Latest news with #e61
Sydney Morning Herald
3 days ago
- General
- Sydney Morning Herald
ATAR in the 50s? The universities where struggling students can study teaching
An analysis by economic research institute e61 earlier this year said within the profession, the annual attrition rate for teachers had fallen since 2009 and was actually lower than the turnover rate in all other occupation groups. Loading However, it said there were fewer new teachers in the pipeline because not as many students chose to pursue a teacher education degree at university. Its analysis said setting a minimum ATAR requirement may reduce attrition by screening out candidates who are less well prepared to deal with the academic demands of teaching. Its analysis matched ATARs with tax office data. It said very high-ATAR candidates were more likely to switch careers later on because they could get better pay elsewhere. Recent years have seen a nationwide teacher shortage while about half of the people who enrol in a teaching degree drop out before finishing it. University of Melbourne higher education expert Andrew Norton said unsuitable candidates for teaching were opting out. 'To me this has been a dilemma for years... if you say no to enrolments, you are actually denying an opportunity to someone who might finish,' he said. In 2025, there was a 7 per cent increase in applications to enter teaching degrees. Grattan Institute education program director Dr Jordana Hunter said it was important that teachers had a deep understanding of the subject matter, including in primary school where graduates must teach across maths, English, humanities and science. 'A lot of primary school teachers don't feel confident teaching maths,' she said. Loading 'There is a lot of work for universities to do to make sure all graduate students have the content knowledge ... it is also important for employers, in particular the public and Catholic system, to ensure students have opportunity to upskill in the subject matter they're teaching. 'Other countries like England and Singapore invest a lot more in developing teachers' maths knowledge – we should be doing the same in Australia.' The University of Canberra had some of the lowest ATARs. Its education faculty dean Barney Dalgarno said circumstances can occur during year 12 that prevent a student from achieving their desired ATAR. 'We believe that it is misleading to judge a teacher education student's capability solely on the basis of their school academic performance in high school,' he said. Last year, only 25 per cent of domestic education students at that institution were admitted based on their ATAR due to early entry schemes. At Australian Catholic University, where the median ATAR was just above 62 for some courses for primary school teaching, its interim executive dean of education and arts Professor Phil Parker said students must pass the rigorous Graduate Teacher Performance Assessment. 'It is rare for students to be accepted with ATARs below the cut off, but when they are, it's often because there are extenuating personal circumstances that we – like all universities – consider,' he said.
The Age
3 days ago
- General
- The Age
ATAR in the 50s? The universities where struggling students can study teaching
An analysis by economic research institute e61 earlier this year said within the profession, the annual attrition rate for teachers had fallen since 2009 and was actually lower than the turnover rate in all other occupation groups. Loading However, it said there were fewer new teachers in the pipeline because not as many students chose to pursue a teacher education degree at university. Its analysis said setting a minimum ATAR requirement may reduce attrition by screening out candidates who are less well prepared to deal with the academic demands of teaching. Its analysis matched ATARs with tax office data. It said very high-ATAR candidates were more likely to switch careers later on because they could get better pay elsewhere. Recent years have seen a nationwide teacher shortage while about half of the people who enrol in a teaching degree drop out before finishing it. University of Melbourne higher education expert Andrew Norton said unsuitable candidates for teaching were opting out. 'To me this has been a dilemma for years... if you say no to enrolments, you are actually denying an opportunity to someone who might finish,' he said. In 2025, there was a 7 per cent increase in applications to enter teaching degrees. Grattan Institute education program director Dr Jordana Hunter said it was important that teachers had a deep understanding of the subject matter, including in primary school where graduates must teach across maths, English, humanities and science. 'A lot of primary school teachers don't feel confident teaching maths,' she said. Loading 'There is a lot of work for universities to do to make sure all graduate students have the content knowledge ... it is also important for employers, in particular the public and Catholic system, to ensure students have opportunity to upskill in the subject matter they're teaching. 'Other countries like England and Singapore invest a lot more in developing teachers' maths knowledge – we should be doing the same in Australia.' The University of Canberra had some of the lowest ATARs. Its education faculty dean Barney Dalgarno said circumstances can occur during year 12 that prevent a student from achieving their desired ATAR. 'We believe that it is misleading to judge a teacher education student's capability solely on the basis of their school academic performance in high school,' he said. Last year, only 25 per cent of domestic education students at that institution were admitted based on their ATAR due to early entry schemes. At Australian Catholic University, where the median ATAR was just above 62 for some courses for primary school teaching, its interim executive dean of education and arts Professor Phil Parker said students must pass the rigorous Graduate Teacher Performance Assessment. 'It is rare for students to be accepted with ATARs below the cut off, but when they are, it's often because there are extenuating personal circumstances that we – like all universities – consider,' he said.
