Key Findings

Over the last 10 years, almost a million tertiary education qualifications have been awarded to New Zealanders. One-third of these were bachelors or higher qualifications.

This report looks at whether rates of achievement have been improving and whether there are differences in achievement for men and women, or between ethnic groups. It looks at 10 cohorts of domestic tertiary education students. The first cohort of students started study in 1996 and the last cohort of students started study in 2005. For each cohort, the rate of qualification completion was calculated five years after starting study.

Public Tertiary Institutions

Number of Qualifications Completed:

1. In 2009, domestic students at public tertiary education institutions completed 100,000 qualifications.
2. Comparing 2009 with 1999, the largest percentage increase in qualification completions was for level 4 certificates, followed by level 1 to 3 certificates, honours degrees and postgraduate certificates/diplomas, doctoral degrees and level 5 to 7 diplomas.
3. Masters degrees was the only qualification level with fewer completions in 2009 than in 1999.

Five-Year Qualification Completion Rates:

4. Comparing the average rate for the 2001 to 2005 starting cohorts with the 1996 to 2000 starting cohorts showed that:
5. the five-year qualification completion rate has improved for both full-time and part-time students
6. underlying the improvement in the five-year average completion rate of full-time and part-time students were increases in the completion rates at every qualification level except the rate for part-time bachelors-degree students which remained unchanged
7. for students who started study between 2001 and 2005, the five-year qualification completion rate averaged 69 percent for full-timers and 34 percent for part-timers
8. the qualification completion rate of full-time male students has improved, narrowing the difference in achievement between men and women
9. the five-year qualification completion rate increased for full-time and part-time students in each ethnic group
10. the five-year qualification completion rate of full-time Māori and Pasifika students continues to be lower than for the other ethnic groups
11. for part-time students, the five-year qualification completion rates were similar for Europeans, Māori and Pasifika, and
12. Asian students had the highest part-time qualification completion rates.

Private Training Establishments

Number of Qualifications Completed:

1. In 2009, domestic students at private training establishments completed 25,000 qualifications.
2. Comparing 2009 with 2000, the largest percentage increases in qualification completions were for level 4 certificates and level 5 to 7 diplomas.
3. Honours degrees and postgraduate certificates/diplomas was the only qualification level with fewer completions in 2009 than in 1999.

Five-Year Qualification Completion Rates:

4. Comparing the average rate for the 2003 to 2005 starting cohorts with the 2000 to 2002 starting cohorts:
5. the five-year qualification completion rate has improved for full-time students, while it declined slightly for part-time students.
6. underlying the improvement in the five-year average completion rate of full-time students were increases in the completion rates at every qualification level except honours degrees and postgraduate certificates/diplomas
7. for students who started study between 2001 and 2005, the five-year qualification completion rate averaged 72 percent for full-timers and 40 percent for part-timers.