Success of NZ PTEs acknowledged in OECD report

Private training establishments' specialised tuition, use of technology and capital structure have often led to better cost structures than that of public providers, says a report to the OECD on tertiary education in New Zealand.

The report was prepared by the New Zealand Ministry of Education as input to the OECD's Thematic Review of Tertiary Education.

The report also mentions computer graphics and trades training as being examples of areas of study where private institutions have succeeded and now complement the pattern of provision offered by public institutions.

It also praises sub-contracting alliances between public and private institutions to provide courses in areas where there would not be a big enough population to make it worthwhile for public institutions to do so on their own.

The report says that the tertiary education funding system needs a greater focus on quality and value for money.

It says that in recent years the tertiary sector has shifted from a system that relied on student choice (demand-side) to one where the policy settings are aimed at providers (supply-side) meeting New Zealand's needs.

"There is a recognised need to balance the supply-side interventions with more work on the demand-side, primarily to continue to improve information to inform student choice, and to provide better means for employers to communicate their needs directly to potential students and tertiary institutions," the report says.

The New Zealand Country Background Report to the OECD can be downloaded as a PDF file by clicking here.

A Subtext story last month looked at another Ministry of Education report that was encouraging of PTEs, in particular their responsiveness to business. The Subtext story is at this web page.