Community Services and Health
Industry Skills Council
Submission to Commonwealth Department of
Education and Training
Draft National Strategy for International Education
May 2015
The Community Services and Health Industry Skills Council Submission:
Draft Na tional S tra teg y for International E ducati on que stionnai re
May 2015
The Community Services and Health Industry Skills Council (CS&HISC) is the peak
agency responsible for developing Vocational Education and Training (VET) qualifications
and setting national standards for a broad range of job roles in the Community Services
and Health industry. Over 80,000 publicly funded students are awarded a health or
community services qualification each year. In addition to qualifications, CS&HISC
provides advice, services and products to support the development of the overall
community services and health workforce.
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Community Services and Health Industry Skills Council Submission
Draft National Strategy for International Education
May 2015
Please outline your (or your organisation’s) interest in Australian international
education. Add any other relevant content.
The Community Services and Health Industry Skills Council (CS&HISC) is the agency
responsible for developing Vocational Education and Training (VET) qualifications and setting
national standards for a broad range of job roles in the Community Services and Health
industry. Over 80,000 publicly funded students are awarded a health or community services
qualification each year. In addition to qualifications, CS&HISC provides advice, services and
products to support the development of the overall community services and health workforce.
CS&HISC has a strong interest in Australian international education as it relates to the VET
system and the development of the community services and health workforce. We are pleased
to see recognition of the current contribution VET providers make to international education
and, in turn, the economic prosperity, social advancement and international standing of
Australia. As noted under strategic action 6.2 - Enhancing opportunities to provide education
services overseas:
‘Australian VET providers have been very successful in expanding their education
services overseas… Australia’s VET system is well respected internationally and there
are strong levels of interest in Australia’s approach to skills development and quality
frameworks, which may provide exciting future opportunities for Australian VET
stakeholders. ’
In this document CS&HISC responds to the following questions posed by the Department of
Education and Training‘s questionnaire on the Draft National Strategy for International
Education:
1. Does the vision statement in the draft strategy represent Australia’s aspirations for
international education?
2. Are any significant goals for international education not adequately covered?
3. Can you identify the strategic actions which best support your goals for international
education?
4. What are the best measures of success?
5. What are the case studies that best illustrate Australia’s success?
6. What would you like to see progressed as a priority in the first year?
7. Is there anything else you would like to raise that will help develop the final National
Strategy for International Education?
1.
Does the vision statement in the draft strategy represent Australia’s
aspirations for international education?
CS&HISC supports the vision statement in the draft strategy as representative of Australia’s
aspirations for international education. However, to maximise its impact, and support effective
implementation the final strategy needs to identify any potential barriers to implementation and
explore broader workforce development opportunities.
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Community Services and Health Industry Skills Council Submission
Draft National Strategy for International Education
May 2015
The draft strategy does not identify nor address potential barriers to implementation. For
example, the VET sector is responding to significant challenges. These challenges may
negatively impact on the VET sector’s ability to deliver world class education and training and to
engage effectively at an international level.
Current challenges include:

reforms to sector operations and regulation in response to concerns regarding
training quality

reforms to the design and development of national qualifications and standards

historical and ongoing reductions in funding

the transition to a more competitive and complex market for VET with an increase in
private providers and involvement of universities and university-RTO partnerships

