Micro-credentials are stand alone or complementary qualifications that can be completed in a short timeframe.

The scheme expects to benefit 4000 students and is an effort to promote 'lifelong learning' to tackle skills and workforce shortages in teaching, nursing, IT and engineering fields.

Funding can be applied for by universities and higher education institutions, which then offer the courses to students, instead of students themselves being direct applicants as is more usual for most short courses.

Education Minister Jason Clare said the funding will increase the higher education sector's ability to respond to industry needs.

"With more and more jobs requiring a post-school qualification, it is increasingly important for people to upskill and reskill throughout their careers," the minister said.

"This investment means more Australians can get the skills in areas we need, such as teaching, nursing, and engineering."

Expert in higher education Andrew Norton said short courses have long been popular for employees who are upskilling in their already established careers, and students are usually in their late 20s to early 40s.

The Australian National University professor questioned the need for extra funding into micro qualifications because, he says, for this cohort, the lack of time to up- and re-skill is often more of a barrier than cost.

"Most microcredentials are cheap compared to degrees and the main customers – employees and well-paid employees – can afford to pay without government assistance," he said.

Mr Norton said employers are historically less interested in formal qualifications (microcredentials) when an employee is already skilled and established, which is why informal (unaccredited) short courses are so popular.

"For decades the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) has found that various kinds of short courses are the most common form of education for people already in their careers," he said.

"Generally I think universities will only be niche players in what is already a large and competitive market.

"Universities could be strong in highly specialised areas where other providers don’t have the capacity to offer courses."

This is the second round of the microcredentials funding, following an initial round of $7.75m for 28 new courses at 18 total universities.

Educational institutions can apply for the funding until March 1 2024.

Provost Nicola Phillips said the move, to be announced on Wednesday, was “a significant new direction” for the institution, which ranks first in Australia in all three major global university ranking systems.

By 2030, the university will invest $64m a year in scholarships and other assistance for indigenous students, those from low socio economic status groups and other disadvantaged students who face barriers.

Currently only one-tenth of undergraduates at Melbourne are indigenous, from low socio-economic background or from regional and remote areas, and the university aims to raise this to one-quarter of its undergraduate cohort.

The university will announce a new Narrm scholarship program, offering $6,500 a year toward living expenses, to all indigenous and low SES students.

Narrm is the Woi Wurrung word for the Melbourne region, meaning “place”.

The scholarship will also be available to some others facing major barriers to enrolling at university which could include a disability, a medical condition, or difficult personal circumstances.

The first group of Narrm scholars will start their courses in 2024.

Narrm scholars from regional and remote areas will also be offered a $3,000 allowance to help them relocate.

University of Melbourne chancellor Jane Hansen – who was the first in her family, and the only one in her year level at public high school, to attend university – said she strongly backed the plan.

“Ensuring as many students as are able, but who may not have the means, to attend university is a priority that I deeply support and am closely involved in,” she said.

The university will offer Narrm scholars extensive academic and personal support.

They will have a tailored enrichment program to build their sense of belonging and connection, and be offered work placements and professional development.

Professor Phillips said the university had “work to do” in outreach to schools and community groups so that potential students were aware of the opportunity.

She said the university also had to ensure that its admission criteria accurately judged the potential of a student, as well as taking their prior achievement into account.

Increasing the number of disadvantaged students at university is expected to be a priority of the federal government’s soon to be announced Universities Accord, and it could offer further funding.

Increasing public sector employment is a priority for the 2023-24 spending, and will see teaching, nursing and trade courses at university and TAFE incentivised.

Infrastructure spending

To support an improvement in healthcare, university campuses will see investment for new-and-improved facilities.

All universities in NSW and the ACT will share in a $70.2 million investment for new laboratories and pre-clinical trial spaces to facilitate early-stage drug developments for human and animal diseases.

The University of Sydney (USYD) will receive $149.3 million for their co-funded partnership with the Sydney Local Health District to build a biomedical research complex spanning the university campus and the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital.

