Future bright for school leavers
For the first time ever more than half of all school leavers went on to study a bachelor degree at university or TAFE this year, according to the Victorian Government's student destination survey – On Track.
Releasing the survey today, Minister for Higher Education and Skills Peter Hall said 52 per cent of students who completed Year 12 last year went on to study a bachelor degree, up from 49.4 per cent in 2011.
On Track today celebrated 10 years of tracking student destinations.
Mr Hall said the comprehensive survey painted a clear picture of the broad range of options available to school students today.
"This survey shows that our students are emerging from their schools with more options than ever before," Mr Hall said.
Mr Hall said the total percentage of Year 12 leavers going on to further education and training had increased from 75.5 per cent last year to 76.5 per cent this year.
The percentage of government school students who enrolled in bachelor degrees increased from 41.3 per cent last year to 44.2 per cent this year.
The number was also up for non-government school students, from 58.2 per cent last year to 60.6 per cent this year.
There was a slight drop in the number of students commencing an apprenticeship or traineeship, from 7.9 per cent to 7.4 per cent this year.
Mr Hall said the recent VET reforms were designed to boost funding for apprenticeships to attract more people to high-demand areas and areas with skills shortages.
Mr Hall said the proportion of Year 12 leavers who entered the workforce dropped from 10.8 per cent last year to 9.8 per cent this year.
The number of Year 12 leavers deferring their studies remained constant at 10.3 per cent. Back in 2004, only 6 per cent of students deferred their study.
Mr Hall said significant improvements in transitions have been made over the 10 years that the On Track surveys have been conducted.
"We can see that the number of students from government schools who went on to study at university has increased by almost 12 percentage points, from 32.4 per cent in 2003 to 44.2 per cent this year," Mr Hall said.
"This On Track data is confirmation of the great work being done in our schools and shows that the future is bright for young people in Victoria."
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