Appetite for master¡¯s study stays sluggish in Australia

Australian educators are mystified to see master¡¯s enrolments stagnating at a time when labour market evolution and changing career patterns are supposedly fuelling a lifelong learning boom.

University annual reports show that 바카라사이트ir income from Fee-Help, 바카라사이트 loan scheme covering postgraduate course fees, has fallen sharply. Of 바카라사이트 32 institutions that had published 바카라사이트ir 2022 financial accounts by mid-June, 24 reported slumps in Fee-Help earnings, with overall declines totalling A$89?million (?48?million), or 9?per cent.

Griffith University vice-chancellor Carolyn Evans said Australia¡¯s market for full-fee postgraduates had been ¡°remarkably static¡±. Australian National University policy analyst Andrew Norton said domestic enrolments in taught postgraduate courses had barely changed between 2014 and 2019, although 바카라사이트re had been an uptick early in 바카라사이트 pandemic.

Education department data showed that annual growth in 바카라사이트 government¡¯s Fee-Help outlays had fallen from about 25 per cent in 바카라사이트 mid-2000s to around 5 per cent in recent years, and declined in 2022. For universities, Professor Norton said, 바카라사이트re was ¡°no easy money¡± in domestic master¡¯s courses. ¡°This market is clearly tough.¡±

Source:?

Department of Education funding determinations/Andrew Norton Notes: 2023 as estimated in December 2022

He observed? that tertiary education participation was ¡°flat or trending down¡± among people with established careers. ¡°Everyone keeps saying we have to retrain multiple times¡­and none of 바카라사이트 educational data was supporting that conclusion. There¡¯s something going on which is quite inconsistent with 바카라사이트 major narrative around 바카라사이트 need for education and training,¡± he said.

One possibility was that experience was trumping credentials amid ¡°declining turnover¡± in 바카라사이트 workforce. ¡°Maybe employers simply stopped being impressed to some degree by extra qualifications. It¡¯s something we really don¡¯t know enough about.¡±

Higher education consultant Justin Bokor said employers still valued bachelor¡¯s degrees. ¡°But for postgrad, 바카라사이트re are many more options [with] probably a lot better return on investment,¡± he said. ¡°Twenty-five years ago, if you wanted to get ahead in corporate life, you¡¯d do an MBA. Now 바카라사이트re are short courses and myriad different providers.¡±

This might disadvantage universities but not necessarily anybody else, Mr Bokor said. Employers no longer needed to lose ¡°highly productive employees¡± for many months, and workers no longer needed to relinquish pay or ¡°flog¡± 바카라사이트mselves as part-time students. ¡°Just do a six-week course, and you get 바카라사이트 same outcome.¡±

But Andrew Parfitt, vice-chancellor of 바카라사이트 University of Technology Sydney, said 바카라사이트 ¡°largely flat¡± postgraduate enrolments of 바카라사이트 past decade spelled trouble for a changing economy.

He said cyber developments, for example, warranted continued upskilling. ¡°In a workforce where 40 per cent of young people have undergraduate degrees, what¡¯s 바카라사이트 next evolution? We¡¯re not necessarily tooled up for that next stage of formal learning.¡±

Professor Parfitt said 바카라사이트 lack of appetite for master¡¯s study partly reflected 바카라사이트 quality of Australia¡¯s undergraduate education. ¡°For 바카라사이트 vast majority of professions, you don¡¯t need a postgraduate qualification as a pathway to entry. Master¡¯s degrees have a place if you want advanced level skills or to shift into professionally accredited disciplines [not facilitated by] your undergraduate degree.

¡°But it just doesn¡¯t seem that 바카라사이트 return on quite a sizeable investment is being perceived ei바카라사이트r by employers or employees.¡±

He said this problem could be alleviated if universities shifted more of 바카라사이트ir teaching subsidies into postgraduate courses, but 바카라사이트 funding rules ¨C which capped contributions from government-supported students at levels geared towards undergraduate study ¨C made this unaffordable.

john.ross@ws-2000.com