Sky News AU
21-07-2025
- Business
- Sky News AU
Labor's 20 per cent student debt cut delivers only 7.9 per cent real reduction, parliamentary analysis finds
The Albanese government's much-celebrated 20 per cent student debt cut will deliver only a 7.9 per cent real reduction, new parliamentary library analysis has revealed. The research, released by the Australian Greens on Monday, showed the $16 billion student debt relief package has been eroded by three years of indexation. High inflation over the first term of the Albanese government caused student debts to balloon as they were indexed each financial year. According to the analysis, students owing $30,000 in loans when Labor came to power will see their debt cut to $27,619 after indexation and the 20 per cent cut are applied. That is just $2,381 in relief, or a 7.9 per cent reduction on their original balance. Despite the government's changes to indexation, the compounding impact of annual increases has significantly diluted the long-term benefit of the one-off policy. The policy drew widespread criticism when it was announced for its high cost and perceived unfairness, particularly for taxpayers without student debt. The total cost of the policy was earmarked at $16 billion, providing assistance to just three million people, while 24 million Australians without HELP debt receive nothing. Concerns over fairness also intensified after Sky News revealed that nearly 40,000 overseas-based debtors will receive close to $50 million in taxpayer-funded relief. The students that were most reckless with their loans also stand to benefit the most, with some individuals racking up hundreds of thousands in debt. Not-for-profit research body e61 Institute recently exposed the way the policy will unfairly benefit students who graduated in 2024. University students who finished their degrees in 2024 will receive twice as much relief as people who left in 2020, according to e61. 'Most HELP debt is held by university graduates, who have much higher lifetime incomes than the average taxpayer,' e61 Research Economist Matthew Maltman said. 'And even if you look within graduates, those with more costly degrees tend to go on to earn higher incomes in the future. 'The current policy isn't at all targeted and that means it's going to give a very large amount of debt relief to future lawyers, dentists and doctors.'
AU Financial Review
03-07-2025
- Business
- AU Financial Review
The graduates getting a winning deal on HECS debt relief
Graduates who enter some of the highest-paid professions, such as medicine, dentistry and law, stand to be the biggest beneficiaries of the Albanese government's 20 per cent cut to student loans. New analysis by economics think tank e61 found people who graduated at the end of last year would also receive a debt cut more than twice as large as those who completed a few years earlier.
Perth Now
02-07-2025
- Business
- Perth Now
Dire flaw in Labor's student fee cut plan
A flat $5500 reduction of HELP debt would deliver better uniform relief for Australians with student debt, with analysis of Labor's signature policy finding that the cost-of-living relief would currently largely help high-income earners. The research, released by not-for-profit research body e61 Institute on Thursday found the policy as is, doesn't meaningfully speed up debt repayment, and unfairly benefits students who graduated in 2024. Instead of a 20 per cent cut to balances, e61 said the relief would be better targeted if Australia's with student debt were given a flat $5500 cut. The figure also represents the average amount set to be wiped across all HELP accounts. e61 said that a $5500 reduction would help 35 per cent of account holders make their final repayment in an earlier year, or 15 per cent more debt holders than a 20 per cent discount. New analysis from e61 urged Labor to consider a flat $5500 cut to student debts, instead of a 20 per cent cut. NewsWire/ Nicholas Eagar Credit: NewsWire e61 Research Economist Matthew Maltman said the benefits of a straight cut was important factor due to the policy's $16bn price tag, which equals the annual cost of Jobseeker. 'Most HELP debt is held by university graduates, who have much higher lifetime incomes than the average taxpayer. And even if you look within graduates, those with more costly degrees tend to go on to earn higher incomes in the future,' he said. 'You could make the argument that we need to provide debt relief to humanities students in a targeted way because of Job Ready Graduates. 'But the current policy isn't at all targeted and that means it's going to give a very large amount of debt relief to future lawyers, dentists and doctors who are going to go on to enjoy very high lifetime incomes.' Labor says its 20 per cent cut to student debt will be the first piece of legislation it will pass once parliament resumes on July 22. NewsWire/ Martin Ollman Credit: News Corp Australia University students who finished their degrees in 2024 will also receive twice as much relief as people who left in 2020, and two and a half times more than students who are currently in their first year of a three year degree. e61 Senior Research Economist Jack Buckley said this would create a debt relief lottery. 'If you cut 20 per cent of each individual's balance, it means two very similar people will receive very different amounts of debt relief simply because one finished their degree in 2024 and the other finished a few years earlier or later,' said Mr Buckley. Anthony Albanese has repeatedly said the 20 per cent cut to HELP debts will be the first piece of legislation passed when parliament returns on July 22, with the changes backdated to account balances as of June 1. Labor is also set to increase the debt repayment threshold from $56,156 to $67,000, repayments of payment will also be lowered.
