Domestic students enrolled in ITE for the first time

Overall trends (see figures 1 and 2) Last updated: May 2026

Overall

The number of domestic students enrolling in an ITE qualification for the first time increased from 3,600 in 2024 to 4,290 in 2025 (an increase of 19% or 690 students). When looking at the indicative teaching sector this was the result of:

• a decrease in ECE ITE from 1,225 students in 2024 to 1,175 students in 2025 (a decrease of 4.1% or 50 students)
• an increase in primary ITE from 1,500 students in 2024 to 1,990 students in 2025 (an increase of 33% or 490 students), and
• an increase in secondary ITE from 875 students in 2024 to 1,105 students in 2025 (an increase of 26% or 230 students).

Between 2024 and 2025 there was an increase of 71% in first-time Māori medium ITE students which represented an increase of 125 students (these students are already included in the sector data above).

After the large COVID-19 related increase in domestic first-time ITE students in 2021, the border reopening and low unemployment likely contributed to the decrease in ITE students in 2022 and 2023. There was a modest increase in the number of students across all teaching sectors in 2024. In 2025, there were significant increases in students in primary and secondary ITE, while ECE ITE decreased slightly.

Figure 1: Number of domestic students enrolling in ITE for the first time by indicative teaching sector

Note: where students enrol in or complete an ITE qualification which prepares them to teach in more than one sector, we report them in each of these sectors.

ECE

Following a modest increase in 2024, the number of first-time ECE students decreased in 2025. This decrease pushed enrolments down to 1,175 in 2025, which was still above the low point of 1,140 in 2023.

Primary

The number of first-time domestic primary students increased significantly in 2025. This has pushed primary enrolments back up to levels seen in the years immediately prior to COVID. In 2025, primary ITE student numbers (1,990) were significantly higher than the low point of 1,420 in 2023.

Secondary

Secondary ITE numbers increased significantly in 2025. As a result, the number of secondary domestic first-time ITE students reached 1,105 in 2025. This represented just the second time that secondary ITE numbers breached the 1,000 mark since 2013, the other being during the COVID related surge in participation in 2021.

Māori medium

In 2025, the number of first-time ITE Māori medium students increased by 71% to reach 300. This is the third year in a row that student numbers increased.

The vast majority of Māori medium first-time ITE students were enrolled in programmes at the primary sector level. In 2025, 78% of first-time students were enrolled in primary programmes.

Domestic students enrolled in Māori medium ITE qualifications

Figure 2: Number of students enrolling in Māori medium ITE qualifications who were enrolling in ITE for the first time, by indicative teaching sector

Demographic characteristics (see figures 3-5)

In 2025, 73% of first time domestic ECE students were aged under 35. This proportion peaked with 80% aged under 35 in 2017 and has been as low as 64% in 2009. In the primary sector, the proportion of first-time students aged under 35 remained unchanged at 77% in 2025. In the secondary sector, the proportion of first-time students aged under 35 was 65% in 2024, down from a peak of 83% in 2015.

First-time students in the ECE sector were almost exclusively women (97% in 2025), with lower proportions of women in the primary (82% in 2025) and secondary sectors (56% in 2025). The gap in participation between men and women has been gradually falling over time in secondary ITE. The gap halved from 29 percentage points in 2006 to 13 percentage points in 2025. The proportions in the other teaching sectors have not changed significantly in recent years.

The proportion of first-time domestic students who were Māori increased in all teaching sectors between 2024 and 2025. In 2025, 18% of ECE first-time students were Māori compared with 15% in 2024. The proportion of primary ITE students who were Māori increased slightly from 26% in 2024 to 27% in 2025. This represented the highest proportion of Māori students between 2005 and 2025. In the secondary sector, the proportion of first-time students who were Māori was 17% in 2025, up from 13% in 2024.

