What now? What next? Insights into Australia's tertiary education sector

In this episode Claire is joined by Jodi Schmidt, the CEO of the Human Services Skills Organisation to discuss reforms happening in the VET sector, the work the HSSO is doing and some of the issues the sector still needs to tackle. If you're interested in providing input into the skills reform agenda - there's a Skills Reform Engagement Hub on the DESE website  ( https://www.skillsreform...

In this episode Claire unpacks two new NCVER reports highlighting the changes happening in the government-funded and fee-for-service parts of the VET sector. You can read Claire's analysis in two recent updates in the News section of her website:  https://clairefield.com.au/news/  And the NCVER's data is an absolute treasure trove if you want to understand the sector better:  https://www...

In this episode of the podcast, Claire is joined by Dr Douglas Proctor, PVC Global Engagement at Swinburne University of Technology, to discuss international education. ------------------------------------------- The ‘What now? What next?’ podcast recognises Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as Australia’s traditional custodians. In the spirit of reconciliation we are proud to recommend...

This episode is part 2 of Claire's conversation with VET consultant Joe Newbery and draws on his insights about inconsistency in ASQA decision-making (and how to improve things) in this recent article: https://newberyconsulting.com.au/observation-assessment/ Joe's article came out at the same time as an audit report on ASQA's performance conducted by the Australian National Audit Of...

On this episode of the podcast Claire is joined by VET consultant, Joe Newbery, to discuss his recent article on observation assessment in VET. If you haven't read it it is a 'must read' for all RTO compliance managers and assessors: https://newberyconsulting.com.au/observation-assessment/ In the article Joe also discusses the need for more consistency in ASQA decision making. There...

Claire is joined on this episode of the podcast by Prof. Sally Kift to discuss the AQF Review report and its recommendations. If you haven't read the report it's accessible at:  https://www.dese.gov.au/reviews-and-consultations/australian-qualifications-framework-review ------------------------------------- The ‘What now? What next?’ podcast recognises Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island...

The Digital Transformation Expert Panel's report: The Learning Country: Digital Transformation Skills Strategy  was released recently and this week Claire spoke with three leaders in the sector involved in developing the report: Prof Aleksander Subic (RMIT), Megan Lilly (AiG) and Paul Walsh (AIS). If you haven't read the report it offers a very good framework for lifelong learning,  poli...

Claire is joined in this episode by Prof. Michael Sankey from Charles Darwin University and Prof. Claire Macken from RMIT University to discuss how universities accelerated their move to online teaching during COVID, the lessons learned and what lies ahead. ------------------------------------------------ The ‘What now? What next?’ podcast recognises Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as...

Claire unpacks the 2021 Federal Budget looking at what measures were (and were not) announced in it and what they mean for the VET, higher education and international education sectors. For a fuller rundown on the international education measures - Claire provided some analysis in this recent article: https://campusmorningmail.com.au/news/claire-field-not-overwhelmed-by-the-private-provider-help-p...

In this episode Claire speaks with David Riordan , former CEO of NSW DET International, Director of City Services at the City of Sydney and Director of TAFE NSW Sydney Institute. David is now consulting to the sector and has some very useful insights on where international education is at and where the future lies. During our conversation we discuss the consultation paper the government has releas...

Claire is joined in this episode by renowned mental health expert Prof. Patrick McGorry AO (Executive Director, Orygen ), Prof. Kylie Readman (PVC Education, Murdoch University) and Jack Goodman (Executive Chairman, Studiosity ) to discuss how institutions need to adapt their student support to an increasingly online environment. During the discussion Patrick refers to MOST, moderated online socia...

In this episode of the podcast Claire is joined by Prof. Ly Tran from Deakin University to discuss the current state of Australia's international education sector and the experiences of  students here in Australia and offshore. Ly also shares her views on where the sector might find itself in the next 5-10 years and some of its key challenges. ----------------------------------------------- T...

