The National Skills Commission (NSC) has been tasked by the Australian Government to develop national efficient prices for Vocational Education and Training (VET) courses. 

Currently VET qualification prices, subsidies and fees vary considerably in the Australian VET market, which can lead to students in different states and territories paying different prices for the same course. 

A more nationally consistent approach to pricing based on the actual cost of delivery provides the opportunity for simpler, more transparent VET pricing arrangements that balance consistency with local needs.

As part of this work, the NSC undertook the first-ever national survey of Australian registered training organisations (RTOs) about the cost of delivering VET qualifications and training.

A mixture of public, private and community RTOs from all over Australia took part in the survey, which was completed in December 2021. Only RTOs that met a defined quality benchmark based on their student outcomes and regulatory history were included in the sample. The sample captures a quarter of all enrolments in training package qualifications and accredited courses.

The efficient pricing cost survey results will inform the NSC’s development of national efficient prices. It is critical to ensuring that the work delivered by the NSC reflects the experiences of RTOs and that any chosen pricing model reflects both quality outcomes for learners and value for money for governments and users.

Selected RTOs provided data and information relevant to the cost of their delivery of VET qualifications. This included qualification-specific costs and other costs, such as central and capital costs that are allocated to a qualification. RTOs were also asked to provide information on levels of training activity by qualification and information about specific groups of students and any costs related to specific programs for those students.

This information will allow the NSC to produce price estimates that take account of the varying costs of delivering training to different groups of students, in different locations and in different modes.

Deloitte Access Economics will only use the data and information provided by RTOs for the purpose of supporting the NSC to develop efficient prices for current VET qualifications. Deloitte Access Economics will provide the NSC with the original data provided by RTOs and aggregated or additional analysis conducted by Deloitte Access Economics.

The NSC complies with all relevant provisions of the Privacy Act 1998 and Australian Privacy Principles.

If you have any questions about the confidentiality of RTO information and data collected as part of the survey, please email NSCEfficientPricing@deloitte.com.au.

The purpose of the project is not to achieve a particular funding outcome, but to establish a robust nationally consistent efficient price framework based on the cost of current VET delivery. The approach underpinning this project emphasises that an efficient price is not necessarily the lowest price. It is the price that provides a quality outcome for the student, for industry and for government. Currently, state and territory governments set their own subsidy rates and fee arrangements. The final efficient price framework will be shared with the Australian Government and state and territory governments to help inform their decisions about subsidy rates, fee arrangements, and settings for VET Student Loans.

Decisions about the public release of information will be made by the NSC. The NSC complies with all relevant provisions of the Privacy Act 1998 and Australian Privacy Principles. If you have any questions about the publication of study results, please email the NSC at EfficientPricing@SkillsCommission.gov.au.

The NSC sits within the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations (the Department). The Department, its employees, contractors and agents, are subject to the Privacy Act 1988 (the Privacy Act) and to the requirements of the Australian Privacy Principles contained in the Privacy Act. The department’s privacy page can be found at: https://www.dewr.gov.au/privacy and includes information on how your personal information is handled. If you have any questions about the NSC’s efficient pricing work, please email the NSC at EfficientPricing@SkillsCommission.gov.au.