Macquarie University will be funded with an $81.4 million expenditure to improve their bus interchange and transport precinct, connecting the university to the Macquarie centre, business park and surrounding residential and commercial areas.

Meadowbank's Institute of Applied Technology – Digital facility was completed with a $128.9 million investment to deliver practical learning courses in partnership with TAFE , Microsoft, the University of Technology Sydney and Macquarie.

Men in care jobs

The government is targeting gender-bias in jobs such as nursing and care by decreasing study costs at universities and VET (vocational education and training) facilities, attempting to increase the number of men in these workforces.

The budget states only 18.3 per cent of VET courses and 13.6 per cent of university commencements in nursing are male students, resulting in the 10.2 per cent of men that make up Australia's midwifery and nursing workforce.

Scholarships

Gender-bias has encouraged investment into scholarships and study relief for healthcare workers at university, which the government said will result in better quality care for patients.

Study subsidies will be given to 12,000 healthcare students at a cost of $121.9 million over five years, including a $4,000 scholarship for each year of study, with existing students receiving a one-off payment of $8,000 to boost the healthcare workforces.

Early childhood education workers will also receive a $22 million investment into their professional development and university costs.

Increase in fee-free vocational training

Vocational education, such as TAFE, will receive a 'thorough review' and $112 million to meet its funding shortfall, along with supported fee concessions for people with welfare beneficiaries or a disability when undertaking Certificate IV and below qualifications through the Smart and Skilled program. 

In-demand skills in industries will be met with 1,000 extra apprentices by 2026 at a cost of $93.5 million, and fee-free training for formal components of apprenticeships and traineeships.

A recent labour market update reported professions that require a skill level of two to four, where vocational education and training (VET) qualifications are the primary pathway, accounted for over half of total employment growth over the year to May 2023.

NSW treasurer Daniel Mookhey announced the budget in parliament, explaining how the $3.6 billion Essential Services Fund will enable the government to negotiate workplace changes and improve these services.

"I would much prefer to be able to spend money on the state’s essential services and essential workers, rather than have to write big cheques to the state’s bondholders," the treasurer said during his announcement.

"This is an investment New South Wales must make to deliver vital public services to the standard people expect."

The budget's $13 billion in cuts and savings and the tax increases on big multinationals will fund the promised $3.6 billion in pay rises for public sector workers such as nurses and teachers.

"If we want a world-class health system, we have to train, recruit and retain enough health workers to staff our hospitals," he said.

"The government will work to rebuild essential services by working to fill labour shortages.

“The Essential Services Fund will give them certainty and help bolster their ranks to ensure essential services workers are supported to deliver the best outcome for the people of New South Wales.”

NSW's overall debt is climbing and will reach $188.2 billion by 2026, exacerbated by rising interest rates.

However, the government forecasts there will be a $844 million surplus for 2024-25 thanks to this year's modest spending.

The $93.2 million program aims to fund 8,000 students over the two years, supplying $18,000 for a four-year undergraduate program or $9,000 for two years of postgraduate study, on the condition applicants work in a government school for two years after they graduate.

The scholarships are part of a wider $229.8 million package designed to grow the teaching industry overall, which former premier Daniel Andrews said he hoped will lessen the burden on overstretched teachers.

"Teachers change lives – it's as simple as that. This will mean one less barrier for Victorians thinking of a career in teaching, and more great teachers for the education state," Mr Andrews said at the launch.

In 2025, a $13.9 million 'employment-based degree trial will begin, which will allow teaching students to work paid internships in schools while studying. It is also hoped that this will act as a pathway for education support staff to gain teaching qualifications.

Professor in higher education studies at the Australian National University (ANU), Andrew Norton, told Campus Review that although this program may deliver some of the results the government hopes to see, he doesn't think it will entice more undergraduates to study teaching.

"I don't think it will attract people who weren't already seriously considering doing a teaching course, but it will help [students] complete their course, because some drop out due to financial reasons," he said.

"It will also make public sector employers more attractive compared to private school [employers].