The low number of first-time students who are Pacific Peoples makes identifying trends difficult. But, in the ECE sector, the proportion of first-time students has decreased slightly from 9.8% in 2024 to 9.4% in 2025. The proportion in secondary ITE also decreased, from 10% in 2024 to 8.6% in 2025. In the primary sector, the proportion of Pacific Peoples increased from 11% in 2024 to 13% in 2025. This represented the highest proportion of Pacific Peoples students between 2005 and 2025.

The proportion of first-time ITE students who are Asian has been rising in recent years, especially in the ECE and secondary teaching sectors. In 2025, the proportion of Asian students in ECE ITE was 19%, compared with 8.5% in 2017. In secondary ITE, the proportion of Asian students was 6.7% in 2014 and has now more than doubled to 18% in 2025.

Figure 3: Age distribution of domestic students enrolling in ITE for the first time by indicative teaching sector

Figure 4: Gender distribution of domestic students enrolling in ITE for the first time by indicative teaching sector

Figure 5: Ethnic group distribution of domestic students enrolling in ITE for the first time by indicative teaching sector

Study-related characteristics (see figures 6 and 7)

The majority of first-time students in the ECE and primary sectors study at the bachelors degree level. In 2025, 75% of ECE students and 63% of primary students were enrolled in bachelors degrees. Although this proportion has remained relatively stable for primary sector over recent years, the ECE sector has shown more variation with 2025 data representing the highest proportion over the last four years. In the secondary sector, bachelors degree provision has decreased in recent years so that now first-time students are almost all enrolled at the graduate diploma, postgraduate diploma, and masters degree level.

Since the last of the colleges of education (CoEs) were merged with them in the mid-2000s, universities have dominated first-time ITE student provision in the primary and secondary teaching sectors. In 2025, 69% of primary sector students and 75% of secondary sector students were studying at universities. However, the universities share of these students has been decreasing in recent years. In the ECE sector private training establishments (PTEs) have the largest proportion of first-time students in 2025 (59%) followed by polytechnics (23%) and universities (17%).

In 2025, 40% of first-time ECE students studied on an extramural basis, compared with 32% of primary sector students and 40% of secondary sector students.

In 2025, the vast majority of first-time primary sector students (90%) and secondary sector students (85%) were studying full-time, compared with 75% in the ECE sector.

In line with the increase in ITE students seen at the national level, in 2025 the number of first-time domestic ITE students also increased in Auckland, the Rest of the North Island, and the South Island. The data shows that the fastest rate of increase in students was in the Rest of the North Island (up 24%) followed by the South Island (up 21%), while Auckland students increased by 13%.

Figure 6: Distribution of domestic students enrolling in ITE for the first time by qualification type and indicative teaching sector

Figure 7: Distribution of domestic students enrolling in ITE for the first time by sub-sector and indicative teaching sector

International students enrolled in ITE for the first time

The number of first-time international students increased from 1,185 in 2024 to 1,415 in 2025. In 2025, 65% of first-time international students were enrolled in an ECE qualification.

Domestic students completing an ITE qualification for the first time

Overall trends (see figures 8 and 9) Last updated: September 2025

There was a decrease in first-time domestic ITE graduates in 2024 compared to 2023. The number of domestic students completing an ITE qualification for the first time decreased from 3,350 in 2023 to 3,105 in 2024 (a decrease of 7.3 percent or 245 graduates). When looking at the indicative teaching sector this was the result of:

• a decrease in early childhood (ECE) ITE graduates from 1,160 graduates in 2023 to 1,030 graduates in 2024 (a decrease of 11 percent or 130 graduates)
• a decrease in primary ITE graduates from 1,495 graduates in 2023 to 1,285 graduates in 2024 (a decrease of 14 percent or 210 graduates)
• an increase in secondary ITE graduates from 675 graduates in 2023 to 780 graduates in 2024 (an increase of 16 percent or 105 graduates)

There was also a decrease of Māori medium ITE graduates from 165 in 2023 to 135 in 2024 (these graduates are already included in the sector data above).

