Victoria records lowest student drop out rate in six years as more seniors choose to stay in school

For years the trend was going in one direction but latest figures show a sudden shift in attitude, while a gap remains between boys and girls on completing VCE.

More Victorian students are choosing to finish off their schooling, with the state’s dropout rate the lowest it’s been since 2018.

The number of Victorian Year 10 students who went on to complete Year 12 in 2024 reached a six-year high, in a sign the state’s alarming dropout trend is taking a positive turn.

Sixteen per cent of pupils who were undertaking Year 10 studies in 2022 didn’t graduate high school last year, the latest apparent retention figures released by the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA) on Wednesday revealed.

This figure is the lowest dropout rate for students completing Years 10 to 12 the state has seen since 2018, and comes despite the apparent retention rate across all school sectors plummeting to a 10-year-low of 81.9 per cent in 2023.

Apparent retention rates estimate the progression of full-time students through school over time, with the figures included in ACARA’s National Report on Schooling in Australia 2024.

One quarter of Victorian Year 10 government school students did not go on to finish Year 12 in 2023, which was the highest dropout rate in a decade.

But in 2024, the data shows more students opted to stay in school, with the apparent retention rate for pupils in Year 10 going on the complete Year 12 that year being 4.1 per cent higher than the national average.

At the government school level, one in five students dropped out of school between Years 10 to 12 last year, while at independent schools just 3.7 per cent of senior students quit their secondary studies in the same period.

Current Victorian Year 12 student Annie said it was encouraging to see more students completing high school, adding a big part of the change was schools were supporting different learning pathways including VCE, VET and applied learning options.

“When students feel like school is actually preparing them for real life, they’re more likely to stick with it,” she said.

“I think the rise in retention shows things are slowly improving, but there’s still a long way to go.”

One in five government school students dropped out between Years 10 to 12.

Across all sectors, the senior dropout rate for boys was higher, with nearly 24 per cent of Victorian male Year 10 students leaving before year 12, compared to 16 per cent of girls.

VicSRC chief executive Julia Baron said while the increase in retention was a positive sign, it’s still too soon to celebrate.

“The recent report shows a modest rise in retention, but it’s important to remember that retention has been falling in recent years, so this is no sign for us to slow down on supporting students to remain engaged in school,” she said.

“It’s crucial that to increase retention, we need to hear directly from students about the existing barriers and what they need from their education.”

Meanwhile, School Can’t Australia director Tiffany Westphal said it was critical to look beyond the attendance figures as “a student sitting in a classroom does not necessarily feel safe or supported”.

“Too many students are still pushed to comply with expectations that don’t account for their individual needs, leading to increased distress, mental health decline, and eventual disengagement,” she said.

“School Can’t Australia urges policymakers and educators to read between the lines of the retention data and ask: Who is still being left behind? Who had to leave for these numbers to go up?”

VicSRC chief executive Julia Baron said while the increase in retention was a positive sign, it’s still too soon to celebrate.

Education Minister Ben Carroll said he was proud of the range of education pathways that Victorian schools offered to students, helping them stay in the classroom for longer.

“More and more Victorian students are choosing the VCE Vocational Major – the biggest reform to senior secondary schooling in a generation where they can get their Victorian Certificate of Education while learning hands-on skills in health, construction, engineering and agriculture – the careers that help drive the future of Victoria,” he said.

“We’re proud to back our students with great schools, excellent education and diverse vocational and academic pathways so, no matter what you want to be when you leave school, Victoria has a pathway for you to achieve it.”