Participation rates in tertiary education

Indicator Description

Age-standardised participation rates in tertiary education.

What We Have Found

After rising rapidly from 1998 to 2005, the participation rate in tertiary education has declined slightly, principally due to a decline in enrolments for level 1 to 3 certificates in wānanga and private training establishments.

Why This Is Important

The tertiary education sector is a diverse sector. Its scope ranges from informal non-assessed community courses in schools through to undergraduate degrees and advanced, research-based postgraduate degrees. It provides pathways for a diverse range of learners, from school leavers to workers, the unemployed to students from overseas, and to those pursuing an interest or hobby or more social interaction. It has a diverse range of learning objectives and is influenced by a very diverse set of people and factors.

Changes in participation and achievement in tertiary education are indicators of the extent to which New Zealanders are developing the skills needed for a modern knowledge economy. New Zealand's lifelong approach to tertiary learning, relatively open access to enrolment, and easy access to student loans, have tended to increase the number of students with a focus on part-time course-based study, and those trying to combine work with study. This compares to other countries which have higher academic entry requirements, more full-time study, and less access to student support.

How We Are Going

After rising rapidly from 1998 to 2005, the participation rate (that is, students in tertiary education as a proportion of the population) declined in 2007 by 5.6%. From 1998 to 2005, the participation rate increased by 67%, largely as the result of increased enrolments in Institutes of Technology/Polytechnics and wānanga for level 1 to 4 certificates.  From 2005 to 2007, however, the participation rate in level 1 to 3 certificates decreased by 8.9%, almost exclusively as the result of a decline of enrolments in wānanga and private training establishments.

It is estimated that 13.3% of the population aged 15 and over participated in some type of formal tertiary study at some time in 2007.  The participation rate in tertiary study by females (14.2%) is 16% higher than that for males (12.3%), however, this gap has closed since 2002 when the female participation rate was 33% higher than males.

Age-standardised participation rates in tertiary education per 100 population aged 15 plus, by gender (1994 to 2007)

Māori participate in tertiary education at a much higher rate than non-Māori.  This is primarily due to the 2.5-fold increase in the Māori enrolment rate in tertiary education since 1998. After adjusting for differences in age distributions between Māori and non-Māori, 18.0% of Māori aged 15 and over participated in tertiary education in 2007.  This compares with 13.9% of Asians, 12.1% of European/Pākehā, and 12.0% of Pasifika.

When broken down by level of study, Māori currently have substantially higher rates at sub-degree level, while non-Māori participation rates are highest at degree level and above.  Proportionately more Asians are studying for tertiary qualifications than other ethnic groups at degree and all levels of post-graduate study, while European/Pākehā have the second highest rates of  participation at degree level study and above. However, Māori participation in degree-level study and above is relatively high considering that the percentage of non-Māori school leavers with sufficient attainment to attend university has been between 3 to 4 times that for Māori since 1993.

Age-standardised participation rates in tertiary education per 100 population aged 15 plus, by ethnic group (1994 to 2007)

Participation increased across all levels of tertiary study from 1998 to 2005, especially at the certificate level, with 2.7 and 3.9-fold growth in rates for level 1 to 3 and level 4 certificates respectively.  As noted previously, the participation rates for level 1 to 3 certificates declined slightly from 2005 to 2007.  This decline may be attributable to changes in funding policies in 2005 that focussed on reducing the number of low quality or low relevance qualifications being offered below degree level.

Age-standardised participation rates in tertiary education per 100 population aged 15 plus, by ethnic group and level of study (2007)

In contrast, growth at higher levels of study has been slower, with participation rates at a bachelors degree level having the slowest rate of increase.  In fact, the proportion of the population aged 15 and over undertaking bachelors degree level study has decreased slightly from 4.1% in 2002 to 3.8% in 2007, despite there being more school leavers eligible to attend university over this same period.  Study at the post-graduate level increased by 18% over the same period.

Where To Find Out More

To obtain a more complete understanding of participation and achievement in tertiary education, and their related effects, consider indicators:

• Completion of tertiary education
• Tertiary student progression
• Tertiary student retention
• Education expectancy
• Educational attainment in the adult population

References

Ministry of Education (2008). Tertiary Education Strategy 2007-12 - a framework for monitoring. Wellington: Ministry of Education.

Ministry of Education (2007). New Zealand's Tertiary Education Sector Profile & Trends 2006. Wellington: Ministry of Education.