Summary —

The latest data on completion rates for government-funded students indicates that private Registered Training Organisations (RTOs) provide better outcomes for both students and taxpayers. The Independent Tertiary Education Council Australia (ITECA) contends that this demonstrates the need for governments to reconsider their skills training policies.

Key Issues —

This information from the National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER) is particularly timely, as the Australian national, state, and territory governments negotiate a new five-year skills funding agreement.  While it shows that governments are correct to have a focus on improving completion rates, independent RTOs deliver better outcomes for government-funded students.

The NCVER data reveals that, across all qualification levels, private RTOs achieve completion rates up to 17% higher than public TAFE colleges for government-funded students.

		NCVER Data — Government Funded Student Completion Rates
		Qualification Level:	TAFE	Private RTO
		Certificate I	22.5%	38.5%
		Certificate II	33.8%	50.8%
		Certificate III	51.9%	57.9%
		Certificate IV	44.2%	51.9%
		Diploma (& Above)	51.9%	53.3%
		Total	43.0%	54.2%

The NCVER data reveals that private RTOs consistently deliver superior outcomes for students and taxpayers. This is also reflected in NCVER data concerning student satisfaction.

		NCVER Data — Government Funded Student Satisfaction
		Satisfaction Metric:	TAFE	Private RTO
		Achieved main reason for doing training	85.7%	88.7%
		Improved employment status after training	64.4%	68.7%
		Satisfied with support services	77.5%	81.5%
		Satisfied with teaching	87.2%	88.9%
		Satisfied with facilities	84.2%	85.0%
		Satisfied with the learning resources	81.6%	85.4%
		Satisfied with the training overall	88.9%	90.7%

Given this, ITECA contends that the data underscores how the current trend of governments channeling more funding to public TAFE colleges might not be the best strategy as the better outcomes are achieved with private RTOs.

“Currently, there is a significant push to by government put 'TAFE at the heart' of the skills training system, which many independent RTOs are pushing back against. Instead, ITECA firmly believes in putting students at the heart of the system, where their freedom to choose their preferred training provider is backed by the government,” said Troy Williams, ITECA Chief Executive.

ITECA emphasises that the data, consistent with results from previous years, accentuates the importance of placing students at the heart of the skills training system. This would enable them to choose between a quality-driven independent RTO or a public TAFE college based on their preferences.

It is noteworthy that regarding fee-for service income, private RTOs boast a completion rate 4.7% higher than public TAFE colleges. For all training types (both government-funded and fee-for-service), private RTOs have a completion rate that is 5.1% greater than public TAFE colleges.

Getting Involved —

The ITECA Defining Skills Quality Task Group is a member-driven initiative made possible thanks to the contribution of members across the skills training and higher education sectors.    ITECA Membership – It’s great time to get involved.

Further Information — This advice is one of the many ways that ITECA empowers your team with the information to make sound business decisions.  If you'd like to discuss this matter further, the ITECA team would value the opportunity to talk to you.  Simply send an email to policy@iteca.edu.au or telephone 1300 421 017.  Stay up to date via Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. Disclaimer & Copyright — This information may be reproduced in limited circumstances under a Creative Commons: Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 License.  Information published on this webpage is intended for general information only and no warranty is providers as to accuracy or completeness thus any reliance you place on this material is therefore strictly at your own risk.