More young Australians are taking part in education and training, and participation in vocational education training at school has grown, according to the report Young people in education and training 2011.
Published by the National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER), the statistics provide a picture of how many young people (aged 15 to 19 years) study and where.
Of all young people, 81.9% participated in education and training in school, vocational education and training (VET) or university in 2011, compared with 78.8% in 2010.
School participation rates range from 98% at age 15 years to 17.1% at age 18 years.
The number of young people taking part in VET in Schools programs in 2011 increased by 7.0% and students enrolled in VET increased by 3.5%, compared with 2010.
Of all the students involved in VET in Schools programs, 41.2% are aged 16 years and 32.3% are age 17 years.
“By the age of 15, students start to make choices about their future educational directions,” said Ms Sandra Pattison, NCVER General Manager, Statistics.
Overall, the total number of young people starting as an apprentice or trainee declined by 3.9%. Of this, the non-trade apprentice and trainee commencements increased by 4%, however the number of trade apprentices and trainee commencements decreased by 12.8%.
“Apprentice commencements mirror the current labour market conditions,” said Ms Pattison.
Young people in education and training draws together data collected by NCVER, the Australian Bureau of Statistics and from the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations.
Copies of Australian vocational education and training statistics: young people in education and training 2011 are available from www.ncver.edu.au/publications/2580.html
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