Summary

The report is a summary of important characteristics and overall performance of the tertiary education sector in 2003. The report provides comments on trends and developments within the sector and provides information for people interested in the tertiary education sector. It aims to be the primary source of data and information on the sector for the public and key stakeholders.

The report is structured so as to reflect the themes of the Tertiary Education Strategy. Each of the six strategies forms the focus of a chapter of the report. In addition, the report contains chapters on important aspects of sector activity and performance not explicitly linked to a particular strategy including: Outcomes from tertiary education, the funding of and investment in tertiary education, student support, and the participation of older students. A post-script chapter summarises some of the most important subsequent developments in the sector that are outside the timeframe of the report.

The report is intended to complement and lend context to the large volume of statistical information available on the Ministry of Education website. The report includes detailed statistics on the sector in 2003. These include statistics on participation and achievement funding, the financial performance of public tertiary education institutions, the participation and achievement of Māori and Pasifika students, and the research output of tertiary education providers.

In addition to the main report, there is an accompanying fully-indexed appendix volume containing over 240 statistical reference tables.

Key Findings

2003 saw the continuation of growth in student numbers in the sector. There were some 430,000 domestic students (up 11 percent from 2002) and 47,000 international students (up 21 percent) enrolled in formal qualifications during 2003. In addition, nearly 127,000 workers engaged in industry training during 2003, including over 6,250 Modern Apprentices (up 19 percent from 2002).

Over 13 percent of the population aged 15 and over were enrolled in formal tertiary education during 2003. This is the highest participation rate in New Zealand's history.

The number of New Zealanders enrolled in a polytechnic increased by 29 percent in 2003, and in terms of head count, students at polytechnics outnumbered students at universities in 2003. However, in terms of equivalent full-time students, universities are still the largest group of providers, with over 42 percent of all equivalent full-time students.

Between 2000 and 2003, the number of students completing a tertiary education qualification increased by 51 percent.

Māori now have the highest participation rate of any ethnic group. There were 91,600 Māori students in 2003, up 240 percent on 1994. Over all levels of study and when adjusted for age differences, more than 20 percent of Māori aged 15 and over participated in tertiary education in 2003.

Domestic Asian students were the fastest growing group in 2003, up by 32 percent. Nearly one in 10 domestic students (around 45,000) were Asian in 2003.

Enrolments by people in the 40 or over age group have more than doubled, from 3 percent of the population aged 40 or over in 1998 to 7 percent in 2003.

Around 30 percent of all students (nearly 128,000) were studying at Bachelors level in 2003. Around 43 percent of those who started their bachelors study in 1999 had successfully completed it by the end of 2003.

Between 1998 and 2003, enrolments in doctoral studies in the eight universities increased by 30 percent. Just under 500 students gained a doctorate in 2003 up 7 percent from 2002.

The number of students in 2003 with no previous school qualification was 99,800, up 400 percent since 1999 - now representing 29 percent of all New Zealand students

The number of international students from China continued to grow in 2003, although this growth was lower than previous years. The number of student from most other Asian countries fell, with the exception India, where numbers increased by 26 percent.

Students from Europe and North America grew strongly in 2003, and now make up 11 percent of all international students, with United States, Germany, United Kingdom and Canada being the largest represented countries from these regions.

The government's budget for tertiary education increased by about 6 percent between 2002/2003 and 2003/2004, from $3.6 billion to $3.8 billion.

The financial performance of TEIs has been helped by the increase in enrolments of international students since 2000. Between 2000 and 2003, total revenue from international student fees at TEIs rose by 787 percent to reach $372.7 million. International student revenue represented 12 percent of all TEO income in 2003, compared with 3 percent in 2000.

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