The VET Sector News (July 2022)

Leadership and personal finance are the focus of TROY’s two free online classes this summer Whether you’re interested in building valuable leadership skills to propel your career or are interested in learning principles to protect and grow your wealth, Troy University is ready to help those who want to make a commitment to their future by offering two free courses this summer. TROY’s online courses have been ranked among the country’s best by U.S. News and World Report. The University is known for emphasizing the importance of developing strong leaders and its leadership program is one of the best in the nation. Beginning July 11, TROY will offer a free online, four-week course entitled an Introduction to Leadership. This course presents a rare opportunity for participants to learn how to lead from a global perspective while incorporating self-evaluation in order to gain a better understanding of how to lead effectively. “We believe that universities are responsible for building the leaders of tomorrow and that is a commitment we do not take lightly,” said Dr. Jack Hawkins, Jr., Chancellor. “Our mission is to develop leaders who are well equipped to meet the challenges of today’s world. These two free courses are an excellent introduction to all we offer at Troy University while giving participants the chance to learn valuable life skills.” New for 2022, TROY is offering a free personal finance course entitled Your Life, Your Success — Money Management and Financial Wellness which is designed to give students an overview of financial principles that will help them succeed. Students will learn about budgeting, filing taxes, different types of loans and insurance products, and an overview of investment options. This course will be offered in two tracks beginning July 11; one for a general audience and one for young adults. The courses are open to anyone and do not require enrollment in TROY to participate. Participants who enroll at Troy University can earn three credit hours for each course as a general elective or minor course. The courses run for four weeks and end on Aug. 8. To earn academic credit, students must pass a challenge exam at the end of the courses. Current TROY students who participate must have less than 15 hours of university credit to receive academic credit for passing the challenge exam. Register at: troy.edu/freeclass. For more information, please click here. Reminder about superseded HLT First Aid units An important reminder regarding first aid training: HLTAID001-HLTAID008 should no longer be delivered by any provider after July 1, 2022. For more information, please click here. Skilled migration and visa backlog in focus at Anthony Albanese's first National Cabinet meeting The visa backlog must be addressed to allow migration to be harnessed to combat skill shortages plaguing the country, according to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. Mr Albanese hosted his first National Cabinet meeting on Friday, where state and territory leaders directly raised the issue of fast-tracking targeted migration with him. The migration program is still suffering from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic with visa backlogs placing immense pressure on the Department of Home Affairs. For more information, please click here. Students shun unis in favour of trades, vocational courses Australian students have turned away from university degrees in favour of trades and vocational courses, the latest census data has revealed. In 2021, 177,032 more students were completing vocational studies, which included courses offered by TAFE and private training providers, compared to 2016. In that same time period, there were just 24,824 more people studying at university. Vocational students made up 7.8 per cent of all Australian students in 2021, up from 5.9 per cent in 2016 and 7.3 per cent in 2011. Meanwhile, universities enrolled 15.4 per cent of students in 2021, compared to 16 per cent in 2016 and 14 per cent in 2011. The census data also showed that vocational students are getting older, with 63 per cent aged 25 and older in 2021 compared to 57 per cent in 2016. Women were far more likely to be enrolled at university than men, making up 58 per cent of students, compared to 56 per cent in 2016. For more information, please click here. Productivity, Migration and Skills At a national level, the question is: what is the link between education and growth? That is a question the Productivity Commission is grappling with in the context of our 5-year Productivity Review. It’s not simple and to show why I want to start two claims: one bland and one more controversial. The bland one is that education is fundamental to equipping people for the high skill jobs of a modern economy. (Among its many other benefits.) The controversial one centres on our prospects for future growth and it is this: it is not clear that high levels of education are making us any more innovative. Because the glaring paradox of our age is that we have never been more highly educated and we have the lowest productivity growth in 50 years. How can this be, and what should we do about it? I think the challenge that it poses is that education and research, like most good things, have a tendency towards diminishing returns. The policy question is how we might break out of that tendency. For more information, please click here.