The decrease in ECE ITE graduates in 2024 partly reflects that graduate numbers in 2023 had been boosted by a COVID related surge in people starting ITE bachelors degrees three years earlier. The lower number of graduates in 2024 reflects lower enrolments in the years after COVID. The number of graduates in 2024 (1,030) remains above the low point of 945 in 2019.

Graduate numbers in primary ITE decreased from 1,495 in 2023 to 1,285 in 2024 and represents the low point in this data time series (which has data available from 2005 to 2024). Similar to ECE, part of the decrease in 2024 was due to graduate numbers in 2023 being boosted by the COVID-related surge from three years earlier.

Because the vast majority of secondary ITE students are enrolled in programmes that take one year to complete full time, graduate numbers tend to mirror enrolments in that year. The increase in the number of secondary ITE graduates from a low point of 675 in 2023 to 780 in 2024 reflected an increase in enrolments over the same period.

Figure 8: Number of domestic students completing an ITE qualification for the first time by indicative teaching sector

Note: where students enrol in or complete an ITE qualification which prepares them to teach in more than one sector, we report them in each of these sectors.

Māori medium

The number of first-time graduates from Māori medium ITE qualifications decreased in 2024 following three years of increases. The number of graduates decreased from 165 in 2023 to 135 in 2024. This compares with 150 graduates in 2022 and 135 graduates in 2021. Because of the small numbers involved, the Māori medium graduate numbers can exhibit considerable variation between years.

In 2024, 74 percent of graduates were from immersion programmes.

In 2024, 89 percent of graduates were in primary sector programmes. For the first time in 2024, there was a small number (10) of Māori medium graduates in secondary ITE.

Figure 9: Number of domestic students completing Māori medium ITE qualifications who were completing their first ITE qualification

Demographic characteristics by teaching sector (see figures 10-12)

First-time ITE graduates have generally been getting younger in the ECE sector. The proportion of ECE graduates aged under 35 years has increased from 53 percent in 2007 to 67 percent in 2024. In the last eleven years, the proportion of graduates aged under 35 in primary ITE has ranged between 75 percent and 80 percent. In secondary ITE, the proportion of graduates aged under 35 had decreased from 83 percent in 2015 to 69 percent in 2024.

First-time graduates in the ECE sector were almost exclusively women (97 percent in 2024). Women were relatively smaller proportions, but still majorities, of primary (83 percent in 2024) and secondary (60 percent in 2024) sector graduates.

In 2024, the proportion of ITE graduates who were Māori increased in two of the three teaching sectors. In ECE, the proportion of Māori graduates increased from 13 percent in 2023 to 15 percent in 2024, the proportion of Māori graduates in primary ITE increased from 24 percent in 2023 to 26 percent in 2024, while the proportion of Māori graduates in the secondary sector decreased from 17 percent in 2023 to 13 percent in 2024. Of the three teaching sectors, primary ITE (26 percent) has the highest proportion of Māori graduates in 2024.

The low number of first-time graduates who are Pacific Peoples makes identifying trends difficult. In 2024, the proportion of graduates who were Pacific Peoples increased slightly in the ECE and primary sectors, while decreasing slightly in the secondary sector. In the ECE sector, the proportion of Pacific Peoples increased from 7.3 percent in 2023 to 8.7 percent in 2024 and in primary the proportion increased from 8.0 percent in 2023 to 8.9 percent in 2024. The proportion of Pacific Peoples in the secondary sector decreased slightly from 8.9 percent in 2023 to 8.3 percent in 2024. In 2024, the proportion of Pacific Peoples was roughly the same in all three teaching sectors (8.7 percent in ECE, 8.9 percent in primary and 8.3 percent in secondary).