concerns about capacity to provide sufficient work placements for community
services and health students (in the context of increased demand for services and
given that work placements for VET students are not funded).
Crucially, in the context of ongoing reform, the future directions for VET are unclear and the
sector is lacking coordinated leadership. It should also be noted that the marketability of
Australian education and training is dependent on the international reputation of the Australian
Quality Framework (AQF) and Australia’s training products.
The strategy needs to recognise that, in order to achieve its stated goals, the VET sector will
require ongoing support and investment. This investment should be targeted at ensuring the
quality and relevance of training and qualifications, and in turn the integrity of the AQF.
We recommend that the final strategy give further consideration to the final reforms affecting
VET and the implications these reforms will have on Australia’s ability to deliver high quality,
internationally recognised education in the context of significant change.
Additionally, the draft strategy fails to recognise the opportunity to align goals for international
education with Australia’s broader workforce development priorities. For example, demand for
services in the Community Services and Health industry continues to increase.
Specifically, aged care, disability, early childhood education and care, and mental health
services are experiencing rapid expansion requiring large numbers of additional workers. We
recommend that the final strategy consider more broadly how international education can be
used as a workforce development tool to support national workforce priorities for Australia and
Australian interests overseas.
The potential for the strategy to support Australia’s broader workforce development goals is
discussed in more detail in our response to question two.
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Community Services and Health Industry Skills Council Submission
Draft National Strategy for International Education
May 2015
2. Are any significant goals for international education not adequately
covered?
In principle, we agree with the three pillars and corresponding goals included in the draft
strategy. However, the goals, and the language used to articulate each, need to be framed
more clearly within the context of all three key elements of the vision statement, particularly
‘driving economic prosperity’ and ‘social advancement’.
To further support the strategy’s vision for international education as a driver for economic
prosperity and social advancement, an additional goal addressing the role of international
education in workforce development is suggested. For example:
‘Australia’s approach to international education will be responsive to our workforce
development priorities, both domestically and in relation to Australia’s interests
overseas.’
If we take the Community Services and Health industry as an example, increased demand for
and changes in the funding and service delivery environment are driving increased demand for
certain roles and specific skills. It is in this context that the Community Services and Health
industry is responding to the following workforce priorities:
a.
b.
c.
Increased demand for specific occupations. The full national rollout of the
National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) is expected to require the disability
workforce to double in size (Treasury, 2013).i In aged care, there were 350,000
workers in 2012 (King et al., 2013),ii and the latest estimate is that the sector will
need 1.3 million workers by 2050 (Centre of Excellence in Population Ageing
Research, 2014).iii Similarly, demand for mental health services is predicted to rise
between 135% and 160% by 2027 and require almost 9,000 extra mental health
professionals (Hosie et al., 2014).iv
Resourcing regional and remote areas. Rural and remote areas of Australia
experience significant shortages of skilled workers. A recent report on the rural and
remote health workforce highlighted that rural and remote communities are heavily
reliant on international health professionals (IHPs), short-term placements, visiting
staff, FIFO and DIDO workers, and contributions from students and trainees (Health
Workforce Australia, 2013).v
Developing a larger pool of CALD workers. A rise in the number of culturally and
linguistically diverse (CALD) aged care consumers has increased demand for CALD
aged care workers and workers with skills to work with an increasingly diverse client
group (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, 2014).vi This is part of broader
industry wide demand for culturally appropriate services.
As the demand for workers increases, the Community Services and Health industry may
increasingly look internationally for new workers. This calls for Australia to see how the
Australian national qualifications system might be better aligned to international frameworks.
CS&HISC notes that towards the end of 2014, the Australian Qualifications Framework Council
sought views on aligning the AQF with qualification frameworks in New Zealand and Europe.
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Community Services and Health Industry Skills Council Submission
Draft National Strategy for International Education
May 2015
3. Can you identify the strategic actions which best support your goals for
international education?
As previously stated in our response to question two, CS&HISC’s goal for international
education is:
‘Australia’s approach to international education will be responsive to our workforce
development priorities, both domestically and in relation to Australia’s interests
overseas.’
The strategic actions included in the draft strategy which best support our goal for international
education include:

Strategic action 2.1 – Strengthening and diversifying institutional partnership’s

Strategic action 2.3 – Building confidence through government-to-government
engagement

