How You’re More Likely to Complete a VET Qualification!

What factors explain the likelihood of completing a VET qualification?

People participate in vocational education and training (VET) for a variety of reasons and at different stages of their life. Some undertake VET to gain the vocational skills necessary to enter the labour market for the first time, while others enter in order to upgrade existing skills, learn new ones, or simply for personal interest.

An analysis by the NCVER revealed that the top 10 factors that explain the likelihood of completing a VET qualification are:

• course field of education
• labour force status
• course qualification level
• mode of attendance – classroom-based only, electronic-based only, employment based only, others (for example, correspondence), recognition of prior learning only, multiple modes of learning.
• client apprenticeship flag – whether the course was part of an apprenticeship or traineeship
• training provider type – RTO’s, TAFE, Institutes, Universities)
• whether the course was commenced full-time

What factors explain the likelihood of completing a VET qualification?

• training package flag (whether the course was part of an apprenticeship or traineeship)
• state/territory that administered the funding of the training activity
• reason for undertaking the training Our research also reveals that (in no particular order):
• Disadvantaged students (that is, Indigenous students, students with a disability and students from a low socioeconomic [SES] background) have a lower likelihood of completion.
• Students less likely to complete tend to be those enrolled in a certificate I or II qualification.
• Conversely, students in an apprenticeship or traineeship or who enrol full-time are more likely to complete the VET qualifications.
• Additionally, the use of multiple modes of learning increases the likelihood of completion.

Conditional on those who were enrolled in certificate III and the above, full-time study status becomes an important variable. The study has observed that studying full-time is likely to increase the probability of completing a VET qualification (60.5%). On the other hand, those who were not enrolled full-time had a lower likelihood of completion, at 40.4%.

The research What factors explain the likelihood of completing a VET qualification? uses data collected from students who commenced government-funded VET qualifications in 2011 and 2012 at certificate I level and above, using data from the National VET Provider Collection.

View the tool and supporting document now at https://www.ncver.edu.au/infographics.

This work has been produced by NCVER on behalf of the Australian Government and state and territory governments, with funding provided through the Australian Government Department of Education and Training.