Automotive apprentices defy national trend
1 September 2005
Automotive apprentices at Kangan Batman TAFE are defying the national apprentice completion rate trend with more than 70 per cent finishing their studies. A recent report by the National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER) puts the national trend at 60 per cent.
The report Apprentice and Trainee Completion Rates was released on 12 August 2005 and details completion rates for apprentices and trainees who commenced their contracts between 1995 and 1999. Whilst completion rates have declined overall for traditional apprentices from 71 per cent for the 1995 group to 60 per cent for the 1999 group, the figure at Kangan Batman TAFE for automotive apprentices has remained at 72 per cent.
Manager of the Industrial Technologies Group at Kangan Batman TAFE, Phill Murphy, says there are many reasons why the Institute has a high success rate with apprentices and trainees in the automotive field.
“Our rolling enrolments enable employers to start apprentices throughout the year, meaning they can start and finish their course at any time,” said Mr Murphy.
“We also use variety of teaching methods including self-paced, teacher centred, and mini lessons, and being one of the largest automotive providers in Australia we can be responsive to the diverse needs of students and employers,” he said. “The ability to be flexible with training methods and structure means both students and employers are catered for.”
Mr Murphy also cited the high customer service standards in the automotive department, reflecting the Institute’s commitment to students and employers, as being a contributing factor to high completion rates.
“Our learning materials are constantly reviewed and updated to match what is being used in industry and staff are kept up to date with industry practices.”
On top of this we also have very strong links with the industry that not only support our purpose but also provides on going advice on improving our services.
Kangan Batman TAFE is currently building an Automotive Centre of Excellence in the Docklands area of Melbourne which will be operational in 2006. Mr Murphy says the Centre will provide students with state-of-the-art training equipment and links to industry which will encourage and motivate them even further to complete their training as automotive apprentices.
The report also finds the completion rates have increased for those who were not traditional apprentices from 47 per cent for the 1995 cohort to 52 per cent for the 1999 cohort (same trade, different employer). See http://www.ncver.edu.au/statistics/aats/completion/sp403.pdf for a copy of the report.
