The reasons why students do not complete their training courses are a complex mix of institutional, social and personal factors, according to a new research report by a University of Queensland academic released this week by the National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER).
The report, by Professor Victor Callan from The University of Queensland Business School, says the students who do not complete their training course are more likely to be unemployed and their highest previous education level likely to be Year 10 or less.
Professor Callan found the reasons why these students do not complete their course relate to quality of teaching staff, course content not meeting students’ needs and students not able to fit the course into the demands of their job or personal life.
The research provides insights for training providers for the development of strategies to improve completion levels through managing students’ needs more effectively.
"These students require a greater level of support from their training provider," said Professor Callan.
"Training providers need to look at ways they can improve teaching quality for these students and pay attention to the flexibility of courses and relevance of course content."
The report suggests that strategies such as greater access to flexible study options, and improved information about course content and demands prior to enrolment and during orientation could assist in addressing the mismatch between students’ expectations and course demands.
"The true picture about these students is still quite unclear as many of these students do in fact return to complete their training," says Professor Callan.
"However, current student data does not track easily the movements of individual students in and out of the different courses and training providers."
The study suggests the number of students not completing courses is overestimated and having data available that tracks students over time would provide a more accurate picture of the true level of non-completion.
Why do students leave? Leaving vocational education and training with no recorded achievement. can be downloaded from NCVER’s website at http://www.ncver.edu.au/publications/1566.html.
Media inquiries: Anna Payton, NCVER Marketing Officer (08 8230 8467), Professor Victor Callan (07 3365 9009), or UQ Business School Marketing Manager Cathy Stacey (07 3365 6179 or 0434 074 372.)