Other initiatives taken by the Victorian government seem to be effective. Minister for Education Natalie Hutchins said this is why the teacher workforce in Victoria is growing, along with other investments made in the $204.8 million 'workforce initiatives' fund in the 2023/24 Victorian budget.

"The number of teachers in Victoria is increasing and that's no accident - we're delivering a range of initiatives that have helped grow the number of registered teachers in Victoria by nearly 5,000 between 2020 and 2022," the Minister said.

La Trobe University offers undergraduate and postgraduate secondary teaching courses on their Bundoora, Bendigo, Albury-Wodonga, Shepparton and Mildura campuses.

La Trobe's dean of education, Professor Joanna Barbousas, said this scholarship will provide a much-needed boost for the sector.

“The Victorian government’s announcement today is warmly welcomed, this financial assistance will help incentivise more students to consider secondary school teaching, which in turn will help boost the secondary school teacher workforce," Ms Barbousas said.

The government also has plans to expand the $27 million Targeted Financial Incentives Program, which offers up to $50,000 incentives to graduates willing to take up rural and remote 'hard-to-staff' positions in government schools.

The NSW Treasury has estimated an additional 300,000 workers will be needed to fill critical jobs and skills gaps in the state by 2025-26, and this expanded workforce should come from cohorts currently struggling to enter or reenter the workforce.

The 2023-34 NSW state budget, announced last Tuesday, committed $5.8m for 1000 women to participate in the Future Women’s Job Academy to boost the state’s workforce.

The Academy received $8.1m in the federal budget to support 2,000 women over three years.

The $5.8m would expand the 12-month pilot program in NSW, which has already shown a 72 per cent success rate.

Future Women’s founder and managing director Helen McCabe told the media that NSW has an opportunity to get more women into the workforce while simultaneously addressing the state’s skills and labour shortage.

“Jobs Academy is the missing link.” Ms McCabe said.

“Jobs Academy works with employers, offering assistance to better prepare their workplaces to support flexible roles, build an environment where women can thrive and provide a pipeline of skilled labour,” she said.

Social enterprises join to upskill and reskill women facing hardship

In partnership with the NSW Treasury, the Office of Social Impact Investment (OSII) has announced a program to support the social and economic well-being of 650 women in NSW facing hardship.

"The initiative will enable job-focused social enterprises to provide essential skills, training and wraparound support to women striving to overcome obstacles [to employment]," NSW Training Services Director David Collins said.

Five social enterprises will participate in the program's delivery over the next two to four years, including Global Sisters, Scriibed, Success Works, The Bread and Butter Project and yourtown.

Scriibed's Banksia Acadamy will expand its proprietary training network to re-skill and up-skill women for a tech career.

“Through this contract with the NSW Government, we have our goals set on truly changing the trajectory for women survivors of domestic and family abuse,” Scriibed founder and chief Melanie Greblo said.

Global Sisters’ Solo Mums in Business program will help entrepreneurial mums start their own businesses.

“We’re excited to provide an incredible opportunity exclusively designed for solo mums who are receiving government support (Parenting Payment Single),” Global Sisters founder and chief Mandy Richards said.

“It’s incredibly difficult for solo mums to access flexible, secure and sustained employment when they are juggling family life.”

Women selected for the programs will gain invaluable real-world skills, experience, and exposure to more flexible roles and working environments, helping more women in NSW to enter or re-enter the workforce.

The federal government announced last Friday that universities can now apply for the 4,000 Commonwealth Supported Places (CSPs) designed to attract prospective graduates in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).

The $128.5m investment will fund the additional university places over four years and is designed to prepare more STEM graduates for a modern Australian workforce.

South Australian universities will receive 800 of the 4,000 CSPs as part of the Cooperation Agreement between the Commonwealth and the state to meet the needs of the AUKUS submarine program.

“We need more young Australians studying STEM subjects and developing the skills we need for the AUKUS program,” educatiion minister Jason Clare said.

“These additional university places will give more Australians a crack at a career in STEM.”