Figure 10: Age distribution of domestic students completing an ITE qualification for the first time by indicative teaching sector

Figure 11: Gender distribution of domestic students completing an ITE qualification for the first time by indicative teaching sector

Figure 12: Ethnic group distribution of domestic students completing an ITE qualification for the first time by indicative teaching sector

Study-related characteristics by teaching sector (see figures 13 and 14)

In the ECE and primary sectors the majority of first-time ITE graduates complete bachelors degrees. In 2024, 75 percent of ECE graduates completed an ITE bachelors degree, compared with 73 percent in 2023. In primary ITE, 63 percent of graduates completed a bachelors degree in 2024 (a decrease from 70 percent in 2023), compared with a low point of 51 percent in 2021. In secondary ITE, first-time graduates mainly complete graduate diplomas, postgraduate diplomas and masters degrees. In 2024, 64 percent completed graduate diplomas, 19 percent completed postgraduate diplomas, and 16 percent completed masters degrees.

Universities continue to produce the vast majority of first-time graduates in primary and secondary ITE. In 2024, 83 percent of graduates in primary and 85 percent in secondary were from universities. PTEs now produce the largest number of first-time ECE graduates. In 2024, 64 percent of ECE graduates were from PTEs, compared with 17 percent from universities and 19 percent from Te Pūkenga.

Figure 13: Distribution of domestic students completing an ITE qualification for the first time by type of qualification and indicative teaching sector

Figure 14: Distribution of domestic students completing an ITE qualification for the first time by sub-sector and indicative teaching sector

The number of first-time domestic ITE graduates decreased in all three of the broad regions of study (Auckland, Rest of the North Island, South Island) in 2024. The Rest of the North Island showed the biggest drop in graduates, from 1,280 in 2023 to 1,125 in 2024. The number of graduates decreased by 40 in the South Island between 2023 and 2024 and by just five in Auckland.

In terms of the teaching subject of secondary ITE graduates, seven of the ten broad subject areas had an increase in graduates between 2023 and 2024. The largest increase was in Social Sciences (from 205 in 2023 to 240 in 2024). The broad subject with the largest decrease in graduates was Science (from 125 in 2023 to 110 in 2024).

The largest changes in the distribution of the broad teaching subjects between 2023 and 2024 was an increase in share from 10 percent to 12 percent in Mathematics and Statistics and a decrease in share from 19 percent to 14 percent in Science.

At the more detailed subject level, the data shows the biggest change in numbers related to an increase in graduates in Social Studies (from 135 in 2023 to 170 in 2024) and a decrease in graduates in Biology/Biological Science (from 75 in 2023 to 55 in 2024.

International students completing an ITE qualification for the first time

The number of first-time ITE international graduates with an ITE qualification increased by 81 percent in 2024 to reach 995 (an increase of 445). This large increase reflects the bounce back in international student numbers following COVID. Of these 2024 graduates, 71 percent were in the ECE sector.

Technical notes

How do these initial teacher education (ITE) statistics differ from other field of study data published by the Ministry of Education?

Although the Ministry of Education publishes other enrolment and graduate data for students who studied in the field of education, the ITE statistics exclude qualifications that do not lead to provisional teacher registration (such as certificates that are preparatory qualifications). In doing so, the initial teacher education statistics present a more accurate picture of teacher training in New Zealand.

Determining the likely sector of teaching of initial teacher education students/graduates

Using the administrative data reported to the Ministry of Education by tertiary education providers, the following process was used to determine the likely sector of teaching (early childhood education (ECE), primary, or secondary) for each student/graduate:

Step 1:

The New Zealand Classification of Education (NZSCED) code for the initial teacher education qualification the student was enrolled in (or completed) was used to map the qualification to a sector of teaching. The mapping used is presented in Table 2. For example, a student enrolled in or completing a qualification with an NZSCED code of 070101, 070118, or 070120, was assigned to the ECE sector.

Step 2:

A number of initial teacher education qualifications do not identify a single sector of teaching via an NZSCED code, as they can produce graduates for more than one teaching sector.

