

26/06/2016 by intermediatescan

Private education and training is the preferred choice of more than 50 per cent of students across Australia. It is highly innovative and responsive to the needs of industry. More than 2.2 million students choose to complete study or training with private providers in Australia. The Student Choice Counts campaign is mobilising the community of students, employees and supporters of the private education and training sector against any policy change to limit student choice and undermine the viability of an important and competitive industry. The risks: Liberal and National parties and the ALP have announced major reviews and consultations into training and higher education. ACPET … [Read more...]

Filed Under: ACPET, ALP policies, Budget, Coalition policies, Higher education policy, Regional, TAFE, The Scan, VET, VET FEE-HELP, Vocational education & training Tagged With: Apprenticeships, Election 2016, VET FEE-HELP, VET quality, VET regulatory standards, VET students

Universities Australia – Election 2016 – Statements

26/06/2016 by intermediatescan

Keep it Clever: Policy Statement 2016 Australia is at an economic and productivity crossroads. In an era of sweeping change, other nations are seizing the future with investments in higher education, research, innovation and skills. Australia now faces a stark choice: we either make our own investment—or we fall behind those nations that do. Equipping ourselves for the dramatic economic transformation ahead is an urgent task. Indeed, our future prosperity depends on it. That’s why we need a new contract with the Australian public—supported by political bipartisanship—that grasps the direct link between our national investment in education, research and innovation, and Australia’s economic … [Read more...]

Filed Under: ALP policies, Coalition policies, Higher education policy, Research, Science, The Scan, universities, Universities Australia, University budgets Tagged With: Election 2016, Fee deregulation, Higher Education and Research Reform Amendment Bill 2014, Research funding, Universities Australia, university admission, University affordability, university futures

TDA Policy Position Papers

26/06/2016 by intermediatescan

……………………………………………………………………………………………………… TAFE Directors Australia (TDA - the body representing Australia's public TAFE institutes) has issued a series of policy position papers that have been developed to steer the direction of policy affecting TAFE and the VET sector. Policy Paper 1 – TAFE: a national asset for Australia’s economic and social prosperity Policy Paper 2 - Quality is the hallmark of a well-regulated VET system Policy Paper 3 – Rural and remote vocational education and training relies on TAFE Policy Paper 4 – Ending discrimination in Australia’s tertiary education system Policy Paper 5 – Why a national industry policy & innovation and STEM … [Read more...]

Filed Under: TAFE, TAFE Directors Australia, The Scan, VET, VET FEE-HELP, Vocational education & training Tagged With: Apprenticeships, Election 2016, Equtiy, Higher education in TAFE, Innovation, Regional delivery, TAFE funding, TAFE regulation, VET FEE-HELP

The Scan #179 5 May 2016

05/05/2016 by intermediatescan

A few cuts, no frills 4 May 2016 | The government has pushed consideration of proposed university reforms, including a 20% cut in funding, out beyond the election, until 1 January 2018. While it has ruled out full fee deregulation, it has released an options paper, to guide a consultation process, canvassing a range of alternative fee measures which would still see substantial fee rises. The 2016 Budget also sees an efficiency dividend of $1.2 billion on legislated dropped but the Higher Education Participation and Partnerships Program has been cut by $152 million to $553 million over four years. The Office of Learning and Teaching has been abolished, with the resulting $18 million in … [Read more...]

Filed Under: ACCC, ALP policies, ANU, Budget, Coalition policies, Commonwealth policies, Grattan Institute, Higher education policy, International, International students, IRU, Regional Universities Network, Swinburne University, TAFE, The Scan, universities, Universities Australia, University reform, VET, Vocational education & training Tagged With: Budget 2016, Budget cuts, Equity, Fee deregulation, FEE-HELP, Higher Education and Research Reform Amendment Bill 2014, International, Rorting, Tertiary education news, University budgets, University cuts, University funding, VET FEE-HELP

Redesigning VET FEE-HELP

04/05/2016 by intermediatescan

4 May 2016 ……………………………………………………………………………………………………… The federal government has proposed a set of tougher measures to fix the VET FEE-HELP blow-out in a discussion paper released on 29 April. The minister for vocational education and skills senator Scott Ryan said the paper will pave the way for a full redesign of the scheme. …………………………………………………………………………………….......…… The discussion paper catalogues the scale of malpractice by some providers, such as the targeting of low socio-economic status and vulnerable people with inducements to enroll and misleading potential students about their repayment commitments. The paper reveals that a small number of VET FEE-HELP providers dominate the … [Read more...]