Increasing and diversifying the skills workforce

Contrary to popular belief, there are more career pathways into a STEM career than traditional higher education degrees.

The federal government’s Fee-Free TAFE has surged recent enrolments in technology, digital, and sovereign capability courses, which are designed to ‘train, retrain or upskill Australians and tackle skills shortages'.

STEM careers have traditionally been male-dominated; according to Deloitte Access Economics Australia’s STEM workforce: A survey of employers, women comprise only 31 per cent of the Australian tech industry.

The federal government set a target to grow Australia’s tech workforce to 1.2m by 2030, with this increased workforce having to come from diverse cohorts – particularly women.

One government initiative to help achieve this is Australia's Women in STEM Ambassador, which is holding a webinar, Evaluation in equity: ask the experts on September 11. The Office of Women in STEM Ambassador program is headed up by Professor Lisa Harvey-Smith, who was appointed in 2018 'to grow Australia’s skilled workforce by removing structural barriers to participation'.

Swinburne University has partnered with Australian tech company TechnologyOne on the Adrian di Marco Women in Software Development annual scholarship to encourage more women to explore careers in software development. The scholarship is named for the founder of the company who was a pioneer in enterprise resource planning (ERP) software.

Teisha Damman has won the inaugural scholarship. She hopes to work in cyber security and help create safer environments online.

Ms Damman started her Bachelor of ICT at Swinburne and will receive $30,000 towards her tuition over the next three years.

Applications for 2023 closed on March 31. Submission deadlines for the 2024 scholarship have not been confirmed.

Tertiary debt will swell this year after the indexation rate on Higher Education Loan Program debts rose from 0.6 per cent last year to 3.9 per cent this year.

The higher interest rate will add $923 to the average HELP debt of $23,685 this year, but the cost would double for many arts, law and business students due to graduate in the next three years after the former Morrison government slashed taxpayer subsidies for their courses from 2021.

Australian Taxation Office data reveals that student loan debt has more than doubled over the past seven years, with nearly three million students and graduates owing taxpayers a total of $69bn, which they must pay back through the tax system once they start earning more than the minimum wage.

The indexation increase is a double whammy for millennial students, who will be lumbered with higher debts as they try to enter an inflated housing market with rising rents and mortgage rates.

Student debts slice into a borrower’s spending power, as banks take HELP debts into account when deciding how much to lend for housing loans.

National Union of Students president Georgie Beatty warned that rising education costs are trapping students into poverty.

“Aspiring to a home, or even a car loan, seems like an unreachable dream to full-time uni students who are forced to work casualised jobs with low pay, often having to increase work hours to supplement low rates,’’ she told Campus Review.

“Students are left battling compounding debt on fees that are at an unprecedented high.’’

Under its Job-ready Graduates reform, taxpayer subsidies were increased for degrees in industries with skills shortages, but students were forced to borrow more to study in many other popular courses.

The price increases for degrees were grandfathered to exempt students who had enrolled before 2021.

But for students who graduate at the end of next year, debts will be as high as $43,000 for a degree in arts, law, business or finance, history, sport or gender studies.

Students in the fields of teaching, mathematics, nursing and agriculture face debts of $12,000, while those studying health, computer science, architecture, building and psychology will pay $24,062 for a three-year degree.

National Union of Students president Georgie Beatty warned that rising education costs are trapping students into poverty.

Beatty, who is an arts student, said the university regulator, the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency, had “failed miserably” in its duty to students to ensure the quality of education.

“Students who dreamed of the opportunities that university brings are bitterly disappointed by unmanageable class sizes, course cuts and staff who are so overworked they are incapable of providing us with quality feedback,’’ she said.

“All the while they are seeing astronomical university revenue surpluses that feel like a slap in the face.

“Education is supposed to be the great equaliser.

“Yet the raised (HELP) index, in conjunction with the Job-ready Graduates Package, is increasing the gap between the cost and quality of education.’’

A TEQSA spokesman said that the regulator was reviewing its student expert advisory group, which has not met since April last year.