In these cases, to determine the likely sector of teaching for each student/graduate, the courses a student enrolled in as part of the initial teacher education qualification were analysed. The study load (as measured by equivalent full-time students (EFTS)) in courses assigned to any of the initial teacher education NZSCED codes in Table 1 (or in courses that had a name that identified a sector of teaching) was then aggregated and a student was assigned to a teaching sector where they had the largest study load.

Where the likely sector of teaching for a student/graduate could not be identified using Step1 and Step 2 the sector was treated as "unknown".

Because the likely sector of teaching is a derived characteristic, it should be treated as indicative only.

Determining who is enrolling in ITE for the first time or completing their first ITE qualification

People can enrol in and complete additional ITE qualifications throughout their career. They do this for a variety of purposes, including: career progression, specialisation and remuneration gains. These people will already be qualified to teach.

To get a sense of people who are new to teacher training we split the enrolment data into those enrolling in ITE for the first time in that year and those who have been enrolled in ITE qualifications in previous years.

To identify the students new to ITE, we look back to 1994 using historical datasets to see if they have studied previously. If we don’t see a prior enrolment, they are treated as new to ITE in that year. As the unit record data only goes back to 1994, there may be older students who we identify as being new to ITE who may in fact already have studied an ITE qualification in the period prior to 1994.

Similarly, for ITE completion data, we report who is completing an ITE qualification for the first time and those who have already completed an ITE qualification in the past. This gives a sense of how many graduates may be available to join the teaching profession.

Focusing on 'first-time' students gives a more accurate picture of who may be available to join the teaching profession for the first time in the future.

More detail on this is provided in the Technical notes sheet in the Excel statistical tables.

Treatment of multi-teaching sector qualifications

In the reporting of official ITE statistics, where students enrol in or complete an ITE qualification which prepares them to teach in more than one sector, we report them in each of these sectors.

More detail on this is provided in the Technical notes sheet in the Excel statistical tables.

Region of study

In the ITE enrolment statistics, where a student is studying intramurally, the delivery site of the courses they enrolled in is used to identify study region. Where a student is studying extramurally, the postal code of the term address of the student is used to determine study region. Where study region cannot be determined we treat the study region as unknown.

For the ITE completions data, the study region of the last year of enrolment in the qualification is used to determine the study region.

It should be noted that the region an ITE student studies in may not be related to the region where they commence teaching.

Assigning a student as intramural or extramural

To assign a student as intramural or extramural the study load in courses/papers they are enrolled in within the qualification in a year is examined and if the majority of the study load is on an intramural basis they are assigned to that status (and vice versa). So a student who is classified as intramural may still be doing an extramural based paper.

The teaching subjects of secondary sector graduates

The initial teacher education data in sheet ITE.COM8 presents the teaching subject(s) of secondary sector graduates. Between 2019 and 2021, teaching subject was collected via completion reporting and based off a subject classification designed to capture majors of degrees. Up to three subjects could be reported. From 2022, the teaching subject has been collected via enrolment data and a new subject classification, which is aligned with NCEA subjects, was introduced. Also, up to four subjects could be reported. Caution should be used when comparing time periods either side of the change in collection method.

The subjects reported in sheet ITE.COM8 do not necessarily represent the subjects that the graduate may teach at school.

The initial teacher education data is compiled at the qualification level

The initial teacher education statistics reported here were compiled at the qualification level. Therefore, if a student was assigned to a particular sector of teaching, all of the EFTS for that student in that qualification in that year were assigned to that sector.

Māori medium statistics

The Māori medium statistics are reported for programmes that meet Teaching Council of Aotearoa New Zealand requirements for Māori medium. The Māori medium data is available from 2016 onwards as the Teaching Council of Aotearoa New Zealand requirements for Māori medium came into force on 1 January 2016.

As well as reporting the total number of students enrolled in and completing Māori medium ITE qualifications, we have split the data into bilingual or immersion provision. This terminology is in line with NZSCED definitions.