Profile & Trends 2007: New Zealand's Tertiary Education Sector

Workplace-based learners

The number of learners in industry training has continued to increase at a steady rate in recent years, even while the increase in the numbers in provider-based education has been slowing. The main driver of this has been the continuous funding increases from both government and industry, reflecting a shared commitment to solve long-term skills shortages in key New Zealand industries and to improve labour productivity.

The number of learners in industry training increased significantly between 2006 and 2007, while there was a decline in student enrolments in equivalent provider-based study in the same period. This growth also surpassed the increase in workers in the labour force, so that the proportion of workers involved in industry training was higher in 2007 than in 2006.

The significant growth in participation in the Modern Apprenticeships scheme, a part of industry training, can be attributed to a programme of government funding increases and to its popularity with both industry and young people.

Gateway, established in 2001 to broaden educational options for senior school students by offering them workplace-based learning, has continued to expand. Over 8,240 secondary school students participated in Gateway in 2007. There are prospects for further growth in Gateway as it expands to all decile 7 to 10 integrated and state secondary schools in 2008.

Industry training, Modern Apprenticeships and Gateway programmes are all linked to the National Qualifications Framework. This means that participants earn credits towards national qualifications and in the case of Modern Apprenticeships and the majority of industry training programmes, participation is linked to the study of national certificates and diplomas. Learners in industry training can gain credits through flexible, limited and supplementary credit programmes, or study towards qualifications such as national certificates, national diplomas and, less frequently these days, trade certificates.

All three industry training programmes saw consolidation in credit achievement during 2007, with the number of credits attained remaining steady at over 3.5 million for the year, after very high growth in 2006. National certificate attainment was 29,400 in 2007. While this represented a decrease on the 2006 attainment, it continues the upward trend shown in previous years.