This week Claire has 5 guests on the podcast across two episodes to unpack what's in the Productivity Commission's report on the new National Skills Agreement. On this episode she speaks with Craig Robertson from TAFE Directors Australia (TDA) and Troy Williams from Independent Tertiary Education Council Australia (ITECA). The Victorian government's "Macklin Review" also g...

This week Claire has 5 guests on the podcast across two episodes to unpack what's in the Productivity Commission's report on the new National Skills Agreement. On this episode she speaks with Dr Don Perlgut from Community Colleges Australia (CCA), Chris Butler from the Enterprise RTOs Association (ERTOA) and Dr Sally Burt from Independent Higher Education  Australia (IHEA). The Victorian...

In this episode Claire unpacks the Productivity Commission's final report on their review of the National Agreement for Skills and Workforce Development - and crucially their recommendations for the next National Skills Agreement. The report identifies a raft of changes to VET funding which the sector can expect from 2022 (subject to their acceptance by the Commonwealth and then the State and...

On this episode of the podcast Claire is joined by Patrick Kidd OBE OAM, CEO of the Digital Skills Organisation , to explain what the DSO has been set up to do and the results of a recent tender process  for the ‘Train 100 Data Analysts’ project. The DSO is an initiative led by the Department of Education, Skills and Employment to take an industry-led approach to digital skills training and employ...

Sveto joins Claire on the podcast to share her experiences as an international student, a women's rights activist, and a social entrepreneur. Sveto's current activities include founding the Chadari Project  which uses poetry and storytelling to enable Afghan women to tell their stories, and co-founding AYAT Modest Clothes - a social enterprise providing work for illiterate women creating...

Claire is joined by the CEO of ITECA (the Independent Tertiary Education Council Australia), Troy Williams, to discuss a range of issues within the sector, as well as the changes Troy and his members have been focussed on over the last two years.   ------------------------------------- The ‘What now? What next?’ podcast recognises Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as Australia’s traditi...

Professor Judyth Sachs and Jim Micsko join Claire on this episode of the podcast. They share their insights on the importance of the school to tertiary education transition as well as what institutions and policymakers need to do to support students during this crucial phase. With COVID-19 having impacted both senior secondary students and first year tertiary students this was a very timely discus...

In today's episode of the podcast, David Linke, the Managing Director of EduGrowth joins Claire to discuss the current state of play in the Australian EdTech sector. You can find out more about EduGrowth and their activities at: https://edugrowth.org.au ---------------------------------------- The ‘What now? What next?’ podcast recognises Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as Austra...

On this episode of the podcast, Kylie Wilson, CEO of the New Zealand School of Tourism joins Claire to share her insights on regulatory self-assurance. Recent reports have recommended that ASQA should look at the New Zealand Qualifications Authority's approach when they design their new regulatory model. Kylie explains how different the NZQA's approach is from our current audit model in...

In this episode Claire explains the details of the JobTrainer scheme, what's been agreed by the Commonwealth, States and Territories in the Heads of Agreement for the next National Skills Agreement, and what advice people gave to the Productivity Commission on VET funding reform and what that is likely to mean for the sector. Claire has also compiled a summary of the submissions provided to t...

In this episode Claire is joined by Dr Laura Hougaz to discuss the independent higher education sector and how it is managing its way through the COVID pandemic. Laura shares her insights on both the challenges and opportunities for these institutions and their entrepreneurial leaders. Laura's book 'Entrepreneurs Creating Educational Innovation - Case Studies from Australia' is well...

Claire is joined on this episode of the podcast by Mike Larsen, the CEO of Studiosity to discuss the "Herculean" effort tertiary education providers have made during COVID to move their content online and what that's meant for student support. We were delayed in publishing this episode because we were busy writing a submission to the Productivity Commission's inquiry into Commo...

On this episode Claire is joined by Prof. Andrew Norton from the Centre for Social Research at the ANU, Luke Sheehy from the ATN, and Conor King from the IRU to discuss the government's higher education reforms and their likely impact on the sector. ----------------------------------- The ‘What now? What next?’ podcast recognises Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as Australia’s tra...