“TEQSA recognises that in the post-pandemic environment there are major changes to the student experience,’’ he said.

“That’s why we are reviewing our student engagement approach to ensure we are best able to gain a diversity of perspectives from all cohorts of higher education students.’’

Graduates must start repaying their HELP loans once they earn $48,361 – almost half the average wage of $91,000 and barely more than the minimum wage of $42,000.

Graduates start repaying 1 per cent of their income towards the debt, but the rate rises to 6 per cent once they earn an average wage, and to 10 per cent if they earn $142,000.

The HELP scheme lets students postpone their tuition costs by borrowing up to $108,000 from the federal government, although students of medicine, dentistry, veterinary and aviation courses can borrow as much as $155,448.

The Australian Government Actuary estimates 15 per cent of debt incurred in 2020/21 will never be repaid.

The federal government wrote off HECS debts totalling $167 million in 2020/21 – a 75 per cent increase since 2016/17.

Loan repayments grew by only 56 per cent over the same period, up to $38.8 billion last financial year.

A new Space Tech hub in partnership with Swinburne University of Technology and Ernst & Young Australia aims to prevent climate change, protect the environment, build resilience in communities and boost the economy.

The project has been granted $3m from EY in order to anchor Swinburne’s global leadership in the space sector.

It forms part of the Swinburne’s Space Technology and Industry Institute to build space innovation and economic growth, as the sector is projected to reach a value of $1 trillion worldwide by 2040.

Director of Swinburne’s Space Technology and Industry Institute, Professor Alan Duffy, told Campus Review that the hub aims to drive impact by solving challenges for companies and communities through space.

One of the hub’s key focuses is to help communities and businesses across Australia to respond to natural disasters.

“We have delivered a national capability for AI detection of vegetation encroachment on remote rail lines using imagery from space, making possible more efficient maintenance at lower cost – all while reducing bushfire risks which lower carbon emissions overall,” Duffy said.

During the 2019-20 summer, Australia experienced the worst bushfires in the country’s history with more than 19 million hectares burnt, 1.25 billion animals died, 33 lives were lost and around 3,094 homes were destroyed.

In order to prevent a similar scenario, the Space Tech hub will implement astronomy techniques usually used to detect exploding stars to spot the sudden appearance of bushfires from space.

More recently, floods have taken their toll in Northern NSW and Queensland, with 23 deaths and thousands of people being forced to relocate.

The 2022 flood damages have been estimated at $3.35 billion so far, while the affected regions remain braced for more rain.

According to Duffy, the Space Tech hub aims to build a “more resilient nation that is able to use space to mitigate and adapt to the challenges of climate change”.

“By connecting that data from space with communities on the ground we can all be safer and healthier as a nation.

“This isn't just an opportunity for Australia, however; essentially all of the UN sustainable development goals for the world require space technology to address them,” he added.

In addition to keeping an eye on the planet, Duffy wishes to position Australia as a leader in the space sector and develop a pipeline of talent at Swinburne.

“The partnership allows us to reach a scale and impact of our space activities that we simply couldn't achieve [otherwise].

“Swinburne researchers will bring world-class knowledge of Earth Observation and AI along with providing our students internships at the cutting edge of space tech with one of the great consultancy groups."

Researchers at Swinburne will work alongside 15 EY scientists, AI specialists and data and analytics experts.

“We work as an integrated team from pitch to project delivery, meeting client needs over the course of several month-long software sprints,” Duffy said.

By growing Australia's national space industry, Duffy believes that the country will be more competitive and deliver solutions to the wider economy.

“We also [want] to show just how critical Australian space tech is to all of us and that in turn will drive investment in the sector, further enhancing our competitiveness,” Duffy said.

On Monday, the Coalition government announced the last round of Trailblazer grants, which awarded USQ $50m to build a rocket manufacturing precinct in the region.

The iLaunch hub will be used to develop equipment and infrastructure for rocket launches, senors, satellites and in-space communications.

Professor Peter Schubel, who will lead the USQ hub, says the project will generate "critical research" and draw rocket companies to Australia.

