Australia's national VET data custodian

2012 publications

1 – 20 of 20 results
Studying beyond age 25: who does it and what do they gain?

By Michael Coelli, Domenico Tabasso, Rezida Zakirova

What would prompt people to undertake education and training in their mid-20s and beyond and what are the benefits? The authors investigate what motivates people to undertake education and training at more mature ages and the impact of this on their labour market outcomes. They found that males who undertake further education and training after the age of 25 years did so for reasons related to their current employment (for example, towards promotion or a different job), whereas for females a key motivator was simply getting a job. For both males and females, a sustained increase in job satisfaction following completion of the study was also found. Data from the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics of Australia Survey and the Survey of Education and Training was used in this report.

Associate degree or advanced diploma? A case study

By Tom Karmel, Tham Lu

The distinction between VET and higher education in Australia is blurring. The purpose of this paper is to examine – through the conduct of a case study of engineering qualifications (AQF6) delivered in Victoria – how education and training providers and students are likely to respond to different fees and funding arrangements under the student entitlement model.

The value of completing a VET qualification

By Tom Karmel, Peter Fieger

Using data from the 2009 Student Outcomes Survey, this report looks at the pay-offs of completing of a vocational education and training (VET) qualification on a range of outcomes, and identifies the groups for whom completion is particularly important.

Lower-level qualifications as a stepping stone for young people

By Damian Oliver

This report compares the outcomes for young people who complete certificate I or certificate II qualifications with the outcomes for similar individuals who are not participating in post-school education and training, using data from the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth.

The training requirements of foreign-born workers in different countries

By Chris Ryan, Mathias Sinning

In recent decades Australian immigration policy has focused mostly on accepting high-skilled migrants. This report explores the question of whether participation in further training differs for these migrants compared with that of native-born workers in similar jobs. The research shows that foreign-born workers in Australia seem to receive the training they need, but this depends on whether or not they are native English speakers. Non-native English-speaking migrants demonstrate low training participation rates. They also have lower literacy skills and are less likely to be in employment.

Geographical dimensions of social inclusion and VET in Australia: an overview

By Aaron Nicholas, Anita Devos, Chandra Shah, Denise Beale, Miriam Faine, Susan Webb

This paper provides a conceptual basis for a three-year (2011–13) research program exploring the capacity of individuals and groups to make transitions through learning, training and work across locations.  Three research projects will examine how regional or community factors and social capital affect those transitions. The three projects are: the influence of job conditions on geographic labour mobility; migrant women in regional Australia; and neighbourhood factors in the decision to participate in post-school education and training and the labour market. A synopsis of each project is given in this paper.

The role of 'culture' in apprenticeship completions

By Tom Karmel, David Roberts

This paper aims to explain the extent to which variation in apprenticeship completion rates can be attributed to factors relating to 'culture' of the employer and apprentice. 

Tertiary education and training in Australia 2010

By NCVER

This publication provides information on tertiary education and training in Australia, including statistics on participation, pathways and outcomes. The data in this publication are sourced from the National VET Provider Collection and the Higher Education Statistics Collection. The publication covers participation in Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF) certificate I qualifications through to doctorates by research, as well as enrolments in a single vocational subject. Information is presented on students and equivalent full-time students.textFurther tables on pathways were added to the Excel data tables in March 2013.

VET research for industry

By Tom Karmel

This paper was a keynote address at the AVETRA conference held in Canberra in April 2012. Karmel notes that industry is arguably the key stakeholder in the Australian vocational education and training (VET) sector and discusses six areas of research which raise questions about VET and industry, either in terms of how public training funds are allocated or the educational principles on which VET is based.

Research messages 2011

By NCVER

This highly-popular annual publication provides a collection of summaries of research projects published by NCVER in 2011.