1. Student movement: Pathways, fields and links to work Nick Fredman LH Martin Institute University of Melbourne

2. Student movement: Pathways, fields and links to work A study of flows in tertiary education linking findings from the ABS Survey of Education and Training to occupational structures. Part of the NCVER-supported project ‘Vocations: post-compulsory education and the labour market’. 1.Contexts: participation, pathways and transfers; 2.A lack of coherence between education and work in Australia; 3.Change in patterns of student transfers over time by different initial fields; 4.Field-changing between successive qualifications; 5.Conclusions; 2

3. 1. Contexts: Participation, pathways and transfers 3 Policy context: targets to boost participation in tertiary education for both productivity and social inclusion; One means: improving interconnections in a “less fragmented” and “easier to navigate” education system; A focus in this on internal mechanics of education such as credit transfer and articulation (rather than links with work); An assumption in this focus that transfers are upward and in the same field.

4. 2. A lack of coherence between education and work Multiple study in the same field good from a narrow, utilitarian framework; Also good from a broader framework of building capabilities to participate in creative labour and social life (Sen and Nussbaum); Coherence in relation to education and work here seen as the extent to which education and work are mutually reinforcing in building capabilities; Lack of coherence: –Most VET graduates don’t work in areas of their study; –There’s considerable mismatches between education, skills and work; –Mismatches lead to work dis-satisfaction; How do student flows relate to coherence? 4

5. 3. Change in student transfers over time Source: ABS Survey of Education and Training, 2001, 2005 and 2009 5 Figure1Those in workforce with one, two or three or more qualifications in 2001, 2005 and 2009, per cent

6. 3.Change in student transfers over time — agriculture and environment as first qualification Source: ABS Survey of Education and Training, 2009 6 1st qual. sector When 1 st qual. completed No. Subsequent qualification, % NoneVETHENot det.Total VETPre-199076 00066.628.44.40.5100.0 1990–2009109 00058.530.87.53.2100.0 HEPre-199025 00048.06.439.16.4100.0 1990–200940 00042.212.442.13.4100.0 VET: little further education but increasing and more than e.g. engineering; Reflects agricultural work: there are major barriers to advancement but a stratum of workers gain mid-range jobs with education;

7. 3.Change in student transfers over time — commerce and management as first qualification Source: ABS Survey of Education and Training, 2009 7 1st qual. sector When 1 st qual. completed No. Subsequent qualification, % NoneVETHENot det.Total VETPre-1990554 00070.623.54.21.7100.0 1990–2009933 00053.131.212.73.0100.0 HEPre-1990223 00071.76.321.30.8100.0 1990–2009361 00044.310.542.62.5100.0 C.f. agriculture and environment more growth, more multiple qualifications; Reflects developments in financial services work towards tighter licensing and greater use of credentials as initial screening.

8. 3.Change in student transfers over time — health as first qualification Source: ABS Survey of Education and Training, 2009 8 1st qual. sector When 1st qual. completed No. Subsequent qualification, % NoneVETHENot det.Total VETPre-1990213 00051.517.727.83.0100.0 1990–2009148 00042.826.321.39.6100.0 HEPre-1990190 00065.77.423.92.9100.0 1990–2009219 00045.17.543.04.4100.0 Higher proportion of the earlier group transferred from VET to higher education, with the pattern markedly opposite in sequential higher education study; Reflects change in registration and increased credentialism in nursing work.

9. 3.Change in student transfers over time — engineering as first qualification Source: ABS Survey of Education and Training, 2009 9 1st qual. sector When 1st qual. completed No. Subsequent qualification, % NoneVETHENot det.Total VETPre-1990853 00067.125.54.33.1100.0 1990–2009527 00066.026.14.73.1100.0 HEPre-1990135 00061.211.027.40.3100.0 1990–2009112 00060.08.928.13.0100.0 Relatively low and static rates of multiple qualifications; Reflects strong differentiation in knowledge and skills in engineering occupations, in contrast to finance (and natural sciences).

10. 4.Field-changing between successive qualifications 10 Figure 2Numbers completing a second qualification by period and proportions changing fields from their first qualification Source: ABS Survey of Education and Training, 2009

11. 4.Field-changing between successive qualifications 11 Figure 3Percentage of students changing fields between a first and second qualification for each pathway, with 95% confidence intervals Source: ABS Survey of Education and Training, 2009

12. 4.Field-changing between successive qualifications 12 Figure 4Percentage of students changing fields between a first and second qualification for each initial field of education, with 95% confidence intervals Source:ABS Survey of Education and Training, 2009

13. 5.Conclusions and questions 13 Patterns of student flows explainable by labour market and regulatory structures; Addressing incoherences means addressing links between education and work, not just adjusting internal mechanisms of education; Can a broad focus on capabilities and vocational streams improve coherence?