As reported elsewhere in this issue, Skills Ministers have agreed to establish a working group to consider issues relating to higher apprenticeships. The working group will provide a final report by mid next year.
Higher apprenticeships were the subject of an NCVER paper in 2019, entitled ‘Higher apprenticeships in Australia: what are we talking about?’ VDC News has also explored higher apprenticeships before in these pages, notably through an article referring to the AiG’s higher apprenticeship scheme and another reporting on this 2019 work and highlighting other resources, including initiatives in the UK and New Zealand.
The NCVER’s 2019 research explored
“how higher apprenticeships might be conceptualised in different industries and education sectors, the extent of their role and demand, possible structures of higher apprenticeships and the potential challenges to their broader use.”
So, it’s quite relevant to this new working group.
Key messages from this work suggest that:
“There is some stakeholder interest in various models of higher apprenticeships. However, the concept is complicated, given that higher apprenticeships potentially span both the VET and higher education sectors and are therefore subject to different educational, funding and regulatory arrangements. These complexities make it difficult for some stakeholders to hypothesise how higher apprenticeships would operate in their industry.”
And thus:
“Given the divergent views of stakeholders, it is unlikely that a ‘standard’ higher apprenticeship model can be developed and successfully implemented. A more likely scenario is the development of a variety of higher apprenticeships and apprenticeship-like models of learning within the constraints of the current system.”
Finally:
“Whether a higher apprenticeship is undertaken through contract of training or not, the key determinants of a successful model will be one that it is fit for purpose for the enterprise and has a demonstrable benefit for employers and their employees.”