Strategic action 6.2 – Enhancing opportunities to provide education services
overseas.
In relation to strategic action 6.2, the draft strategy acknowledges difficulties associated with
building a ‘comprehensive picture of the level of education services being offered overseas by
private VET providers’. In response, we recommend the inclusion of a new strategic action
specifically targeting improved data capture strategies focusing on the education services
delivered by private VET providers internationally. This additional data could be used to support
effective evaluation of the implementation of the national strategy.
4. What are the best measures of success for international education?
CS&HISC recognise the relevance of the measures of success articulated in the document. We
particularly welcome the last measure of success: ‘more country technical vocational education
and training quality frameworks in the Asia-Pacific region using Australia’s VET quality
frameworks as a reference point’. However, the extent to which the measures identified are
measurable is unclear.
CS&HISC recommends further consideration of how the effectiveness of the strategy will be
monitored and evaluated. The strategy should outline an approach for when and how success
will be measured and incorporate key measures of success. Each of the measures will require
relevant baseline data and well defined success criteria.
A comprehensive approach to monitoring and evaluating implementation and effectiveness will
provide an evidence-base for the Department to demonstrate the relative success of the
strategy. Furthermore, including a clear approach to monitoring performance and evaluating
success will facilitate transparency and public confidence in the strategy. This will be key to
ensuring engagement in the strategy.
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Community Services and Health Industry Skills Council Submission
Draft National Strategy for International Education
May 2015
5. What are some case studies that best illustrate Australia’s success? Please
provide examples.
Provision of Australian qualifications overseas
CS&HISC would like to highlight the work of the Australian-Pacific Technical College (APTC). The
APTC delivers Australian qualifications to support the development of workers in key industries
including community services, in a range of locations throughout the Pacific Islands. In line with
the core philosophy of the Australian VET system APTC use their strong links with industry to
increase the supply of skilled workers and improve the employment prospects of their students.
APTC aims to provide Pacific Islander women and men with Australian qualifications that
present opportunities to be able to find employment in targeted sectors nationally and
internationally. Since 2007 over 6,200 Pacific Islanders from 14 Pacific Island Countries have
graduated with an Australian qualification (as at June 2014). Furthermore, APTC reports high
levels of employer, graduate and student satisfaction with the training they provide.
For example, a 2013 survey of employers of APTC graduates indicated a 91% overall
satisfaction rating with APTC trainingvii. While a 2013 survey of APTC graduates showed that
95% of graduates were satisfied with all aspects of APTC training and the impact it had on their
personal and professional development one year after they had graduated from APTC.viii
It is worth noting that of the 6,211 APTC graduates between 2007 and 2014, as of June 2014
APTC 160 or 2.6% successfully migrated.ix There are undoubtedly many reasons for this
relatively low number, including a preference among graduates to stay and work in the Pacific
Islands. However, immigration rules also play a factor, and the Department should seek to
explore any barriers to migrating to Australia with high performing providers like APTC.
Strategic international partnerships
As well as supporting current international education ventures, the strategy seeks to support the
development of new ventures. For example, in 2010, the Australia and India Education
Ministers signed a Joint Ministerial Statement agreeing to establish a bi-national body, the
Australia India Education Council (AIEC), with representation from academia, government and
industry to further education collaboration.
The AIEC has endorsed five key projects including skills, higher education collaboration,
research, quality assurance and student mobility. India, provided a project concept proposal to
the AIEC Skills Working Group that involved Australian Industry Skills Councils (ISCs)
collaborating with some of India’s emerging Sector Skill Councils (SSCs).
As part of this initiative, CS&HISC is working with the Indian Health Sector Skills Council to
apply Australia’s expertise to assist in the development of industry-led occupational standards
to support the development of India’s health workforce. Through regular engagement,
CS&HISC is sharing our protocols, governance and processes for developing national
qualifications as well as other activities including our Environmental Scan and workforce
development initiatives.
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Community Services and Health Industry Skills Council Submission
Draft National Strategy for International Education
May 2015
CS&HISC has also agreed to map the Certificate III in Individual Support (CHC33015) from the
Community Services Training Package against the Health Sector Skills Council’s Home Health