Filed Under: ALP policies, Budget, Coalition policies, TAFE, The Scan, VET, Vocational education & training Tagged With: Rorting, Tertiary education news, VET FEE-HELP, VET regulation

A few cuts, no thrills for unis in 2016 Budget

04/05/2016 by intermediatescan

4 May 2016 ……………………………………………………………………………………………………… The government has pushed consideration of proposed university reforms, including a 20% cut in funding, out beyond the election, until 1 January 2018 and it has ruled out full fee deregulation. It has released an options paper, to guide a consultation process, canvassing a range of alternative fee measures. …………………………………………………………………………………….......…… The 2016 Budget also sees an efficiency dividend of $1.2 billion on legislated dropped but the Higher Education Participation and Partnerships Program has been cut by $152 million to $553 million over four years. The Office of Learning and Teaching has been abolished, with the resulting $18 … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Budget, Coalition policies, Commonwealth policies, Grattan Institute, Higher education policy, Innovative Research Universities, National Tertiary Education Union, Public funding, Regional Universities Network, The Scan, Universities Australia, University budgets Tagged With: Budget 2016, Election 2016, Fee deregulation, Higher Education and Research Reform Amendment Bill 2014, Higher education fees, higher education funding, Tertiary education news, University funding

The Scan # 178 12 April 2016

12/04/2016 by intermediatescan

TAFE does heavy lifting - TDA 12 April 2016 | A TAFE Directors Australia (TDA)-commissioned analysis of official data reveals ‘for profit’ private training colleges have gained a massive 75% share of the $3 billion Commonwealth VET FEE-HELP funding, while the public TAFE sector continues to do the “heavy lifting”. The performance of Australia’s 57 TAFE Institutes emerges strongly, dominating all major state and territory VET-funded ‘fields of education’ and trade apprenticeships. While TAFE delivered 63% of enrolments across the majority of fields of education, Commonwealth allocation of student loans to TAFE fell to just 20% in 2014, and the government’s own emergency legislation to … [Read more...]

Filed Under: ABC, ACCC, ASQA, COAG, Coalition policies, Commonwealth policies, Commonwealth-State relations, Education policy, Higher education policy, NCVER, TAFE, TAFE Directors Australia, Tertiary media, The Scan, universities, University reform, VET, Vocational education & training Tagged With: Diversity, Fee deregulation, FEE-HELP, Fees, Funding, Higher Education and Research Reform Amendment Bill 2014, Rorting, Skills reform, TAFE funding, Tertiary education news, University budgets, VET FEE-HELP, VET funding

Exponential growth of VET-FEE HELP as sector opened to private colleges

12/04/2016 by intermediatescan

The looting of VET FEE-HELP 7 April 2016 ……………………………………………………………………………………………………… A report presented on ABC Radio National provides an insight into the thinking of the providers who have virtually looted VET FEE-HELP: it was all within the rules, apparently, so that made it all right. As this extract shows, the greater part of the loot flowed to a handful of providers, all of which were relatively recently established, with no track record of provision, let alone quality provision. In the space of a couple of years, for example, Ivan Brown, turned a $500 start-up investment into a stake in a listed company worth $180 million (Australian Careers Network), all built on the back of … [Read more...]

Filed Under: ACCC, ASQA, Commonwealth policies, Government, The Scan, VET, Vocational education & training Tagged With: Rorting, Tertiary education news, VET FEE-HELP, VET fees

TAFE’s role eroded

05/04/2016 by intermediatescan

Victim of "efficiency" and competition measures TDA News | 5 April 2016 ……………………………………………………………………………………………………… A COAG-commissioned review of Australia's landmark, five-year plan for skills has found that critical community and educational elements of TAFE have been eroded. …………………………………………………………………………………….......…… The review of the National Partnership Agreement on Skills Reform (NPA) was undertaken by ACIL Allan Consulting last December and presented to the Council of Australian Governments on 1 April. It reveals the extent to which so-called competition and efficiency reforms have been pursued at the expense of downgrading TAFE. The review clearly states that the NPA was intended … [Read more...]

Filed Under: TAFE, TAFE Directors Australia, The Scan, VET Tagged With: Skills reform, TAFE cuts, TAFE funding, TAFE news, Tertiary education news, VET deregulation