Education minister in talks with universities after Gold Coast records worst enrolment slump

Education minister Grace Grace revealed a key tertiary education body is being internally reviewed after the Gold Coast recorded its worst university enrolment slump. READ THE FULL STORY

Queensland Education Minister Grace Grace says a complete overhaul of the university admission process is on the table amid a statewide decline in tertiary enrolments.

It comes after Griffith University Vice Chancellor Carolyn Evans revealed that the Gold Coast recorded one of the worst enrolment slumps in the state this past year.

“The Gold Coast this year is seeing an 8 per cent drop and this is on a declining market across the state of the country in terms of applications for university,” Professor Evans said.

“We are below Brisbane, we are below the rest of southeast Queensland.”

Qld Education Minister Grace Grace says the state is working with the tertiary education sector to address falling university enrollments. Picture: Amaani Siddeek

This year, Queensland recorded a 3.9 per cent decline in domestic student enrolments.

However speaking to The Bulletin, Ms Grace revealed that following a meeting with Queensland vice chancellors on Tuesday, that a major overhaul of the Queensland Tertiary Admissions Centre was being considered with a “big review” now underway.

“They (vice chancellors) are looking at QTAC. They’re reviewing the whole way students enter universities and they explained to me that there has been a big review on,” Ms Grace said.

“I’m happy that (students) have a great choice these days but obviously we want to make sure that we keep our (enrolment) levels up.”

Ms Grace said a combination of Covid pandemic and cost-of-living was driving more school leavers to head directly into the workforce.

“We’ve just come off three years of atypical learning,” Ms Grace said.

“A lot of students struggled with online learning, or teachers weren’t available because of Covid.

Proffessor Carolyn Evans said Gold Coast university enrolments are on the decline. Picture: Glenn Campbell

“So when employers are demanding and needing workers, when they have a lovely offer for a student, they might decide to have a gap year and take up that employment. And we welcome that.

“But we need to have students entering university just as much as we need them entering into trades and other industries.”

QTAC CEO Dr John Griffiths said: “QTAC are owned by the institutions and we are always reviewing our processes and practices to support a healthy tertiary environment.”

“Last year a review of QTAC’s governance was undertaken and the recommendations are progressively being implemented. We are always looking to support the education sector - our Institutions and our applicants with the best possible outcomes for all.”

Government data shows that unemployment rates are the highest in people who forego higher education. However workers who have a Bachelor degree or higher face the lowest unemployment rates in Australia.

The latest federal Labour Market Update also revealed that the fastest-growing industries in Asutralia will require a university degree. And by 2050, more than half of all jobs will require higher education qualification.

Ms Grace said: “It’s our priority to make sure that when students leave school that they are well equipped for further employment, education or training.

“At the moment industries are crying out for workers. But we’re always looking about how do we balance between that vocational and higher education.”