"Our industry partners have identified $3.65 billion in economic benefits associated with the 18 core iLaunch commercialisation projects, which will accelerate Australian IP to market," Schubel says.

USQ will also create a new space engineering degree to direct more graduates into the industry.

Regionalisation minister Bridget McKenzie said the iLaunch project will help to generate thousands of jobs in regional Queensland.

"The new [USQ] Trailblazer will turbocharge our growing space industry, helping us to achieve our goal of having 20,000 space sector jobs by 2030," McKenzie said.

Estimates from US firm Morgan Stanley predict that by 2040, the $280 billion dollar global space sector could surge to over $1 trillion.

Since 2018-2019, the Australian Government has spent over $700 million to develop its space capabilities.

As part of the iLaunch project, USQ will partner with Australian National University and the University of Southern Australia.

UniSA researchers have been given $20m to develop 3D printed materials to build in-space hardware such as satellites, communications and sensors.

This will include the creation of a satellite "selfie stick" to facilitate space observation and better communications with earth.

Associate Professor Colin Hall, who will lead the UniSA node, says the hub will help to cement Australia's presence on the global space stage.

“This project will support university staff to commercialise their research and strengthen collaborations with industry, both of which are necessary to build a sovereign space capability in Australia,” Hall says.

"This is a wonderful opportunity for us, and our industry partners, to commercialise technology to grow Australia’s space manufacturing capability."

The latest trailblazer announcement was timed days before the federal election and included $50m for the University of Queensland to commercialise food and beverage products.

UQ will partner with the Queensland University of Technology, USQ and industry partners to "double the value of Australia’s food and beverage manufacturing sector through a focus on smart production and new ingredients".

Director of UQ’s Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation, Professor Matthew Morell, says the grant was a "game changer".

"This is about working together to create new technologies, products and businesses in the food and beverage sector which will ultimately create jobs and boost the Australian economy,” Morell said.

“This investment will allow innovative smaller businesses to accelerate their capacity for developing and manufacturing products that meet changing consumer needs, such as the desire for premium products."

This means for every $1 invested in the research sector, $5 would be returned to the economy, the peak body says.

Before the pandemic, Australian universities employed 260,000 people and contributed $41 billion to the economy. 

In order to face the challenges created by Covid-19, job losses and ongoing cuts to funding, Universities Australia will be submitting a report to the Productivity Commission outlining the need for a better research funding model.

Currently Australia’s tertiary research investments are falling behind international competitors, not even reaching the OECD average. 

As stated in the peak body submission, “for every one per cent increase in R&D, Australia’s productivity rises by 0.13% points”. 

According to Universities Australia chief executive Catriona Jackson, every part of society will benefit from an increase of productivity. 

“University graduates and researchers continue to tackle the biggest challenges, from developing new technologies and industries to responding to crises such as global pandemics and climate change,” said Jackson.

“Universities are helping build the workforce of tomorrow, generating the bright ideas we’ll need and powering businesses to innovate and thrive.”

Jackson also believes that one way to increase productivity in Australia is through collaboration between universities and industry sectors. 

“A shift in public support for business research and innovation – towards direct support and away from tax concessions – can better provide the incentives for businesses to do research and foster industry-university partnerships.”

The submission also encourages the creation of a partnership with community-based health services. This would provide students with a place to learn and complete their practical experience as well as help the staffing shortages in aged care, primary and disability care.

Universities Australia also highlights the need to provide adequate funding to universities to accommodate the rapid growth of graduates that will be choosing to attend tertiary institutions from 2024.

More than 600,000 new jobs will require a bachelor degree or higher by 2026 according to the predictions of the National Skills Commission.

“Australia’s enviable economic growth, low unemployment and high living standards depend largely on improving productivity, but our productivity growth has slowed,” said Jackson.

The submission also advocates for uncapped places to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students as well as a time-limited grant program, higher education loan program and a reduction of the red tape burden on universities.

The submission will be reviewed by the Productivity Commission over the coming months.