High TAFE fees threaten debt for students

[costargh]

High TAFE fees threaten debt for students

TAFE fees will almost triple over the next three years and thousands of students will be forced to take on debt to cover the increased costs as part of a contentious State Government plan to tackle skills shortages.

In a move that has prompted fears that TAFE will become unreachable for many, the Government will increase fees for diplomas and advance diplomas, and introduce a HECS-style loan scheme for students to try to soften the blow.

The new fee structure forms part of the most dramatic shake-up of Victoria's vocational education and training system in years. The maximum annual tuition fee for a diploma or advance diploma will increase from $877 to $1500 next year. In 2010, the fees will rise to $2000, and to $2500 in 2011.

The price increases will affect most courses but not "foundation" learning areas such as maths, reading and writing.

Skills Minister Jacinta Allan's spokeswoman, Lidija Ivanovski, said the Government was seeking to create a fairer system and train "thousands more" Victorians to meet the state's skills needs.

But TAFE teachers and students yesterday lashed out at the plan, saying it would deter many from entering the system.

"This will put TAFE education out of the reach of the ordinary working person in Victoria. To slam working Victorians in this way when most are struggling with mortgages and petrol cost is ludicrous," said Australian Education Union TAFE vice-president Gillian Robertson.

National Union of Students president Angus McFarland agreed. "This will mean that people leaving TAFE — who are meant to be skilled up and in turn contribute to the economy — will instead be burdened by debt," he said.

The new fee structure will be unveiled as part of the Government's broader plan to tackle skills shortages by getting more people into higher qualifications. Also as part of the plan, the Government will:

■Open up the training market to unprecedented competition, in which public TAFE institutes will have to compete with a growing number of private providers for student funding dollars.

■Create a new "demand-driven" model, under which any person who wants to gain a higher qualification, or any school leaver who wants training and can meet the relevant course requirements, will be guaranteed a place.

■Allow people to take out an income-contingent loan — similar to HECS in universities — meaning they will not have to pay for the full cost of their studies until their annual income reaches about $41,000.

State Government insiders say the Federal Government has agreed to support Victoria to become the first state in Australia to create the income-contingent loan scheme, which is tied up with the federal tax system. Yesterday, federal Education Minister Julia Gillard remained tight-lipped when asked, through her spokeswoman, about the extent of Canberra's support, other than to say: "I would be concerned if cost was a barrier for Victorians, which is why we are in discussions with Victoria about the role the Commonwealth can play in helping people upgrade their skills."

Victoria has 18 TAFE colleges, which educate almost 400,000 students. However, 1.4 million Victorian adults do not have a post-school qualification.

Advance diploma fees in Victoria

■THIS YEAR $877
■NEXT YEAR $1500
■2010 $2000
■2011 $2500


How we compare
■Tasmania $990
■Queensland $1003
■WA $1100
■NSW 1420
■SA $1980

I hate this idea. Tripled in three years? Almost doubled for next year.
How does increasing the price of education act as a way to solve our skills shortage :S

[brendan]

because you are no longer paying upfront but through HECS. You shouldn't trust The Age to report on things without bias.

[Eriny]

But it's quite affordable as it is. I don't think this will actually mean that less people will go to TAFE (HECS should ensure this), but the hike does seem pretty unnecessary.

[brendan]

hike? no prices have risen. it seems that what will happen is a rise in the *price cap* imposed by state government regulations.

furthermore, there is no such thing as a free lunch, someone, somewhere has to pay. if a person isn't paying for his own education, then someone else is. the question is: who ought to pay?

[costargh]

I noticed the wording of *price cap* but inevitably the TAFE's will charge the maximum amount possible just like Univeristy's have this similar structure in place (correct me if I am wrong).

I am not arguing for a 'free lunch', I just prefer the system the way it is now and see an increase in the 'price cap' as acting as a deterant to people wishing to study, thus worsining our skills shortage

[Collin Li]

An immediate solution to skills shortage is immigration.

[excal]

An immediate solution to skills shortage is immigration.

Immigrants still have a major (and potentially big) issue in the workplace - the language barrier. That's not to say that they should be struck off the solution list, though.

[brendan]

an increase in the 'price cap' as acting as a deterant to people wishing to study, thus worsining our skills shortage

1. Numerous studies, most prominent of all a review of the studies by Bruce Chapman (the creator of HECS) for the Handbook of the Economics of Education vol 2, have looked at the introduction of HECS and its subsequent increases, and have found no deterrence at all as claimed by a lot of people - even amongst low-income people.

2. What matters to employers is not the only the quantity of skills, but also quality. When people say that there is a "skills shortage" in Accounting for example, that doesn't mean that there isn't enough Accounting students per se, but rather, not enough Accounting students graduating with the necessary standard of qualities that employers want. So with the extra funds available to education providers from being able to charge higher fees, they should be able to induce higher quality. Hence, the net effect on the skills shortage could very well be to reduce it - even disregarding the fact that there is no up-front payment because of the HECS style loans.

3. The biases of the reporter are abundantly clear by her past opinion pieces, and also by the way she downplays the other more significant aspects of the package of reforms, by putting them near the end.

4. All these reforms will not make the post-secondary education market perfect, but it is a significant improvement, and from previous evidence of similar reforms, one would also expect that these reforms will improve the quality, and quantity of the education provided.

5. One must also ask, why is there a shortage in the labour market, but no shortages in share the market for milk or bread? You will normally not encounter shortages for sustained period of time, unless there were some government regulations on prices, or quantity. In this case a major factor in my view of the labour shortage is the lack of freedom of movement of labour across national borders.