Aide (HSS/Q510). However current immigration policy and differences between the two
countries’ regulatory frameworks are significant barriers to both skilled migration in this area
and mutual recognition of qualifications.
6. What would you like to see progressed as a priority for the strategy in the
first year?
As discussed in our responses to previous questions, a weakness of the draft strategy is that it
does not describe the underlying infrastructure required to deliver it. Effective implementation of
the strategy will rely on strong engagement across governments, countries as well as a wide
range of public and private sector bodies.
To establish the necessary infrastructure will require the identification of any key stakeholders
that need to be involved in delivering the strategy, recognition of their respective roles and
defining how these stakeholders will work together to identify barriers to implementation and
develop solutions.
As a priority for the strategy in the first year, CS&HISC would like to see identification of the
specific parties responsible for the delivery of the strategic actions and the establishment of an
accountability framework. In addition to this, as stated in our response to question five, it is
imperative that an approach to performance monitoring and evaluation be developed. Such an
approach would support evidence-based decision making by the Department to inform future
international education policy development.
Beyond these initial priorities, we would particularly welcome any actions that seek to address
the additional goal that we identified in question three, which is:
‘Australia’s approach to international education will be responsive to our workforce
development priorities, both domestically and in relation to Australia’s interests
overseas.’
7. Is there anything else you would like to raise that will help develop the final
National Strategy for International Education?
As one of its key strategic actions, the draft strategy recommends utilising a highly regarded
Australian VET system as a vehicle for driving increased economic prosperity, social
advancement and the international reputation of Australia, through the exportation of education
services by private VET providers. As stated in Strategic action 6.2 – Enhancing opportunities
to provide education services overseas,
‘Australia is well placed to support the development of industry-led regional occupational
and training standards, which can be benchmarked against Australian standards. This in
turn may give rise to a new era of offshore training delivery of internationalised courses,
and support more effective skills recognition and increased mobility of skilled labour.’
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Community Services and Health Industry Skills Council Submission
Draft National Strategy for International Education
May 2015
Currently, the VET system is undergoing significant reform and is likely to experience additional
cuts to its funding. This has been an ongoing trend for the sector over the past decade.
Between 1999 and 2011, government spending on VET (on a per annual hour basis) reduced
by 25% (Australian Workforce and Productivity Agency, 2013).x More recent data indicates that
since 2011, funding for VET has continued to decline (Productivity Commission, 2015).xi This
reduction in VET funding coincides with increased demand for VET qualified workers.
In order to ensure that the VET sector has the capacity to support strategic action 6.2,
continued investment in VET is critical. Ongoing investment will enhance VET providers’ ability
to operate efficiently and effectively at a domestic level and increase their capacity to engage
successfully at the international level to support increased mobility of workers and capitalise on
new economic opportunities.
References
i
) The Treasury (2013). DisablityCare Australia: Stronger, Smarter, Fairer. Canberra
ii
) King D, Mavromaras K, Wei Z, et al. (2013) The aged care workforce 2012: final report, Australian
Government Department of Health and Ageing, Canberra.
iii
) Centre of Excellence for Popuation Ageing Research (2014). Aged care in Australia: Part II – Industry
and Practice, CEPAR research brief 2014/01, Australian Research Council, Canberra.
iv
v
) Hosie, A., Vogl, G., Hoddinott, J., Carden, J., & Comeau, Y. (2014). Crossroads: Rethinking the
Australian mental health system, Inspire Foundation, Sydney.
) Health W orkforce Australia (2013). National Rural and Remote Health Workforce Innovation and
Reform Strategy, Adelaide.
vi
) Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (2014). Cultural and linguistic diversity measures in aged
care, Canberra.
vii
) APTC (2013). Employer satisfaction survey, accessed May 2015,
http://www.aptc.edu.au/index.php/our-performance
viii
) APTC (2013). Graduate satisfaction survey, accessed May 2015,
http://www.aptc.edu.au/index.php/our-performance
ix
) APTC (2014). Enrolments, graduates and migrations, accessed May 2015,
http://www.aptc.edu.au/index.php/our-performance
x
) Australian W orkforce and Productivity Agency (2013). Future focus: 2013 National workforce
development strategy, Commonwealth of Australia, Canberra.
xi
) Productivity Commission (2015). Report on Government Services 2015, Volume F: Community
Services, Steering Committee for the Review of Government Service Provision, Canberra
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Community Services and Health Industry Skills Council Submission
Draft National Strategy for International Education
May 2015